Research Series

Did you know that many publications are rejected by journals because of faulty study design? Developing a well-thought-out study design is critical in ensuring successful analysis and interpretation. This workshop walks you through the conceptualization and design process of a quantitative study, including how to develop a research question, how to generate a hypothesis and avoid common mistakes, and determining research design elements such as variable types and operationalization, sampling, and appropriate statistical methods. Dr.

K awards, or the NIH’s Mentored Career Development Awards, are the NIH’s most common mechanism for supporting early career investigators. View this session to hear Pitt faculty with extensive study section experience review applications as part of a mock K study section. This session, led by Michael Gold, allowed participants to not only observe what a study section is like, but to also receive inside information regarding the study section review process.

The K99/R00, or "Pathway to Independence" award, helps trainees transition from a mentored postdoctoral research position to an independent research position. Applicants do not have to be US citizens or permanent residents, making this a popular funding mechanism for trainees. Because of the complexity of the application process, this standalone session was developed to help you learn how to successfully write one by learning from those who have already done so! Dr. Escobar-Viera provided an overview of the K99/R00 application.

Mentored Career Development Awards (also known as "K Awards") are the National Institute of Health's (NIH) primary grant mechanisms for supporting new and mid-career investigators, and are a key step in any researcher's career. In this session, Dr. Roberts provided an overview of the application process including review criteria, described the range of K awards, and then shared step-by-step instructions on how to prepare an outstanding and successful K application!

Key pilot data are the foundation of your next poster, grant proposal, paper, and independent research career. What are the different ways to approach collecting this critical information? How do you ensure that you are successfully collecting key pilot data that will lead to future successes and a stable, long-term research career? What are the pitfalls that you need to steer clear of? View this session to hear from Pitt faculty who are successfully navigating the same challenges that you face, and learn tips and tricks that you can apply in your own labs.

The Department of Defense is an underutilized source of funding for researchers, and Pitt has resources to help you succeed! The DOD is obligated to award $7.67B in grants in 2022 alone, with up to $10B in additional funding over five years through a separate mechanism. The Center for Military Medicine Research (CMMR) at Pitt facilitates innovative collaborations and helps to develop winning grant proposals with the goal of advancing medicine for wounded service members and their families.

Have you been successfully funded by R-mechanism grants, built relationships and collaborations, and are looking to advance your research career by asking larger questions and addressing more significant issues? Then this session is for you! Pitt faculty shared their experiences with P grants that have funded programs, centers, and consortia. They described components of their grants and how they developed productive and long-term collaborations, discussed challenges, shared tips and strategies, and answered questions from attendees.

NIH is committed to nurturing the next generation of researchers to keep the biomedical innovation pipeline flowing. There are many unique opportunities and special considerations available to junior investigators, but they are not always obvious. If you are a "newbie" to NIH funding, this presentation is for you! An ex-NIH Program Director walks you through your options and realistically points you in the right direction. This presentation covers the funding opportunities and strategies used by NIH to kick-start careers.

Discover the world of funding opportunities and easily identify the ones that are right for you at any career stage! Are you looking for funding opportunities to kickstart your research career or to move it to the next level and not sure where to start? Pivot is a searchable funding opportunity and expertise database, subscribed to by the University of Pittsburgh and offered to all faculty, postdoctoral trainees, and graduate students.

This session drew upon the experiences of accomplished investigators and explored the challenges and opportunities associated with research collaboration. Moderated by Marie Norman, PhD, who provided a brief overview of Team Science, panelists discussed what precipitated their first collaborations, what challenges or obstacles have been encountered, what advantages and opportunities have resulted from collaborations, the implications of collaboration upon tenure, and they shared advice for those new to collaborations.