Program Director/Principal Investigator (PI)

A principal investigator (also called a PD/PI, although the role in Commons displays as PI) directs a research project or program supported by the NIH. A PI role is also required for Loan Repayment Program applicants submitting LRP applications to the Division of Loan Repayment (DLR). The role of the PI within Commons is to complete the grant administration process or to delegate this responsibility to another individual. A PI may only access information pertaining to the grant(s) on which he/she is the designated PD/PI.

NIH has adopted a Multiple-PI (MPI) model—as directed by the Office of Science and Technology Policy—permitting more than one PI to be associated with an NIH-funded grant, contract, or cooperative agreement. Additional PIs assist with the responsibilities currently accorded to a single PI. The multiple-PI model is intended to supplement—not replace—the traditional single-PI model.

If you hold a PI role, you have privileges to perform the following tasks:

  • Edit your personal profile (PPF)
  • Delegate edit authority of your own PPF to others
  • View the status of all grant applications for which you are the designated PI, including any errors or warnings that may have been triggered
  • View the assembled image of submitted grant applications before those grants move on for further processing
  • View Study Section/Meeting Roster of the Review Group that will be reviewing your application
  • View Review outcome information and summary statements
  • View Notice of Award (NoA) for all grants for which you are the designated PI
  • Delegate authority to someone with an ASST role to perform the same actions and receive the same notifications as a you do as the PI
  • Submit an LRP application

  • NOTE: PI users cannot delegate authority to submit appointments to the Agency.

  • View the following Training Grant related items using xTrain:
    • Trainee Roster
    • List of Grants
    • Grant Summary
    • Routing History
    • PDF-formatted Appointments/Amendments/Terminations
  • Initiate, update, route, and submit Appointments, Re-Appointments, and Amendments in xTrain
  • Initiate, update, and route Termination Notices in xTrain
  • Initiate a progress report
  • Delegate progress report authority
  • Submit a progress report when given the authority by an SO
  • Delegate Status authority to others within the institution so that they can see PI grant information (except Review outcome information and Summary Statement)

    NOTE: The PI role should not be combined with the SO role, but can be combined with the IAR role.