To be considered for funding, investigators must meet all eligibility requirements and follow the process outlined below.
Applications for Cohort 3 of the UM-BILD Accelerator will be open August 1 through September 12.
Application Process
- Review the Request for Application
The Request for Application (RFA) includes information on applying as well as key reporting requirements of the grant. Investigators should carefully review this document. - Letter of Intent Submission
Investigators interested in receiving funding must first submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) through the REACH Hub application. The LOI must meet all of the requirements outlined below. All questions on the REACH Hub application must be answered. - Letter of Intent Review
The UM-BILD team reviews all LOIs and invites the highest-ranked project teams to submit a full application. - Full Application
Each selected team will be invited to an online seminar that will review the application process, and offer suggestions for crafting an effective, realistic proposal, including quantifiable project milestones. The official application includes the completed RFA and all additional documentation outlined below.
Letter of Intent Requirements
The LOI consists of two documents that outline the proposed project. The first document, the LOI Template, contains the project’s essential details, while the second document, the LOI Information Sheet, is reserved for supplemental material. Instructions for the Letter of Intent Requirements. Templates for both documents are provided. All submissions must be made via the REACH Hub application.
The LOI must include the elements outlined below and meet all of the formatting requirements in the template documents.
- Required Elements
- Describe the technology
- Include relevant intellectual property (IP) and IP disclosure(s)
- Identify the health-care problem that this technology could help to solve (What could the product or service be? Who would be its customers?)
- Sketch the current status of the project (Is the biochemical pathway identified? Have in vivo proof-of-concept experiments been run? Has an initial prototype been built? Clinical validation?)
- Outline the key milestones of a year-long project with a $75,000 budget
- Template Documents
- Formatted LOI (DOCX)
- LOI Information Sheet (PDF)
Full Application
In October 2025, selected project teams will be invited to submit a full application through the UM-BILD portal. The highest-scoring proposals will be shared with the National Institutes of Health and funded.
The application must include all of the documents outlined below and meet all of the formatting requirements in each template linked below.
- Application Documents
- Request for Application - Cohort 3 (PDF)
- GANTT Chart (DOCX)
- Pilot Project Budget (XLSX)
- Compliance Form (DOCX)
- Instructions Letter of Intent Cohort 3 (PDF)
- Institutional Approval Letter (DOCX)
- Vertebrate Animal Research (DOCX)
For questions, please contact UM-BILD@umaryland.edu.