Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders (93.173)
Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders (Assistance Listing 93.173) is run by the National Institutes of Health, part of the Department of Health and Human Services. It awarded $2.1 billion in 2,231 grants from fiscal 2021 to 2025, about $925,005 per award on average. 84 funding opportunities are open or forecast now.
The typical award was $553,162. Half of the 2,231 awards fell between $178,735 and $1.5 million, and they ranged from $0 to $13.2 million.
- Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$2.1 billion
- Grant awards2,231
- Typical award$553,162
- Awarded in FY 2025$416 million
- Size rank162 of 1,823
- Type of assistanceProject grants
Key findings
- Annual funding was roughly flat, $401 million in fiscal 2021 and $416 million in fiscal 2025.
- It is the 162nd largest of 1,823 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
- The 20 largest recipients received 40% of the money.
- Awards went to recipients in 46 states and territories.
What the program funds
To investigate solutions to problems directly relevant to individuals with deafness or disorders of human communication in the areas of hearing, balance, smell, taste, voice, speech, and language. The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) supports research and research training, including investigation into the etiology, pathology, detection, treatment, and prevention of disorders of hearing and other communication processes, primarily through the support of basic and applied research in anatomy, audiology, biochemistry, bioengineering, epidemiology, genetics, immunology, microbiology, molecular biology, the neurosciences, otolaryngology, psychology, pharmacology, physiology, psychophysics, speech-language pathology, and other scientific disciplines. The NIDCD supports: (1) Research into the evaluation of techniques and devices used in diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, and prevention of disorders of hearing and other communication processes; (2) research into prevention and early detection and diagnosis of hearing loss and speech, voice, and language disorders and research into preventing the effects of such disorders by means of appropriate referral and rehabilitation; (3) research into the detection, treatment, and prevention of disorders of hearing and other communication processes in the elderly population and its rehabilitation to ensure continued effective communication skills; and (4) research to expand knowledge of the effects of environmental agents that influence hearing or other communication processes.
Open and forecast opportunities
- Ethical, Legal and Social Implications (ELSI) Small Research Grant (R03 Clinical Trial Optional)
- Ethical, Legal and Social Implications (ELSI) Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant (R21 Clinical Trial Optional)
- Ethical, Legal and Social Implications (ELSI) Research (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)
- Emerging Global Leader Award (K43 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- Emerging Global Leader Award (K43 Independent Clinical Trial Required)
- Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA) for Undergraduate-Focused Institutions (R15 Clinical Trial Required)
- Intervention Research to Improve Native American Health (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)
- BRAIN Initiative: Preclinical Proof of Concept for Novel Recording and Modulation Technologies in the Human CNS (R18 - Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- BRAIN Initiative: Development and Validation of Novel Tools to Probe Cell-Specific and Circuit-Specific Processes in the Brain (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- BRAIN Initiative: Exploratory Research Opportunities Using Invasive Neural Recording and Stimulating Technologies in the Human Brain (R61 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NLM Institutional Grants for Research Training in Biomedical Informatics, Data Science, and AI (T15 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- Coordinating Center for National Resource Network for the Study of Human Auditory and Vestibular Disorders (U24 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIH, CDC and FDA Small Business Innovation Research Grant (Parent SBIR [R43/R44] Clinical Trial Optional)
- NIH Small Business Technology Transfer Grant (Parent STTR [R41/R42] Clinical Trial Optional)
- Short Courses on Innovative Methodologies and Approaches in the Behavioral and Social Sciences (R25 Clinical Trials Not Allowed)
- NIDCD Research Career Enhancement Award for Established Investigators (K18 Clinical Trial Required)
- NIDCD Research Career Enhancement Award for Established Investigators (K18 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIDCD Mentored Career Development Award for Postdoctorate Au.D./Ph.D. Audiologists (K01 Clinical Trial Required)
- NIDCD Mentored Career Development Award for Postdoctorate Au.D./Ph.D. Audiologists (K01 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (Parent K23 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- Mentored Quantitative Research Development Award (Parent K25 Independent Clinical Trial Required)
- Mentored Quantitative Research Development Award (Parent K25 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (Parent K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Required)
- Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (Parent K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIH Pathway to Independence Award (Parent K99/R00 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
Rules from the program listing
Who can apply
Project Grants and Centers Grants: Any public, private, nonprofit, or for-profit institution is eligible to apply. For-profit institutions are not eligible for institutional National Research Service Awards. All proposals are reviewed for scientific merit, for evaluation of the qualifications of the investigators, for adequacy of the research and/or research training environment and for significance of the problem. Approved proposals compete for available funds. Awardees of almost all Research Career Development Programs must be citizens or have been admitted to the United States for permanent residence. Candidates must be nominated for the program by a nonfederal public or private nonprofit institution located in the United States, its possessions or Territories. To be eligible, postdoctoral NRSA trainees and fellows must have a professional or scientific doctoral degree (PhD, MD, DO, DC, DDS, DVM, OD, DPM, ScD, EngD, Dr PHPhD, MD, DO, DC, DDS, DVM, OD, DPM, ScD, EngD, Dr PH, DNSc, ND {Doctor of Naturopathy}, PharmD, DSW, PsyD, AUD or equivalent doctoral degree from an accredited domestic or foreign institution). SBIR grants can be awarded only to domestic small businesses (entities that are independently owned and operated for profit, and have no more than 500 employees). Primary employment (more than one-half time) of the principal investigator must be with the small business at the time of award and during the conduct of the proposed project.
What the money can and cannot pay for
Project Grants and Centers Grants may be used to provide salaries, equipment, supplies, travel, and other expenses for research. The grantee institution is obliged to expend grant funds prudently for the purposes as stated in the application and award document. Some National Research Service Awards (NRSAs) are issued on behalf of an individual for research training in specified biomedical and behavioral research areas. Other training grants are made to institutions to enable them to make NRSAs to individuals selected by them. Each postdoctoral individual who receives an NRSA may be obligated, upon termination of the award, to comply with certain service and payback provisions. Mentored and unmentored career development awards are made to enhance the independent research capability of highly promising individuals during the formative stages of their careers. Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program: Phase I grants, typically 6 months in duration, are to establish the technical merit and feasibility of a proposed research effort that may lead to a commercial product or process. SBIR Phase II grants are for the continuation of the research efforts initiated in Phase I and that are likely to result in commercial products or processes. STTR Phase I grants, normally of 1-year duration, are to determine the scientific, technical, and feasibility of the proposed cooperative effort.
Matching requirements
This program has no statutory formula. Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
Award range and average, in the agency's words
Project Grants: FY23 - Ranged from $100 to $3.235,000; Average was $403,000.
Funding history and past recipients
From fiscal 2021 to 2025, Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders (93.173) awarded $2.1 billion across 2,231 grant awards, an average of $925,005 per award.
Who usually wins
Colleges and universities received 77% of the money, nonprofits 16% and small businesses 3.9%.
| Recipient type | Awards | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colleges and universities | 1,713 | $1.6 billion | 77% |
| Nonprofits | 314 | $326 million | 16% |
| Small businesses | 91 | $79.8 million | 3.9% |
| Other | 110 | $74.8 million | 3.6% |
| State and local governments | 2 | $665,394 | less than 0.1% |
| Tribal governments and organizations | 1 | $590,026 | less than 0.1% |
By state
41 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards.
| State | Awards | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | 254 | $249 million |
| California | 233 | $247 million |
| New York | 208 | $170 million |
| Pennsylvania | 163 | $125 million |
| Maryland | 113 | $115 million |
| Illinois | 85 | $82.5 million |
| Texas | 95 | $72.0 million |
| Ohio | 80 | $71.8 million |
| Tennessee | 64 | $64.6 million |
| Florida | 68 | $63.6 million |
| Michigan | 53 | $56.5 million |
| Iowa | 30 | $54.7 million |
| Wisconsin | 67 | $52.7 million |
| South Carolina | 35 | $48.8 million |
| Indiana | 43 | $46.4 million |
| Oregon | 43 | $46.0 million |
| North Carolina | 57 | $44.8 million |
| Connecticut | 48 | $43.9 million |
| Missouri | 36 | $40.2 million |
| Washington | 48 | $39.6 million |
| Colorado | 48 | $33.0 million |
| Nebraska | 43 | $32.9 million |
| Minnesota | 32 | $32.8 million |
| Utah | 34 | $28.6 million |
| Arizona | 32 | $27.3 million |
| Georgia | 27 | $20.6 million |
| Virginia | 25 | $19.5 million |
| New Jersey | 19 | $15.8 million |
| District of Columbia | 27 | $15.7 million |
| Delaware | 12 | $13.4 million |
| Kentucky | 17 | $13.4 million |
| Rhode Island | 13 | $11.0 million |
| Louisiana | 5 | $7.7 million |
| Maine | 8 | $7.3 million |
| Alabama | 10 | $7.2 million |
| New Hampshire | 8 | $7.1 million |
| Kansas | 10 | $5.5 million |
| Arkansas | 7 | $4.9 million |
| Oklahoma | 3 | $3.4 million |
| New Mexico | 2 | $3.3 million |
| Mississippi | 4 | $3.3 million |
| Montana | 2 | $862,891 |
| Nevada | 2 | $642,068 |
| West Virginia | 1 | $418,865 |
| Vermont | 2 | $376,251 |
| Wyoming | 1 | $356,953 |