Criteria for AHA Research Grants and Funding

All AHA grants share the following features unless noted in the program description:

  • Each applicant must be an AHA Professional Member. Join or renew when preparing an application in ProposalCentral, online, or by phone at 301-223-2307 or 800-787-8984. Membership processing may take 3-5 days; do not wait until the application deadline to renew or join.
  • Science Focus: The AHA funds basic, clinical, behavioral, translational and population research, bioengineering/biotechnology and public health problems broadly related to fulfilling our mission to be a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives.
  • Disciplines: AHA awards are open to all academic and health professionals. This includes but is not limited to all academic disciplines (biology, chemistry, mathematics, technology, physics, engineering, data science, etc.) and all health-related professions (physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, physical and occupational therapists, statisticians, nutritionists, etc.).
  • AHA maintains dedicated Peer Review Committees by award type and subject. The applicant is required to select the desired review group (AHA Science Classifications).
  • The extent to which the focus of the project is related to cardiovascular and/or cerebrovascular diseases and/or brain health is an important factor that will be considered, though an applicant is not required to be a part of a cardiovascular/cerebrovascular-oriented laboratory, clinic or department.
  • The AHA believes diversity and inclusion is an essential component to driving its mission and strongly encourages applications by women, underrepresented racial and ethnic groups in the sciences, military veterans, people with disabilities, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and those who have experienced varied and non-traditional career trajectories.
  • Eligible Sponsoring Institution: American Heart Association research awards are limited to U.S.-based non-profit institutions, including medical, osteopathic and dental schools, veterinary schools, schools of public health, pharmacy schools, nursing schools, universities and colleges, public and voluntary hospitals and others that can demonstrate the ability to conduct the proposed research, except for applications specifically related to the AHA’s Institute for Precision Cardiovascular Medicine. An investigator may be allowed to request approval to conduct work outside the United States temporarily.
  • Applications will not be accepted for work with funding to be administered through any federal institution or work to be performed by a federal employee, except for Veterans Administration employees.
  • Scientists whose projects involve coding and/or use large amounts of data are encouraged to apply and will be given access to the AHA Precision Medicine Platform, a cloud-based solution for data analysis. See details below.
  • Percent Effort: Unless specified, no minimum percent effort is required; however, the Principal Investigator must demonstrate that adequate time will be devoted to ensuring successful completion of the project.
  • Transferability: AHA project awards are fully transferable to make the awardee a "free agent" who is empowered to move to another qualified institution while retaining the award.
  • Re-budgeting: Unless specified, award budgets are unrestricted among allowable categories (salary/fringe of PI and essential personnel, supplies, equipment/computers, travel, human subjects, etc.). Funds may be re-budgeted between categories without prior AHA approval.
  • Pre-proposals (letters of intent): Some programs follow a two-part application process, as indicated in the chart of deadlines above. Part one is the submission of a pre-proposal (required letter of intent), applicant’s biosketch, and other preliminary documents, as requested.
  • Multiple Awards: An individual may hold more than one AHA award concurrently, but may only hold one career development/recognition award (Career Development Award, Established Investigator Award, Merit Award) at a time. Strategically Focused Research Network personnel may hold individual AHA awards.
  • The AHA reserves the right to an initial triage, whereby a minimum of half of the submissions may be triaged and not discussed in a peer review meeting. All proposals submitted will receive a written critique, unless otherwise noted.
  • Most recent application success rates.
  • If you had a prior AHA Research award, your eligibility to receive additional funding might depend on demonstrated compliance with our open science policies. Please refer to the AHA’s compliance instructions (PDF) to ensure that previous awards are in good standing.
  • Citizenship: Awardees must have one of the following designations:
    • U.S. citizen
    • Permanent resident
    • Pending permanent resident
      (must have filed Form I-485 for permanent resident status and obtained an I-797C Notice of Action that the application has been received by USCIS and case is pending)
    • E-3 Visa - specialty occupation worker
    • F-1 Visa – student (predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows only)
    • G-4 Visa - family member of an international organization employee
    • H1-B Visa - temporary worker in a specialty occupation
    • J-1 Visa - exchange visitor (except for pre- and postdoctoral fellowships, awardees must obtain an H-1B or equivalent by the award activation date)
    • O-1 Visa - temporary worker with extraordinary abilities in the sciences
    • TN Visa - NAFTA Professional
    • DACA - Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals