Specific Aims
Written and curated by Emily Potts, MS, Jimmy Duong, MPH, and Shing Lee, PhD.
Overview
A specific aim outlines how the researcher will address the study's primary goal or objective. They are typically crafted using action-oriented verbs, such as “to determine”, “to compare”, or “to estimate”. Specific aims can be exploratory or confirmatory, intended to either generate or test a hypothesis, respectively. In a grant proposal, the Specific Aims section is a succinct one-page document that summarizes the main research questions, hypotheses, and overarching goals of the proposed project, as well as the rationale and significance within the research domain.
Videos
- How to Write a Stellar NIH Specific Aims Page (Playlist)
- 2024 NIH Grant Writing Series | Specific Aims Development - University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (1 hour)
- Covers its importance, each component, and common causes for rejection.
- How to Write the “Specific Aims” Section of a Grant Application - UCLA (16 minutes)
- Paragraph-by-paragraph outline and key points.
Websites
- Writing Specific Aims - National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke | Archive
- Write Your Specific Aims Page - Harvard University | Archive
- Research Questions and Hypothesis - Virginia Commonwealth University | Archive
- Ties together hypotheses, specific aims, and research questions.
- Draft Specific Aims - National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease | Archive
- Discusses common mistakes.
- Strategies for Writing the Specific Aims - Johns Hopkins | Archive
- NIH Specific Aims Preparation - Temple University | Archive
- Lecture slides with a formulaic approach.
Readings
- Monte, A. A., & Libby, A. M. (2018). Introduction to the specific aims page of a grant proposal. Academic Emergency Medicine: Official Journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, 25(9), 1042–1047. https://doi.org/10.1111/acem.13419
- Goldstein, A. M., Balaji, S., Ghaferi, A. A., Gosain, A., Maggard-Gibbons, M., Zuckerbraun, B., & Keswani, S. G. (2021). An algorithmic approach to an impactful specific aims page. Surgery, 169(4), 816–820. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.surg.2020.06.014
- Santen, R. J., Barrett, E. J., Siragy, H. M., Farhi, L. S., Fishbein, L., & Carey, R. M. (2017). The jewel in the crown: Specific aims section of investigator-initiated grant proposals. Journal of the Endocrine Society, 1(9), 1194–1202. https://doi.org/10.1210/js.2017-00318
- Emphasizes the important characteristics of the specific aims section, and offers a roadmap for writing.
- Chasan-Taber, L. (2022). Writing Grant Proposals in Epidemiology, Preventive Medicine, and Biostatistics (2nd ed.). Chapman and Hall/CRC. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003155140
- Chapter 6 focuses on strategically meeting the NIH guidelines specific to each section of the specific aims.
- Chung, K. C., & Shauver, M. J. (2008). Fundamental principles of writing a successful grant proposal. The Journal of Hand Surgery, 33(4), 566–572. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhsa.2007.11.028
- Includes example Specific Aims section.
Courses and Resources
- Grant Resources Section - Columbia University Irving Institute for Clinical and Translational Research
- Available to all researchers and staff at Columbia University.
- NIH Grant Writing Boot Camp: Building a Strong Foundation for Funding Success - Columbia University
- Paid live virtual training (July 8-9, 2024).
- Early Investigator Advancement Program (EIAP) - NIH National Cancer Institute
- Annual virtual training.