ORCID iD Overview

An Open Researcher and Contributor iD (ORCID) is a unique digital identifier that helps link researchers to their grants, publications, and other research-related work. ORCID iDs are maintained by the nonprofit ORCID. At this time, the University of Washington is strongly encouraging registering for an ORCID iD.

Some federal sponsors require ORCID iDs in their Current and Pending or Other Support or Biographical Sketch forms, such as:

  • Department of Energy (DOE) requires all covered individuals to include their ORCID iD on their Current & Pending Support and in their publications
  • NIH:
    • All individuals supported by research training, fellowship, research education, and career development are required to have ORCID IDs linked to their eRA Commons Personal Profile. See NOT-OD-19-109
    • As of 1/25/2026, NIH will also require all individuals completing the Common Forms for Current and Pending Support to:
      • Link their ORCID iD to their eRA Commons account
      • Confirm their ORCID iD is displayed in the Persistent Identifier (PID) section of the Common Forms
      • See NOT OD-26-018

We expect other federal agencies to require ORCID iDs soon.

Please use the UW Health Sciences Library instructions to set up your ORCID identifier. Once set up, you can include your ORCID in your SciENcv account and your eRA Commons account.

Resources

If you have questions about creating or maintaining an ORCID iD, review these helpful resources: