National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Jay Bhattacharya, M.D., today announced the selection of Raymond H. Jacobson, Ph.D., as the director of NIH's Center for Scientific Review (CSR), which ensures expert and fair review of the tens of thousands of grant applications received by the agency each year. Dr. Jacobson will begin his role on June 14, 2026.
"Dr. Jacobson will continue strengthening NIH's centralized peer review system so that we can continue backing the most scientifically meritorious research ideas in support of NIH's mission," said Dr. Bhattacharya. "His leadership will help ensure the first level of NIH review remains rigorous, fair, and transparent for all applicants."
Prior to his selection, Dr. Jacobson served as CSR's acting director following the retirement of Dr. Bruce Reed. Dr. Jacobson helped guide NIH's centralization of peer review, and as Acting Deputy Director of the NIH Office of Extramural Research in 2025, he advanced efforts to reduce administrative burden and address challenges faced by applicants. Additionally, he was the director of the CSR Division of Receipt and Referral beginning in December 2024, where he led efforts to simplify application receipt and referral policies.
Dr. Jacobson joined CSR in 2009 as a scientific review officer in the Bioengineering and Sciences Technologies Integrated Review Group (IRG). In 2015, he became the chief of the Biological Chemistry and Macromolecular Biophysics IRG. In 2020, Dr. Jacobson was appointed as the Director of CSR's Division of Basic and Integrated Biological Sciences.
He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Oregon, Eugene, and completed his postdoctoral training at the University of California, Berkeley. During his postdoctoral training, he received a Miller Institute Fellowship, a highly competitive award supporting outstanding early-career scientists, and a Burroughs Wellcome Career Award, which recognizes researchers with exceptional potential to become leaders in biomedical science. Before coming to CSR, he was an assistant professor at the University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, where his research centered on structural and biophysical aspects of eukaryotic RNA polymerase II general transcription machinery.
"I would like to extend my great thanks to Dr. Jacobson, and his recently retired predecessor, Acting Director Dr. Bruce Reed. Their leadership during NIH's transition to a centralized peer review system over the past year has effectively increased efficiency, competition, and transparency, while strengthening peer review processes." said Dr. Bhattacharya.
