Research Series

Are you ready to write an F32* grant application but not sure where to start? Have you started writing your F32 and would like to learn about the support available at Pitt to help you succeed? Watch this 1 hour session to learn what is in place to help you write your F32 grant application and then hear from a panel of fellow postdocs who have successfully written their own F32s on how they got started and what tips they have to share with you. Finally, hear about the support available to help you with the submission process.

Watch experienced reviewers simulate an NIH K-grant study section, breaking down how applications are evaluated, identifying common mistakes, and sharing what makes a grant truly stand out. You will also learn tips to help you secure K-grant funding, including how to strategically build mentorship teams, showcase publications, navigate research transitions, justify new training, craft proposals that captivate reviewers, and perfect your resubmission strategy while managing tight deadlines. 

Learn the essentials of the NIH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award. This video covers tips on structuring your application, setting clear training goals, selecting mentors, and crafting a strong career plan to help you transition smoothly from postdoc to independent researcher. Perfect for postdocs aiming for tenure-track roles.

View this session to learn how to write a successful fellowship (F30, F31, and F32) application! The purpose of the NIH F-type training grant is to provide support to promising graduate and post-doctoral applicants who have the potential to become productive, independent investigators in health-related research fields relevant to the missions of participating NIH institutes.

Description: Discover how AI tools like ChatGPT can transform your research writing, foster creativity, and streamline grant proposal development. Dr. Annette Vee and Dr. Kirill Kiselyov share practical tips for using these tools to help you elevate your academic grant writing and achieve success.

Read Speaker Bios

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.

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.

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.