Research Training Program Plan
The following outline provides a minimum description of what the Research Training Program Plan should include. Data Tables 1–10 (1–12 for a renewal) can either be incorporated into the relevant sections of the Research Training Program Plan or placed together at the end of the Research Training Program Plan. Examples of different strategies can be seen in the University of Pittsburgh T32/T35 Database.
- Background
- Program Plan
- Program Director and Other Senior/Key Personnel and Other Significant Contributors
- Past Training Record
- Research Environment and Resources
- Institutional Commitment
- Evaluation and Tracking of the Training Program
- Recruitment Plan
- Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research
- Additional Review Criteria
- Letters of Support
Background
In the background section, most training grant proposals provide (in 2–5 pages) an overview of the topic of the proposed training program and provide an introduction and historical overview of the setting(s) of the program. For a grant renewal, any progress or new elements to the topic or program setting are included. Back to top
Program Plan
In the program plan, the proposal should, at a minimum, describe any didactic training (clinical or laboratory) that trainees will receive, outline a plan for determining each trainee's experience levels and needs, and outline a plan to accomplish desired educational goals. A key component must be the program's plan to develop trainees' skills in understanding research, conducting research, identifying problems in the process of conducting research, and developing ways to deal with problems. Given the competitive nature of the proposals, it is important to emphasize what the unmet needs of individuals in your field are for meeting new clinical and scientific opportunities and to indicate how your proposal will meet these needs.
Notes: Some templates in the resources section could be helpful for the program plan. For example, the Institute for Clinical Research Education (ICRE) at the University of Pittsburgh has established didactic programs in clinical and translational research, and these programs are available for all University of Pittsburgh trainees. Back to top
Program Director and Other Senior/Key Personnel and Other Significant Contributors
In the Research Training Program Plan, the credentials of the program director and other faculty or contributors to the training grant are extremely important elements. At a minimum, the program director must have the scientific background and leadership and administrative capabilities required to coordinate, supervise, and direct the proposed research training. For training grants, the program director will be responsible for the selection and appointment of trainees as well as for the overall direction, management, administration, and evaluation of the program. Having a clear co-director or associate director promotes succession planning in the event of an illness or change in the program director. The faculty should be investigators who are funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and have strong training records. Occasionally, you may list someone of great promise who has a strong publication record and is not NIH-funded, but then you need to put in a senior supervisory role for a funded investigator and a means to provide "mentoring of the mentor." Back to top
Past Training Record
This section should describe the past research training record of the program, the program director, and the affiliated faculty and contributors. It should also describe the success of former trainees and the role that the program had in establishing productive scientific careers for the trainees. Evidence of a successful training program and productive career of trainees should be described in terms of publications, funded work, scientific awards, etc. Back to top
Research Environment and Resources
The proposal must include, at a minimum, a description of the environment of the program and institution to demonstrate requisite staff and facilities to carry out the proposed training. Back to top
Institutional Commitment
The proposal must include evidence in the form of documents that demonstrate the institution's commitment to the training program and its goals. The proposal should also include an assurance that the institution intends the program to be an integral part of its research training enterprise. Additionally, this section of the proposal often includes a statement about support from the dean or senior vice chancellor for health sciences and refers to a letter of support. Back to top
Evaluation and Tracking of the Training Program
For any training proposal to be considered competitive, it must include a thorough and thoughtful plan for outcome evaluation and tracking. The evaluation should not only measure the effectiveness of all aspects of the training program (didactic, research competencies, etc.), but it should also include a tracking system for following the trainees and their career trajectories, publications, awards, and other outcome measures of success for at least 10 years. The NIH requests that the evaluation and tracking reports be included annually as part of the training grant progress report, the future competing continuation applications, and the final progress report.
The ICRE Office for Evaluation offers evaluation services for University of Pittsburgh training programs. For more information about help writing this section of your proposal, e-mail icre@pitt.edu. Back to top
Recruitment Plan
Applicants for NIH training grants must submit a plan for recruiting trainees from outside and inside their institution. This section of the proposal should describe recruitment and outreach plans to increase diversity in the training program applicant pool, including outreach to groups underrepresented in the scientific community in which the training program is located.
Finding qualified applicants for training programs is not always easy. It is important to emphasize in this section of the proposal that, based on University of Pittsburgh degree and other programs, applicants are readily available to move into training slots.
Below is a template for recruiting and retaining underrepresented groups in University of Pittsburgh training programs. The template is only meant to be a resource. It is not meant to be directly "cut and pasted" into the recruitment section of an application.
Template: Recruitment of Individuals from Underrepresented Racial Minorities and Ethnic Groups
History: The University of Pittsburgh designates the recruitment and retention of underrepresented racial minorities (URMs) and ethnic groups to be one of its highest priorities in achieving the diversity necessary for a healthy academic environment, and it has dedicated substantial human and financial resources toward this effort. The faculty and leadership of the [insert name of training program] share this commitment to the recruitment and training of postdoctoral fellows and residents from diverse racial and ethnic minority groups and to the aggressive pursuit of minority recruitment and retention activities. We will use the [insert name of training program] to improve the results of our efforts in this area. We have established independent links between this program and minority recruitment programs here and at other institutions. Although our program provides training support during the second and third year of training, we do not leave the issue of minority recruitment to our colleagues responsible for first-year recruiting. In fact, [insert name of training program] faculty are members of the recruitment committees at the School of Medicine (see Appendix [insert appendix number] for letters of support from the dean of the School of Medicine).
Achievements: We are pleased to report that our minority recruitment efforts have met with increasing success. Over the past 10 years, an average of 33% of our graduate postdoctoral fellows and residents have been individuals from URMs and an average of 12% of the total group have been women. The data provided on applications and enrollments are being used to drive our placement of recruiting emphasis. While approximately 10% of all applicants to the University of Pittsburgh are from eligible URM populations, our department tends to offer admission to a higher percentage of URM applicants. Here in Pittsburgh, we have established close links with the Manchester-Bidwell Training Program [Mr. William Strickland] to identify underrepresented individuals early in their career for advancement into the academic arena and with the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation to identify particularly able high school students who are from underrepresented groups and could work with faculty as they advance their careers.
Proposed Plans: As successful as our efforts have been, we are not satisfied with the current state of applications and continue to look for innovative ways to attract URMs into [insert name of training program]. In part, we are able to do this by better coordinating our existing efforts. Rather than having representatives from every individual program attempt to attend annual meetings, we are working with the School of Medicine training programs to have a more formal presence at appropriate national meetings. While booths at meetings are good, they are no substitute for face-to-face contact at poster presentations and abundant faculty visits to institutions with student bodies composed of significant numbers of URMs. Postdoctoral fellows and residents who are encountered on recruitment visits are provided with the following: brochures that describe programs available at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine; general information from the Office of Admissions; information specific to the Office of Student Affairs/Diversity Programs, to programs in the graduate division, and to the [insert name of training program]; and information specific to the cultural fabric of the city of Pittsburgh. The University of Pittsburgh Office of the Provost has developed a strategic plan that includes a variety of initiatives to intensify the recruitment, retention, and advancement of underrepresented postdoctoral fellows and residents. The directors of the [insert name of training program] assume the primary responsibility for integrating their recruitment activities with larger university initiatives to attract qualified underrepresented postdoctoral fellows and residents into our program. The program faculty directly participate in the following scheduled recruiting activities that are organized by the School of Medicine.
- Undergraduate Advisors' Weekend. During each May, the School of Medicine invites undergraduate career advisors, postdoctoral fellows, and residents interested in graduate school to the campus. The weekend program includes detailed presentations of the PhD training programs, meetings with training faculty, mock admissions committee meetings, tours of the laboratories and educational facilities, and opportunities to meet with current postdoctoral fellows and residents. There are also several social activities that provide an opportunity to explore the city of Pittsburgh. Representatives from 30 universities and colleges from around the country participated in the event this spring. These included individuals from institutions with large or predominant minority enrollments, such as Florida A & M University, Morehouse College, Spelman College, Tuskegee University, and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. The faculty of the [insert name of training program] will be sent by the School of Medicine to various institutions with significant numbers of minority undergraduates or postdoctoral fellows and residents. These include Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, Clark Atlanta University, Coppin State College, C.W. Post College, Emory University, Hampton University, Howard University, Lehman College, Lincoln University, Morehouse College, Morgan State University, Norfolk State University, Spelman College, Talladega College, Tuskegee University, and the University of Maryland, College Park.
- Mailings. The School of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh mails posters and brochures to approximately 100 historically black colleges and universities and Hispanic-serving institutions.
- Introduction of Recruits to Minority Faculty and Student Communities. The [insert name of training program] faculty are acutely aware of the fact that the success of minority postdoctoral fellows and residents is enhanced if they meet minority faculty and have access to local minority fellows and faculty communities soon after their arrival. For this reason, trainees will be introduced to minority faculty and student communities during the interview process.
- Introduction of Recruits to Dr. Chenits Pettigrew. Dr. Pettigrew has joined us as assistant dean of student affairs/director of diversity programs in the School of Medicine and is now heading the diversity team. He has been very successful in meeting the goals for minority postdoctoral research fellows and residents. During our admissions interviews and recruitment weekends, minority applicants are introduced to Dr. Pettigrew and his staff.
- Organization of Conferences at the University of Pittsburgh. We have a program that invites faculty from institutions serving underrepresented minorities and asks these faculty to bring 1–2 undergraduate or graduate students with them. This type of program has always had an impact in the past, helping us to build liaisons with the institutions and to establish a reputation of responsible engagement in the minority community. We therefore plan to repeat the program every 1 or 2 years.
- Attendance at National Minority Conferences. The University of Pittsburgh has a presence at each of the various conferences of minority students, such as the Student National Medical Association and the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students.
- Speakers' Program. We have initiated a program in which we offer seminar speakers to minority-serving institutions. In return for covering the cost of these speakers, we have the chance to talk about opportunities at Pitt.
- University of Pittsburgh's Career Education and Enhancement for Health Care Research Diversity (CEED) Program. We encourage junior faculty, postdoctoral trainees, and medical fellows who are interested in careers in health science research and are from underrepresented backgrounds to apply to the CEED Program. The program aims to (1) jump-start the careers of underrepresented minority researchers by providing them with mentoring as well as the skills and knowledge needed for a successful research career; (2) provide training in grant writing, making presentations, and other skills required to develop competitive career development awards; and (3) ensure a supply of well-qualified basic science, clinical, and translational investigators in the health care research pipeline. For information about the program and application process, see http://www.icre.pitt.edu/ceed. Back to top
Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research
The NIH expects that all National Research Service Award (NRSA) trainees who are supported by an institutional training grant will receive instruction in the responsible conduct of research. Although the NIH does not establish formal ethics training requirements, all programs are encouraged to offer instruction in conflict of interest, responsible authorship, policies for handling misconduct, data management, data sharing, and policies regarding the use of human and animal subjects. Within the context of training in scientific integrity, the NIH also recommends that a program discuss the specific responsibilities of the institution and the graduate or postdoctoral students appointed to the program.
The University of Pittsburgh has multiple resources for research ethics training. For more information on the responsible conduct of training programs at the University of Pittsburgh, please see our resources page or visit the Web site on the Survival Skills and Ethics Program. Back to top
Additional Review Criteria
Human Subjects: If the training program includes research involving human subjects, the risks related to the subjects' participation will be assessed. In addition, the appropriateness of plans to include subjects from both genders, all racial and ethnic groups and subgroups, and various age groups, as appropriate for the scientific goals of the research, will be assessed. For more information, see Section E of the Research Plan in PHS Form 398.
Vertebrate Animals: If vertebrate animals are to be used in the training program, the five items described under Section F of the Research Plan in PHS Form 398 must be addressed.
Biohazards: If the program plans to use materials or procedures that are potentially hazardous to research personnel or the environment, the proposal must describe adequate protection measures. Back to top
Letters of Support
At a minimum, the proposal should include letters of support from key institutional leaders (e.g., the senior vice chancellor and the director of the institute in which the training program will be housed) and other individuals who will play key roles in the training program. Back to top
