Call for HRSA Grant Reviewers

As the lead agency with responsibility for federal health workforce development efforts, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has long administered a variety of programs that support curriculum development, clinical training opportunities, and student diversity initiatives. To successfully implement these programs, HRSA routinely enlists the help of outside reviewers to ensure that only the highest quality applications for these programs are funded. This evaluation process is critical to preserving the integrity of these vital funding opportunities and demonstrating the need for further federal investment in programs like Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students (SDS), Primary Care Training and Enhancement (PCTE), and the Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP).  

In addition to ensuring positive outcomes for Title VII programs, serving as an HRSA grant reviewer offers leadership and professional development opportunities for PA faculty. Reviewing HRSA grants is a national service opportunity that helps reviewers develop and sharpen their own grant-writing skills for future funding competitions. To both ensure HRSA’s programs are optimally effective and strengthen the grant-writing capacity of programs throughout the country, it is critical that PA faculty be well-represented among HRSA’s grant reviewers.  

The primary responsibilities associated with being a grant reviewer include evaluating eligible applications against published criteria, scoring submissions in an online portal, and discussing your scores with fellow reviewers. As part of the evaluation process, reviewers participate in one of three possible formats: face-to-face grant reviews, which are usually held in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, and last for 3 to 5 days; teleconference reviews; or “field” reviews, where reviewers independently evaluate applications from their location, generally without a group discussion. Regardless of the review format, each reviewer receives an honorarium for their participation and is not responsible for logistical arrangements or associated costs.  

If you are interested in representing PA education in HRSA’s grant review process, please apply at any time by following the steps below. After registering with HRSA’s Reviewer Recruitment Module (RRM) system, you will be notified of any upcoming opportunities to participate in discretionary grant reviews that align with your areas of expertise. 

• Create your HRSA grant reviewer profile by signing up for an RRM account. To sign up, visit the link and click the “Join HRSA” button in the top right corner of the page.
• Follow the prompts for account creation, and sign into your RRM account once the process is complete. Upon signing in, complete the Personal Contact Information form by providing your basic contact information and selecting your primary area of expertise from the dropdown menu.
• Once your personal contact information has been entered, you will then have access to your RRM home page. From there, make sure to access the Reviewer Profile tab and complete the profile questions, upload your resume, and select your secondary and tertiary areas of expertise.

For additional information, please contact Tyler Smith at tsmith@PAEAonline.org or email HRSA at RRMTechAssistance@hrsa.gov.