PCORI offers engagement-related funding opportunities - fall 2025

The Patient and Community Engagement in Research (PaCER) program at NC TraCS offers a variety of resources and services to guide and support teams as they design, implement, and disseminate patient-engaged research.

Teams who are considering applying to PCORI funding opportunities are encouraged to contact PaCER to learn more about how their applications might benefit from PaCER guidance, services, and collaboration. For those seeking consultation with PaCER staff and submitting Letters of Intent to PCORI due late September, please reach out by September 1 to ensure PaCER staff availability: Request a consult.

Advancing the Science of Engagement in Research

PCORI is seeking to fund studies that build an evidence base on engagement in research, including:

• Measures to capture structure/context, process and outcomes of engagement in research.
• Techniques that lead to effective engagement in research.
• How effective engagement techniques should be modified and resourced for different contexts, settings and communities.

Funding Announcement: pcori.org/funding-opportunities/announcement/advancing-science-engagement-research-pcori-funding-announcement-cycle-3-2025

Key Dates

Applicant Town Hall: August 22, 12-1 p.m. (ET)
Letter of Intent Deadline: September 23 by 5 p.m. (ET)
LOI Status Notification: October 21
Application Deadline: January 13, 2026 by 5 p.m. (ET)

Engagement Award: Capacity-Building

This opportunity aims to build the capacity and skills of patients, families, caregivers and the broader healthcare community to engage in all phases of patient-centered comparative clinical effectiveness research (CER).

All proposed projects must show how they will help to build capacity for patient-centered CER.

Funding Announcement: pcori.org/funding-opportunities/announcement/engagement-award-capacity-building-fall-2025-cycle

Key Dates

Letter of Intent Deadline: September 29 by 5 p.m. (ET)
LOI Status Notification: Within 60 calendar days of LOI deadline
Application Deadline: January 12, 2026 by 5 p.m. (ET)

Engagement Award: Dissemination Initiative

This opportunity supports projects that help organizations and communities actively communicate pertinent PCORI-funded research findings to their specific audiences, including patients, families, caregivers and the broader healthcare community, in ways that will command their attention and interest and encourage use of this information in their healthcare decision making. You may propose projects that will last up to two years and cost up to $300,000.

Your project must focus on active dissemination that spreads awareness and increases knowledge of PCORI-funded research findings. This funding opportunity will not support projects that propose passive, untailored and untargeted dissemination strategies.

Funding Announcement: pcori.org/funding-opportunities/announcement/engagement-award-dissemination-initiative-fall-2025-cycle

Key Dates

Letter of Intent Deadline: September 29 by 5 p.m. (ET)
LOI Status Notification: Within 60 calendar days of LOI deadline
Application Deadline: January 12, 2026 by 5 p.m. (ET)

Engagement Award: Convening Support

This opportunity supports projects that include multi-party convenings, meetings and conferences which bring together communities of patients, families, caregivers and other members of the broader healthcare community. These must align with PCORI's mission and help expand patient-centered comparative clinical effectiveness research (CER). All proposed projects must show how they will expand patient-centered CER. You may propose projects that will last up to one year and cost up to $125,000.

Your project must focus on one of two funding tracks — Convening Around Patient-Centered CER or Convening Around Dissemination of PCORI-Funded Research Findings — and you will self-select the focus at the time of LOI submission.

• Convening Around Patient-Centered CER: These projects promote discussion of research topics, prioritizing research questions and/or engagement plans for patient-centered CER.
• Convening Around Dissemination of PCORI-Funded Research Findings: These projects communicate results from eligible PCORI-funded studies to targeted audiences who will use the results through convening(s) as the primary method for active dissemination.

Funding Announcement: pcori.org/funding-opportunities/announcement/engagement-award-convening-support-fall-2025-cycle

Key Dates

Letter of Intent Deadline: September 29 by 5 p.m. (ET)
LOI Status Notification: Within 60 calendar days of LOI deadline
Application Deadline: January 12, 2026 by 5 p.m. (ET)