NIH Pay Information
Base Pay Rates
Title 5
General Schedule (GS) and Wage Grade (WG): Pay systems for the majority of NIH employees, authorized under Title 5, and including the General Schedule (GS/GM) and Wage Grade (WG/WS/WL) pay plans.
Senior, Executive & Scientific (ES/SL/ST): Senior Level and Scientific or Professional (SL/ST). The employment system that applies to any positions that are classified above GS-15 and involve executive management and high policy-making responsibilities. SES positions are excluded from the competitive service, the system of rules and regulations that applies to most civil service positions.
Title 38
Title 38 Physician and Dentist Pay (PDP): The NIH Title 38 Physicians and Dentists Pay (PDP) policies and procedures are being finalized. Specific information will be posted as it becomes available.
Title 38 Special Salary Rates: Higher base pay scales authorized for nurses (pay plan GN) and allied health professionals (pay plans GS, GM) when necessary to address documented recruitment/retention problems and to provide rates that are competitive with the relevant labor market.
Title 42
Title 42 Section 209 (f) and (g): Title 42 Section 209 (f) and (g) is used to employ doctoral level scientists at a range of career levels, from fellows to the most senior research investigators and scientific leaders. The Title 42 Pay Model establishes policy and procedures for determining initial pay and performance-based pay adjustments for Title 42 staff. The 2008 Title 42 Pay Ranges provides the current salary ranges for Title 42 staff.
2008 NIH Senior Investigators Spring Increases and Performance Bonuses Guidance (.pdf)
2008 Comparability Increases for Employees Whose Pay is Adminstratively Determined (NIH Only)
The IC Director/NIH Deputy Director Compensation Model enables NIH to determine appropriate pay for senior scientific leadership positions based on multiple factors and provides for distinctions between IC Director/NIH Deputy positions and other NIH leadership positions
Senior Biomedical Research Service (RS): The Senior Biomedical Research Service (SBRS) is designed for scientists who are considered by their peers to be outstanding in their work, and who are engaged in either peer-reviewed, original, biomedical research, or clinical research evaluation. SBRS members’ pay may be set from a GS-15, step 1, to Executive Level I.
Clinical Research Support (CRS): A Title 42 excepted service employment system for Clinical Center (CC) employees engaged in direct or indirect clinical research patient care services.
Premium Pay
Premium Pay: A variety of payments paid in addition to an employee's rate of basic pay for approved overtime, call-back, night, holiday, or Sunday work, and when authorized, for Saturday work and on-call duty.
AAMC Compensation Data for 2006-2007 (NIH Only)
- AAMC Data for M.D. Faculty - Basic Science (.pdf)
- AAMC Data for M.D. Faculty - Clinical Science (.pdf)
- AAMC Data for Ph.D. Faculty - Basic Science (.pdf)
- AAMC Data for Ph.D. Faculty - Clinical Science (.pdf)
