Grant Writing Workshop

Junior Faculty Grant Writing Workshop

Purpose

Obtaining independent research funding is one of the most significant challenges for junior faculty. This workshop is intended to provide in depth and personalized mentoring in grantsmanship for junior faculty members of the ISEH.

Goals

Each participant will:

Receive training and mentorship in grant writing skills
Develop grantsmanship skills by reviewing grants-in-progress of a peer group.
Leave the program with a network of peers willing to provide regular constructive grant feedback.
Leave the program with a grant in an advanced state of development.

Target audience

Junior faculty who have not yet received their first independent grant (e.g. USA R01, European ERC or equivalent) as well as senior postdocs who are looking to secure grants to become independent.

Program description

Participants will receive small group coaching from a senior faculty mentor in the field of hematology. Participants will be matched with a mentor from their country or region who is familiar with the participant's funding scheme.

Confirmed Mentors

Wilson Clements, PhD - St. Jude Children's Research Hospital - United States
Learn more about the Clements Lab.

A/Prof Edwin Hawkins - The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Australia
Learn more about the Hawkins Lab.

Professor Carl Walkley - Hudson Institute of Medical Research, Australia
Learn more about the Walkley Group.

Additional mentors to be announced.

Participant requirements

Participants should be open to sharing their work-in-progress and receiving feedback. Participants must be an instructor or assistant professor (or equivalent, either tenure or non-tenure track) at an academic institution who has not yet received NIH R01, European ERC or equivalent. Participants must have a specific aims page already developed (required submission of specific aims to committee by 1 September) and ready to discuss.

Even if your grant does not require a specific aims page, we still ask that all participants prepare one for the collaborative portion of this workshop. Instructions for how to draft a specific aims page can be found on the NIH website.

Because this workshop will include portions where your grant will be discussed amongst the whole group, we will ask that your proposal is prepared in English. This will allow direct feedback to be given from all mentors.

Participants must also be willing to commit to full participation in the program, which includes attending all meetings related to the workshop and participating in 1-3 monthly video or teleconference meetings with the working group after the workshop has concluded. Investigators who have already received competitive extramural funding are not eligible (this does not include career development grants).

Cost

The participation fee is $450 USD for ISEH members and $600 USD for non-members, which covers program costs.

Workshop Format

Workshop to take place in-person on Wednesday 24 September at Kumamoto-Jo Hall. Time of workshop to be determined.

Topics to be addressed include:

Statistics about securing grants
Logistics of how a study section / grant review process works
Differences in requirements for successful US vs. European vs. Asian grants
Anatomy of an excellent Specific Aims Page
Overview of "Do’s and Don’ts" for other major sections with emphasis on keywords: significance, innovation, rigor, and premise How to keep abreast of changes

We will also go over the specific aims pages of each participant. Each writing will be reviewed by four senior faculty as well as the other workshop attendees. The peer-to-peer mentoring is a vital portion of this workshop that we hope continues beyond the day's events.

Comments from 2024 Workshop Participants

"The in-person feedback I could get from the experienced “reviewers” helped me prepare my grant application. I believe the workshop would be a valuable experience for Junior PIs in the field."

Masayuki Yamashita

"The ISEH Grantwriting Workshop provided me with a transformative opportunity to learn from leaders in the field about how they approach grant writing and receive personalized feedback on my proposal. I also benefitted immensely from the networking afforded by this program, which allowed me to connect with experimental hematologists at other institutions who are in similar career stages."

Christina Termini

Registration for the Grant Writing Workshop is now open! Apply by 15 July.

Apply for Workshop