The White House directed federal agencies to shift more research support toward individual students and researchers, easing away from grants flowing through universities. A memo from Office of Management and Budget director Russell Vought and science adviser Michael Kratsios also encourages agencies to experiment with alternative evaluation methods outside traditional peer review. The administration’s broader approach has included terminations of research-university grants and proposals that would give political appointees more influence over award decisions. The new guidance focuses on programs that let grant recipients move awards between institutions, a design intended to intensify competition for early-career researchers and graduate talent. Universities, faculty councils, and sponsored research offices will likely face new compliance demands tied to changes in grant administration and review criteria, while research leadership will weigh how to retain investigators if institutional overhead and tenure-linked incentives are further de-emphasized.