Cash Prizes

Prizes & Awards

The NIH Nutrition Education Challenge offers a total prize purse of up to $2,100,000 to recognize and reward exemplary nutrition curricula across three program types and two challenge tracks.

Total Prize Purse

Recognizing excellence across two tracks and three program types

Up to $2,100,000

Awards of up to $75,000 each will be distributed to winning institutions across the Exemplar Track and Developing Track in three program categories: Medical Schools, Residency Programs, and Nursing Programs.

Prize Breakdown by Track

Awards distributed across Exemplar and Developing tracks

PROGRAM TYPE	AWARD PER WINNER	WINNERS PER TRACK	TOTAL (BOTH TRACKS)
Medical Schools	Up to $75,000	Up to 6	Up to $900,000
Residency Programs	Up to $75,000	Up to 4	Up to $600,000
Nursing Programs	Up to $75,000	Up to 4	Up to $600,000
Total Prize Purse			Up to $2,100,000

All prize amounts are maximums. Actual awards are contingent upon the number and quality of eligible submissions received and the availability of appropriated funds.

Public Dissemination of Winners' Toolkits

The winners’ toolkits will be publicly disseminated by NIH for consideration by accredited medical and nursing schools across the United States. This dissemination is intended to accelerate the adoption of high-quality nutrition education nationwide and maximize the impact of winning submissions.

By participating in the challenge, winners agree that their toolkits may be shared publicly by NIH to advance nutrition education in healthcare training programs.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for prize awards, participants must meet the following criteria:

Must be a U.S.-based, accredited, non-profit academic institution (medical school, residency program, or nursing school)
Medical schools must be accredited by LCME (MD programs) or AOA COCA (DO programs)
Residency programs must be accredited by ACGME
Nursing schools must be accredited by CCNE or ACEN
Must have completed registration on the Dashboard before the submission deadline
Must submit all required deliverables by the stated deadlines
Must comply with all official challenge rules and federal regulations governing prize competitions
Federal employees and NIH contractors are not eligible to receive prizes
Entities must designate a single point of contact for all prize-related communications

Award Approval &
Payment Terms

The Award Approving Official verifies all winners meet eligibility and compliance requirements
Prize amounts are contingent upon the availability of appropriated funds
Winners must comply with federal tax reporting requirements
Prize payments will be made via electronic funds transfer (EFT)
Winners may be required to participate in post-award presentations
NIH reserves the right to adjust the number and amount of prizes

Ready to Transform Nutrition Education?

Learn how to enter the challenge and submit your nutrition curriculum.