How to Apply for a CIRM Award

Application Process

In support of CIRM’s mission to accelerate regenerative medicine research, we fund select projects across five major areas: Discovery, Preclinical, Clinical, Education, and Infrastructure. Our Explore Funding Opportunities page provides an overview of each area and detailed information about specific funding programs and our competitive selection process.

For information on the Application review process, visit the Our Review Process page.

Information
Requirements
Resources
Submit an Application

Information for Applicants

CIRM has compiled the following resources to support you and your organization in the Application process. Explore the resources below to learn what to expect when applying for CIRM funding.

Each funding program is described in a Program Announcement (PA) or Request for Applications (RFA). PAs are for recurring funding opportunities and RFAs are for one-time or infrequent opportunities. The PA or RFA is posted on CIRM’s website (under Funding Opportunities) approximately two months before the submission deadline. Read PAs and/or RFAs carefully and/or consult with CIRM staff to determine where your project fits. Contact information for arranging consultations with or requesting information from CIRM can be found on each program’s landing page.

Guiding principles describe how CIRM translates its funding priorities and Strategic Allocation Framework recommendations into desired portfolio outcomes. Guiding principles shape program objectives, inform the criteria by which projects are selected by the Grants Working Group (GWG) for discussion and recommendations, and inform the recommendations that CIRM teams bring to the Application Review Subcommittee (ARS) to support funding decisions. The guiding principles are applied throughout the Application lifecycle to ensure the development of a scientifically meritorious portfolio aligned with CIRM’s strategic goals.

Dates for program opening (when you can view and begin an Application) and the deadline for submission are typically posted at the same time as the new Program Announcement or Request for Applications. You must wait until the program opens to populate a pre-submission or Application. CIRM does not grant individual extensions to the submission deadline.

CIRM Science Officers can help answer Applicant questions about program scope and requirements, but cannot instruct Applicants on what to propose. Note that some programs may have required consultations as part of the Application process. Regardless, if this is your first time applying for a CIRM grant, we highly encourage you to schedule a consultation with a CIRM Science Officer well before the submission deadline. CIRM Grants Management Officers can advise on questions related to budgets and allowable project costs. Contact information for each is provided in the Program Announcement or Request for Applications.

Sign up for our email alerts to learn about program timelines and updates, webinars, and FAQs.

If you determine that the timeline is appropriate and believe you have a project that meets the program requirements, log in to our Grants Management System, navigate to Open Programs, and start the Application process. The submission must be opened under the user profile and organization of the intended Principal Investigator. Complete and save the Eligibility section first, then navigate to the Document Uploads section and download CIRM’s templates for documents and/or workbooks required for a complete Application. For most CIRM Applications, these materials, along with the budget, comprise the bulk of the Application. Applicants are responsible for downloading and populating the current Application templates. Never assume that templates from a prior Application cycle are up to date. Note that the Discovery Stage Research (DISC4) funding opportunity has a pre-submission process, and only invited Applicants are able to submit an Application.

If you need help accessing the Grants Management System, please email webmaster@cirm.ca.gov.

Visit the Grants Management System to start your Application.

Most CIRM Application deadlines are at 2:00 p.m. PT on the deadline date. There is no grace period. If you have fully completed the Application but encounter technical difficulties submitting, contact review@cirm.ca.gov for help. We recommend that you make all entries and upload all required documents and/or workbooks well before the deadline to avoid system delays due to traffic. CIRM does not grant individual extensions to the submission deadline.

All CIRM Applications require dual submission by the Principal Investigator and an Authorized Organizational Official (AOO). Please review CIRM’s Guide for AOOs for instructions on designating an AOO and submitting an Application.

Requirements for Applicants

These resources contain requirements that are incorporated by reference in CIRM’s Program Announcements (PA) and Request for Applications (RFA). Please be sure to read each PA/RFA before starting an Application.

To be eligible for funding, Applicants must meet CIRM’s requirements, which align with CIRM’s mission and funding opportunity objectives. Detailed information on common eligibility requirements and key definitions can be found in CIRM Common Requirements and Definitions. Additional eligibility criteria and program-specific requirements are described in each Program Announcement and Request for Applications.

CIRM has created an Allowable Project Costs and Co-Funding FAQ to provide Applicant and Awardee guidance and resources. Specifically:

  1. Allowable project costs related to the location and type of the organization, stage of the project, partnering status at the time of Application, and when costs can begin to be incurred.
  2. Co-Funding requirement and Warrant-based Co-Funding option.

For the entire Allowable Project Costs policy please refer to:

Note: Existing Awardees will be subject to the Award Management Policy (AMP) starting April 1, 2027.

For any additional questions about Co-Funding, please contact legal@cirm.ca.gov.

The sharing of data and knowledge produced from CIRM-funded projects is key to advancing the field of regenerative medicine and accelerating the discovery, validation, and development of treatments for patients.

CIRM requires Awardees to manage and preserve raw data, processed data, and metadata, and make applicable data and metadata available to the broader scientific community. CIRM also requires Applicants to allocate funds in their proposed budget for personnel and/or activities related to managing and sharing data produced from the funded project.  

Detailed information about data sharing and management requirements at the Application and Award stages, plus general resources on repositories and data sharing, are described in CIRM Data Sharing and Management.

Applicants to Preclinical (PDEV), Rare Disease Platform (RAPID), and Clinical (CLIN2) funding opportunities are required to provide stage-appropriate patient access plans that will be evaluated during scientific review and maintained as Awards progress. Complementary activities to support commercialization and market access are also recommended to advance these therapies to patients. The Patient Access Planning Requirements resource document is intended to help Applicants understand and implement patient access planning, and to serve as a resource for recommended commercialization and market access activities.

Any Applicant who intends to develop an allogeneic human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC)-derived therapeutic with CIRM funding must establish evidence of disease/injury modifying activity using a clinically compatible cell source that can be translated for clinical use. An Applicant should plan to select a clinically compatible hPSC line to establish this data during the course of a discovery stage Award or must have already established this data if applying for a preclinical or clinical stage Award.

CIRM Information for Applicants: Clinically Compatible hPSC Lines provides information on known providers of clinically compatible hPSC lines as well as providers making their lines available to CIRM Awardees as part of the CIRM Industry Resource Partnership Program.

Resources for Applicants

CIRM offers optional resources to support Applicants and Awardees, including the CIRM Clinical Network (a statewide network of clinical trial sites), the CIRM Cell and Gene Therapy Manufacturing Network (nine non-profit GMP facilities), the CIRM Industry Resource Partnership Program (CDMOs, CROs, and other specialized service providers), and Shared Resources Laboratories for Stem Cell-Based Modeling (11 shared resources laboratories). CIRM does not require that Applicants and Awardees utilize these resources; Applicants and Awardees are expected to conduct their own evaluation of the suitability of these resources for their proposed project.

The CIRM Clinical Network is a statewide network composed of Alpha Clinics and Community Care Centers of Excellence with a common goal of streamlining and accelerating the delivery of cell and gene therapies to patients who need them. The CIRM Clinical Network supports stem cell-based and genetic therapy clinical trials for academic and commercial partners. Applicants and Awardees can partner with the CIRM Clinical Network to identify California trial sites, evaluate patient cohorts, develop trial plans and protocols, and accelerate trial initiation and completion.

The CIRM Cell and Gene Therapy Manufacturing Network is composed of nine non-profit Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) facilities that are co-located with the CIRM Alpha Clinics. Applicants and Awardees can choose to utilize the Network GMP facilities for process development, manufacturing, quality control testing and other related services. 

The CIRM Industry Resource Partnership Program is composed of select contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs), contract research organizations (CROs), and other vendors and service providers that are committed to making their consultations, services, and resources more accessible to CIRM-Funded Projects.

CIRM supports a network of 11 shared resources laboratories (SRLs) for stem cell-based modeling. CIRM’s SRLs are core labs open to researchers and educators at any California research institution. Find labs, equipment, and expertise to support your stem cell-based modeling research.

To Submit an Application

Certain funding opportunities require a pre-submission or consultation prior to an Application being available. Read the program-specific Program Announcement (PA) or Request for Applications (RFA) to ensure your project meets requirements.  

Log in with your existing CIRM username and password. If you do not have a username, click on the New User link and follow the instructions to create a username and password in the GMS. Please note that only the Principal Investigator or their delegate can begin an Application in GMS. CIRM cannot change the PI after the Application has been started. For more information on delegation in GMS, please refer to the Grants Management FAQs.

After logging in, click on the Menu tab. Select the tab labeled Open Programs under the section labeled RFAs and Programs Open for Applications, click on the Start a Grant Application link under Actions for your desired program. If you are associated with multiple institutions in the GMS, you will be prompted to select the institution you are applying under.

Click on the appropriate link and follow the posted instructions. Proposal templates can be located and submitted under the Uploads section. 

Most CIRM Applications require dual submission by the Principal Investigator (PI) and a verified Authorized Organizational Official (AOO) (please refer to the Grants Management FAQs for more information regarding verifying an AOO). Once all the mandatory sections have been completed, a button will appear prompting the Principal Investigator to Submit the Application. Please note that once this has been selected, you will no longer be able to make changes to your Application unless your AOO returns the Application to you. If a secondary AOO approval is required, the Application will appear in the assigned AOO’s GMS account under Action Items Needing Your Attention. The assigned AOO will have the option to either Submit the Application or Return the Application to PI for Revision.

Select the tab labeled Your Applications and check the table under the section labeled Your Submitted Applications. You will see your Application number and project title listed once the submission process has been completed.