Opportunity Information: Apply for PA 11 212
Apply for PA 11 212
- The National Institutes of Health in the health income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Virtual Reality Technologies for Research and Education in Obesity and Diabetes (R21)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.233 National Center on Sleep Disorders Research 93.286 Discovery and Applied Research for Technological Innovations to Improve Human Health 93.837 Cardiovascular Diseases Research 93.838 Lung Diseases Research 93.839 Blood Diseases and Resources Research 93.865 Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research.
- This funding opportunity was created on May 10, 2011 and posted on May 10, 2011.
- Applicants must submit their applications by May 7, 2014. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $275,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Independent school districts Small businesses City or township governments State governments For profit organizations other than small businesses Public and State controlled institutions of higher education Private institutions of higher education Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification) Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments) Special district governments Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) County governments Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government Faith based or Community based Organizations Hispanic serving Institutions Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized) Regional Organizations Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs) U.S. Territory or Possession Non domestic (non U.S.) Entities (Foreign Organizations) are not eligible to apply. Foreign (non U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are not allowed.
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Opportunity Summary:
Virtual Reality Technologies for Research and Education in Obesity and Diabetes (R21) (Funding Opportunity Number PA 11-212) was a National Institutes of Health (NIH) discretionary grant opportunity designed to spur early-stage, exploratory, and developmental projects that use virtual reality (VR) in new ways to support obesity and diabetes prevention and management. The central idea behind the announcement is that VR can do more than just deliver information; it can create immersive experiences that help people see consequences, practice skills, build motivation, and extend clinical or educational settings into more engaging, interactive environments. NIH was looking for projects that leverage VR to encourage healthier eating, increased physical activity, improved self-care behaviors, and other health-related actions that matter for preventing or managing obesity and diabetes.
A major emphasis of the FOA is on multidisciplinary work. The strongest applications were expected to combine technical expertise in VR development with scientific strength in areas like behavioral science, biomedical research, and pedagogy (how people learn). In practical terms, that means teams might include VR technologists and designers alongside clinicians, health psychologists, behavior-change researchers, nutrition and physical activity experts, diabetes educators, and learning scientists. The goal was not simply to build a VR tool, but to use VR's unique capabilities to answer research questions and to test innovative approaches that could translate into real-world clinical practice or public health programs.
The opportunity framed VR as both a research instrument and an intervention platform. As a research tool, VR can standardize and control environments in ways that are hard to do in everyday life, letting investigators observe decision-making and behavior under consistent, repeatable conditions. As an educational and clinical tool, VR can provide safe, guided practice for skills and scenarios that are difficult to rehearse in real life, potentially improving self-efficacy and adherence. The FOA specifically highlighted VR's potential to "visualize outcomes" (for example, making future health consequences more concrete), "teach" and "motivate" (through interactive learning and feedback), and "extend health care and learning environments" (such as bringing coaching or training into simulated contexts that feel realistic and relevant to participants).
This was an R21 mechanism, meaning it supported exploratory or developmental research rather than large, definitive clinical trials. The award ceiling listed was $275,000, and the announcement indicated there was no cost-sharing or matching requirement. The program was posted and created on May 10, 2011, with an original and final closing date of May 7, 2014, and it was archived on June 7, 2014. In other words, it was time-limited and is no longer open, but it represents the type of NIH interest in VR-enabled behavioral and educational innovation around diabetes and obesity.
Eligibility was broad and included many U.S.-based organization types: public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (including both 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) nonprofits), small businesses, for-profit organizations (including those other than small businesses), and a variety of government entities (state, county, city/township, special district governments, and public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities). It also included tribal governments (federally recognized) and tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments), independent school districts, and other categories referenced in the FOA. The eligibility information further called out inclusion of entities such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, eligible federal agencies, and U.S. territories or possessions. Non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations) were not eligible to apply, and foreign components of U.S. organizations were not allowed.
The FOA was associated with a health-focused activity category and referenced multiple CFDA numbers (including 93.233, 93.286, 93.837, 93.838, 93.839, and 93.865), reflecting the cross-cutting relevance of obesity and diabetes to multiple NIH-aligned health domains and research areas. Administrative contact details in the source information direct technical access issues to the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) webmaster, and the full archived announcement was available via the NIH grants guide page linked in the listing.
Overall, PA 11-212 sought to seed innovative, well-constructed pilot studies that could demonstrate how immersive VR experiences might improve behavior change research and education for obesity and diabetes, laying groundwork for later-stage research or scalable clinical and public health applications.
FAQs: Virtual Reality Technologies for Research and Education in Obesity and Diabetes (R21) - PA 11-212
What is the PA 11-212 funding opportunity?
PA 11-212, titled "Virtual Reality Technologies for Research and Education in Obesity and Diabetes (R21)," was a National Institutes of Health (NIH) discretionary grant opportunity intended to support early-stage, exploratory, and developmental projects using virtual reality (VR) to advance research and education related to obesity and diabetes prevention and management.
What was the main goal of this FOA?
The main goal was to spur innovative pilot work showing how VR can be used in new ways to improve obesity and diabetes-related prevention and self-management. The FOA emphasized VR's ability to create immersive, interactive experiences that can help people practice skills, increase motivation, and make health consequences more concrete, rather than simply delivering information.
What kinds of health behaviors was NIH interested in influencing through VR?
The FOA highlighted interest in VR-based approaches that encourage healthier eating, increased physical activity, improved self-care behaviors, and other actions relevant to preventing or managing obesity and diabetes.
How was VR positioned in this announcement: intervention, research tool, or both?
Both. The FOA framed VR as (1) a research instrument that can standardize and control environments for repeatable observation of decision-making and behavior, and (2) an intervention and education platform that can provide guided practice, interactive learning, and realistic simulated scenarios to support self-efficacy and adherence.
What are examples of VR capabilities the FOA specifically emphasized?
The FOA specifically highlighted VR's potential to "visualize outcomes" (making future consequences more vivid), "teach" and "motivate" through interactive learning and feedback, and "extend health care and learning environments" into simulated contexts that can be engaging and relevant to participants.
What type of grant mechanism was used?
This opportunity used the NIH R21 mechanism, which is designed to support exploratory or developmental research projects rather than large, definitive clinical trials.
Was this FOA intended for large clinical trials?
No. Based on the description provided, the R21 focus was on early-stage, exploratory, and developmental work rather than large, definitive clinical trials.
What was the maximum award amount?
The award ceiling listed for this opportunity was $275,000.
Was cost-sharing or matching required?
No. The announcement indicated there was no cost-sharing or matching requirement.
When was the opportunity posted and when did it close?
The FOA was posted and created on May 10, 2011. It had an original and final closing date of May 7, 2014, and it was archived on June 7, 2014.
Is PA 11-212 currently open for applications?
No. The opportunity is archived and is no longer open.
What kinds of project teams was NIH expecting?
The FOA placed major emphasis on multidisciplinary work. Strong applications were expected to combine VR technical expertise (such as VR development and design) with scientific and applied expertise such as behavioral science, biomedical research, and pedagogy. Teams could include clinicians, health psychologists, behavior-change researchers, nutrition and physical activity experts, diabetes educators, learning scientists, and VR technologists/designers.
Was the FOA focused on building a VR tool, or on research questions?
The FOA emphasized that the goal was not simply to build a VR tool. It encouraged using VR's unique capabilities to answer research questions and to test innovative approaches with potential to translate into real-world clinical practice or public health programs.
What organizations were eligible to apply?
Eligibility was broad and included many U.S.-based organization types, including public and private institutions of higher education; nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) nonprofits); small businesses; for-profit organizations (including those other than small businesses); and many government entities (state, county, city/township, special district governments, and public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities).
Were tribal entities eligible?
Yes. The eligibility information included tribal governments (federally recognized) and tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments).
Were school districts and regional organizations eligible?
Yes. Independent school districts and regional organizations were included among the eligible entity types referenced in the FOA description.
Did the FOA specifically mention certain institution types, such as HBCUs and Hispanic-serving institutions?
Yes. The eligibility information called out inclusion of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and also referenced faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, and U.S. territories or possessions.
Could foreign organizations apply?
No. Non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations) were not eligible to apply.
Were foreign components of U.S. organizations allowed?
No. The FOA stated that foreign components of U.S. organizations were not allowed.
What activity category was this opportunity associated with?
The FOA was associated with a health-focused activity category.
What CFDA numbers were associated with this FOA?
The listing referenced multiple CFDA numbers: 93.233, 93.286, 93.837, 93.838, 93.839, and 93.865, reflecting the cross-cutting relevance of obesity and diabetes across multiple NIH-aligned research areas.
Where could applicants find the full announcement?
The full archived announcement was available via the NIH grants guide page linked in the listing for this opportunity.
Who was listed for technical access issues related to the announcement?
Administrative contact details in the source information directed technical access issues to the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) webmaster.
What was the broader intent of PA 11-212, even though it is archived now?
Overall, PA 11-212 aimed to seed innovative pilot studies demonstrating how immersive VR experiences might strengthen behavior change research and education for obesity and diabetes, laying groundwork for later-stage research or scalable clinical and public health applications.
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