Institute staff can request site visits and reverse site visits when they identify problems so they can resolve issues of confusion and provide constructive feedback.

Visits don't satisfy audit, reporting, or oversight requirements.
Institutions can ask NIAID staff for a voluntary site visit to examine facilities, evaluate protocols, or help with paperwork and management.

After a site visit or reverse site visit, NIAID sends the institution a report that summarizes the visit, describes the issues resolved, and lists any actions the institution must take moving forward.

Foreign institutions follow the same procedure as domestic institutions.

In a site visit, NIAID staff travel to grantee sites to do one of the following things:

Clarify statements in an application or proposal.
Verify that an institution is suitable for funding before it can get a grant.
Correct an institution's conduct or performance on a funded grant.

Before visiting an institution, NIAID explains the reason for the visit, confirms a visitation date, and provides a list of staff who will attend.

During the site visit, NIAID meets key staff and examines an institution's facilities, data, protocols, and accounting records.

Grants management staff look at project management.
Program officers look at scientific conduct.

In a reverse site visit, grantees come to NIAID to address concerns about project management or scientific conduct. These visits are required before applying for a P01 program project grant and are generally reserved for large, complex projects.

Applicants give a presentation in support of their project, followed by questions, feedback, and discussion.

If NIAID thinks applicants should not submit an application, it will ask them to revise their Specific Aims and schedule another reverse site visit for the revised application.
If NIAID thinks applicants are ready to apply, it will tell them.

A successful reverse site visit is not a guarantee of funding -- the application still needs to go through the normal review process.

Institutions

To requests a visit, send a letter to the NIAID staff listed on your Notice of Award.
- For administrative issues, contact the grants management officer.
- For scientific issues, contact the program officer.
To get ready for a site visit, do the following:
- Prepare your facilities for inspection.
  - Clean up everything.
  - Get your documents in order, and make sure they're written in or translated into English.
- Arrange tours and presentations for NIAID visitors.
- Plan an agenda.
  - Work with NIAID.
  - Include interview time for your key staff, including administrative support for the project.
- Prepare a list of questions for NIAID staff.
- Tell NIAID if you need an English translator so it can bring one if necessary.
- Prepare a feedback session for the end of the site visit.
During a site visit, do the following:
- Stick to the schedule.
- Make your staff available for questions and discussion.
- Get a debriefing by NIAID staff while they're on site. If there's a major issue, your funding might get held up.
Keep NIAID's site visit report and make any changes suggested. You don't have to respond to the report -- contact NIAID staff directly if you need to follow up.
For a reverse site visit, do the following:
- Prepare a 90 minute presentation that proves you have addressed NIAID's concerns or at least answered NIAID's questions. Include evidence to support your statements -- don't just give assertions.
- Take notes of interviewer comments, and make whatever changes are necessary to get or keep your funding.
- If you're asked to revise your strategy or aims, stick to the changes NIAID suggests and schedule another site visit after you've made the changes.

Program Officers

Decide the need for a site visit.
Before planning a site visit, communicate with grants management staff. Decide with them whether you will visit an organization or a reverse site visit will be sufficient.
Identify a site visit team, which normally includes program and grants management staff and possibly others whose expertise would be beneficial.
Make arrangements with grantees, working with grants staff.
Write a letter confirming a site visit, including a list of participants and an agenda, and send it to the grantee.
Meet with PIs and staff to discuss work being done, problems, and other issues related to a grant and meet with research administrators to discuss other grant-related issues.
Within 30 calendar days, prepare a site visit report summarizing major agenda items, documenting action items, and addressing a grant's status relative to its planned schedule. Submit copies to grants management staff for the official file kept in the Division of Extramural Activities.
Do not change terms or conditions of grants since you are not authorized to do so.

Grants Management Staff

Together with program officers, identify a need and make arrangements for site visits, determine site visit teams, and provide input into agendas.
Identify the need for a financial evaluation site visit, and advise program officers.
Before a grant financial evaluation site visit, provide grantees a list of questions to be addressed.
During site visits, ensure all business items in your agenda are addressed.
After site visits, review and contribute to the site visit report. For financial evaluations, prepare a report of findings.
Ensure receipt of final site visit reports from program officers and file them in electronic grant file.

Contacts

Grantees with questions should contact their grants management specialist. For more information, see the GMP Management list.

If you have knowledge to share or want more information on this topic, email deaweb@niaid.nih.gov with the title of this page or its URL and your question or comment. Thanks for helping us clarify and expand our knowledge base.

Links

NIH Grants Policy Statement Web page

Site Visit-Reverse Site Visit Report form

Look It Up

See the Glossary for terms.