Time-limited Common Fund program; check current status Checked November 7, 2026
- Mechanism
- NIH Common Fund cooperative agreements (BUILD, NRMN, and a Coordination and Evaluation Center)
- Who it serves
- Undergraduates, graduate students, postdocs and faculty, depending on the component
- Today
- Common Fund programs are designed to run for a limited time. Check the NIH Common Fund and NRMN sites for current activity.
Short answer
The Diversity Program Consortium was an NIH Common Fund initiative funded from 2014 with three parts: BUILD (Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity) programs at undergraduate institutions, NRMN (the National Research Mentoring Network) and a Coordination and Evaluation Center. Common Fund programs are time-limited, so check current status before relying on any component.
What was the Diversity Program Consortium?
The Diversity Program Consortium (DPC) was an NIH Common Fund initiative, with first awards in 2014, that tested ways to prepare students from diverse backgrounds for biomedical research careers and to measure what worked. It had three linked parts:
| Component | What it did |
|---|---|
| BUILD (Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity) | Funded undergraduate institutions with limited research resources to redesign how they train and support students and faculty |
| NRMN (National Research Mentoring Network) | Built a national network for mentoring, mentor training, coaching and professional development across career stages |
| CEC (Coordination and Evaluation Center) | Ran a consortium-wide evaluation with common measures across sites |
Why does it matter for program directors?
Two things outlasted any one grant. First, the DPC developed shared measures of student outcomes and experiences, which gave programs a common vocabulary for evaluation. Second, NRMN's mentor training work fed into the wider practice of training research mentors, now common at many universities. Our guides on mentoring and program evaluation draw on that broader practice.
What's its status?
The Common Fund supports programs for a limited period, typically up to ten years, after which successful elements are expected to move elsewhere or end. We haven't been able to confirm the current funding status of every DPC component, so we mark it as changed rather than active. Check the NIH Common Fund and NRMN websites before relying on any part of it.
Questions people ask
Was the Diversity Program Consortium part of NIGMS?
It was funded by the NIH Common Fund, which pays for trans-NIH programs, and NIGMS was closely involved in managing it. It was not one of NIGMS's standing training programs.
Is NRMN still running?
NRMN has kept a public website with mentoring resources, but its funding and activity have changed over time. Check its site for current programs rather than relying on older descriptions.
Sources
This profile is an independent summary, not an official NIH or NIGMS description. Eligibility and deadlines are set by the current funding opportunity; read it before you apply.