NIH funding profile · Winston-Salem, NC · Higher education
Wake Forest University Health Sciences NIH Funding
Also known as Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Reviewed by Dr. Meng ZhaoLast reviewed October 16, 2026Data refreshed October 16, 2026Editorial standards
Wake Forest University Health Sciences received $152.5M in NIH award funding in fiscal year 2026 across 234 award records and 240 principal investigators. That ranks #62 of 2,407 NIH-funded institutions and #4 in North Carolina, down 1.3% from FY2025.
FY2026 closed on September 30, 2026, but NIH keeps posting that year's awards to RePORTER for several weeks. FY2026 figures reflect records available on October 16, 2026 and may rise slightly at the next refresh.
FY2026 NIH funding
$152.5M
−1.3% vs FY2025
National rank
#62
Down 1 place from #61 vs FY2025
Rank in North Carolina
#4
8.6% of North Carolina NIH funding · down 1 place from #3
Awards · PIs
234
240 investigators · 51 new projects
NIH funding trend, FY2022–FY2026
Wake Forest University Health Sciences received $735.6M in NIH awards over these five fiscal years. Annual funding moved +13.8% from FY2022 to FY2026. Its best national rank in the period was #61 (FY2025).
| Year | Funding | Change | Awards | PIs | U.S. rank | NC rank | Top IC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | $152.5M | −1.3% | 234 | 240 | #62 | #4 | NIA |
| FY2025 | $154.6M | +9.8% | 229 | 250 | #61 | #3 | NIA |
| FY2024 | $140.8M | −8.3% | 263 | 264 | #68 | #4 | NIA |
| FY2023 | $153.5M | +14.5% | 274 | 261 | #65 | #4 | NIA |
| FY2022 | $134.1M | — | 251 | 242 | #69 | #5 | NIA |
NIH institutes funding Wake Forest University Health Sciences, FY2026
23 NIH institutes and centers administered awards here in FY2026. The largest, the National Institute on Aging (NIA), accounted for 25.5% of the institution's NIH funding across 39 awards.
- NIA · National Institute on Aging$38.9M · 25.5%
39 awards · vs FY2025: −6.4%
- NCI · National Cancer Institute$22.9M · 15.0%
31 awards · vs FY2025: +16.9%
- NIDA · National Institute on Drug Abuse$15.6M · 10.2%
32 awards · vs FY2025: −13.7%
- NHLBI · National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute$14.6M · 9.6%
25 awards · vs FY2025: −18.6%
- NIAID · National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases$7.9M · 5.2%
13 awards · vs FY2025: +10.5%
- OD · NIH Office of the Director$7.7M · 5.0%
7 awards · vs FY2025: +421.5%
- NIDDK · National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases$7.3M · 4.8%
14 awards · vs FY2025: −16.4%
- NEI · National Eye Institute$5.9M · 3.9%
10 awards · vs FY2025: +14.4%
- NCATS · National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences$5.9M · 3.8%
4 awards · vs FY2025: +0.0%
- NIAAA · National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism$5.2M · 3.4%
16 awards · vs FY2025: −28.4%
Also: NINDS $4.7M · NIDCR $3.5M · NICHD $2.9M · NIAMS $2.6M · NHGRI $1.7M · NIGMS $1.4M · NIMHD $1.2M · NINR $724K · NCCIH $659K · NIBIB $489K · NIDCD $439K · NIMH $339K · NLM $133K
Award mechanism mix
Share of NIH award dollars by activity-code family in FY2026, with the FY2022 share for comparison. R01-equivalent research grants were 50.3% of funding.
- R01-equivalent50.3% · FY22 49.5%
- Cooperative agreements (U)22.0% · FY22 23.9%
- Centers & program projects (P)10.3% · FY22 10.1%
- Other research (R)8.1% · FY22 8.3%
- Contracts (N)5.1% · FY22 1.7%
- Career development (K)2.0% · FY22 2.5%
- Institutional training (T)1.7% · FY22 2.6%
- Fellowships (F)0.6% · FY22 0.7%
- Other0.0% · FY22 0.7%
Top activity codes, FY2026
| Code | Awards | Funding | Share | Average award |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R01 | 100 | $70.0M | 45.9% | $700K |
| U01 | 15 | $12.7M | 8.3% | $844K |
| P30 | 4 | $9.6M | 6.3% | $2.4M |
| N01 | 6 | $7.7M | 5.1% | $1.3M |
| U24 | 7 | $6.2M | 4.1% | $890K |
| UG1 | 1 | $5.5M | 3.6% | $5.5M |
| RF1 | 2 | $5.3M | 3.4% | $2.6M |
| R21 | 14 | $4.6M | 3.0% | $328K |
| UM1 | 1 | $4.0M | 2.6% | $4.0M |
| P01 | 2 | $3.5M | 2.3% | $1.8M |
| UH3 | 2 | $2.8M | 1.9% | $1.4M |
| T32 | 10 | $2.5M | 1.7% | $252K |
Largest FY2026 awards
The biggest single award records by FY2026 dollars. Each links to its NIH RePORTER project page.
- Wake Forest NCORP Research Base (opens NIH RePORTER)
4UG1CA189824-12 · NCI
$5.5MUG1
- Subclinical Vascular Contributions to Alzheimer's Disease: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) Multisite Study of AD (Renewal) (opens NIH RePORTER)
5R01AG058969-08 · NIA
$5.4MR01
- Wake Forest University School of Medicine Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (opens NIH RePORTER)
2P30AG072947-06 · NIA
$4.5MP30
- CTSA UM1 Program at Wake Forest (opens NIH RePORTER)
5UM1TR004929-03 · NCATS
$4.0MUM1
- Jackson Heart Study (JHS) Coordinating Center: Task Area A - Core Study Operations (opens NIH RePORTER)
75N92025D00036-P00001-759202500001-1 · OD
$3.3MN01
- Effect of caloric restriction on aging biomarkers, frailty, and multimorbidity in older adults (opens NIH RePORTER)
1RF1AG095175-01A1 · NIA
$3.2MRF1
Recently started projects
The latest new (Type 1) FY2026 awards by notice date, out of 51 new projects NIH funded here this year.
- A Novel Intervention Using Evidence-Based Strategies to Improve Health Outcomes in Rural Appalachia . (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R01NR022594-01A1 · NINR · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$724KR01
- Population-Based Validation of Low-Cost Accessible ECG-AI Screening for Heart Failure Subtyping in Breast Cancer Survivors (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R21HL189046-01 · NHLBI · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$233KR21
- The Impact on Cardiovascular Health with Different Hemodialysis Strategies: The TwoPlus CV Study (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R01HL185419-01 · NHLBI · Notice Sep 14, 2026
$884KR01
- PET Imaging of Lactate Dysregulation in Alzheimer's Disease Models (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R21AG101595-01 · NIA · Notice Sep 11, 2026
$426KR21
- Sleep and Mood Dysregulation in Fragile X Syndrome: A Multidisciplinary Investigation of Behavioral and Neurobiological Correlates (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R21HD123275-01 · NICHD · Notice Sep 11, 2026
$417KR21
- Longitudinal Study of Brain Structure, Clinical Endpoints, and Biomarkers in Myotonic Dystrophy Type 2 (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R01NS148745-01 · NINDS · Notice Sep 10, 2026
$630KR01
Other NIH-funded institutions in North Carolina
| # | Institution | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Duke UniversityDurham, NC | $578.8M |
| 2 | University of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel Hill, NC | $559.6M |
| 3 | Research Triangle InstituteResearch Triangle Park, NC | $166.0M |
| 4 | Wake Forest University Health SciencesWinston-Salem, NC | $152.5M |
| 5 | PPD Development, LPWilmington, NC | $59.1M |
| 6 | North Carolina State UniversityRaleigh, NC | $46.3M |
| 7 | Family Health InternationalDurham, NC | $40.1M |
| 8 | Rho Federal Systems Division, Inc.Durham, NC | $26.7M |
| 9 | North Carolina A&T State UniversityGreensboro, NC | $10.3M |
Nearby in the national ranking
| # | Institution | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| 59 | Research Triangle InstituteResearch Triangle Park, NC | $166.0M |
| 60 | Broad Institute of MIT and HarvardCambridge, MA | $157.2M |
| 61 | Scripps ResearchLa Jolla, CA | $155.5M |
| 62 | Wake Forest University Health SciencesWinston-Salem, NC | $152.5M |
| 63 | Harvard Medical SchoolBoston, MA | $143.2M |
| 64 | Beth Israel Deaconess Medical CenterBoston, MA | $141.3M |
| 65 | Medical University of South CarolinaCharleston, SC | $139.6M |
Similar universities and medical schools
| # | Institution | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| 56 | University of IowaIowa City, IA | $172.7M |
| 58 | University of Illinois at ChicagoChicago, IL | $169.5M |
| 62 | Wake Forest University Health SciencesWinston-Salem, NC | $152.5M |
| 63 | Harvard Medical SchoolBoston, MA | $143.2M |
| 65 | Medical University of South CarolinaCharleston, SC | $139.6M |
| 66 | Medical College of WisconsinMilwaukee, WI | $138.8M |
| 67 | University of California, BerkeleyBerkeley, CA | $138.8M |
About these numbers
Source: the public NIH RePORTER API, refreshed October 16, 2026. See our data methodology and the guide to reading NIH funding rankings by university.
- Who is countedAwards made to NIH recipient organization code 9021205. A university's medical school, affiliated hospital, or other campuses can be separate NIH recipients with their own totals.
- What is countedTotal award amount (direct plus indirect) obligated in each fiscal year for grants, cooperative agreements, training awards, SBIR/STTR, and R&D contracts. Subprojects, intramural research, and interagency agreements are excluded.
- InstitutesEach award is credited in full to its administering institute, even when other institutes co-fund it.
- SubawardsNIH reports the prime recipient only, so research this institution performs under another organization's grant is not included here.