Advice For New and Early Career Scientists

In our second episode of a two-part NIH All About Grants mini-series, we explore ways early career researchers can discover and apply their strengths to advance their professional development. Dr. Marguerite Matthews, a program director and co-host of Building Up the Nerve with the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and Dr.

Embarking on a career in biomedicine is more than doing experiments and writing NIH grant applications. How does one early in their research career learn about these other important skills, and what exactly are they? 

Inclusion plans. You have questions. We have answers. What exactly are they? How do they relate to NIH’s policies requiring specific populations be included in NIH-supported clinical research? What do they mean for your application? And, what is an inclusion table anyway? In Part 1 of this NIH All About Grants podcast miniseries, NIH’s Inclusion Policy Officer Dawn Corbett tells us how to consider inclusion plans when putting together your application.

Are you interested in hearing about grants from the mouths of those who live and breathe the information every day? Our new channel, OER’s All About Grants, presents conversations with NIH staff members that cover the entire grants process. Your host Megan Columbus, OER Acting Director of Communications, sits down with NIH staff members and discusses grant topics from an insider’s perspective.

Listen to the latest installment of our All About Grants podcast series “Postdocs Thinking About Independence” and hear Dr. Milton Hernandez describe funding options for junior and senior postdocs, talk about the importance of having mentors, and more. We hope you are enjoying our new All About Grants podcasts. Contact us at [email protected] and tell us what you think.

Listen to Dr. Henry Khachaturian, Director of Policy and Liaison Activities, Division of Loan Repayment, discuss “Using Career Development Awards to Achieve Independence” and learn more about mentored career development awards, including what they are, how to select the right one, and what to address in your application.

Listen to Dr. Sharon Milgram, director of the NIH’s Office of Intramural Training and Education, discuss “Training and Career Opportunities in NIH’s Intramural Research Programs.” She describes the benefits of doing a postdoctoral fellowship at the NIH and also explains how the tenure-track hiring process works.