Better Research Trainee Data through Streamlined Reporting Processes

November 17, 2014

Training of the next generation of biomedical scientists is a core responsibility of NIH and its partner grantee institutions.The NIH Advisory Council to the Director‘s Biomedical Research Workforce Working Group recommended that NIH should “develop a simple and comprehensive tracking system for trainees” as part of the broader challenge of gathering better biomedical workforce data. Unambiguous identification of NIH trainees was an absolutely critical first step in establishing the ability to examine contributing factors that lead to various post-training careers. Accordingly we started collecting information in this way by requiring that all post-doctorates and all graduate and undergraduate students listed in a grantee’s progress report have an eRA Commons ID (as of 2009 and 2013, respectively). The next important step is developing a system to automate the capture of trainee data that has long been provided by extramural institutions in their training grant applications. ….

Retention Rates for First-Time R01 Awardees

October 28, 2014

We have seen increased interest in the biomedical workforce by Congress and especially by our community. From our end we’ve in particular observed heightened attention to how the dynamics of the workforce impact researchers in the early stages of their careers. So the topic definitely deserves our continued attention and I thought in light of this it’d be a good time to share some of NIH’s analyses on one specific aspect of this that my office has been closely examining. ….

Defining the Dual Role of Graduate Students and Postdocs Supported by Research Grants

October 10, 2014

Back in 2012 I blogged about what kinds of activities are allowable as part of the official duties of postdoctoral fellows supported by NIH research grants. At the time, NIH received a number of inquiries asking us if certain activities such as participating in seminars, attending meetings, or engaging in other activities designed to expand … Continue reading “Defining the Dual Role of Graduate Students and Postdocs Supported by Research Grants”

Take a Look at the Science Research Supported by Federal Funders

September 23, 2014

Frequent readers of the blog and the Extramural Nexus know that RePORT is your first stop on the way to finding information about NIH funded research, as well as data on trends in NIH funding and the biomedical workforce. But did you know NIH is collaborating with other agencies to create Federal RePORTER, a single web portal that allows you to search federal-funded science projects across multiple agencies? While the site is still in alpha testing, we’ve recently added a new partner agency’s data, so I thought it would be a great time to introduce you to this resource. ….

Updates to Our World Research Reporting Tool – World RePORT

September 22, 2014

An article published in Science last week discusses the value of creating a global map of health R&D activity to improve coordination of research and create a “global observatory” for health research. I encourage you to check it out, and I also thought it was a timely reminder for discussing updates to the world research reporting tool I blogged about in March last year. The World Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tool (World RePORT) located at http://WorldRePORT.NIH.gov is an online database and map of research funded by NIH and other members of the Heads of International Research Organizations (HIROs). ….

Considering Sex as a Biological Variable in Research – Your Input is Requested

September 11, 2014

We as a scientific community have made major progress toward balancing the number of men and women who volunteer as participants in biomedical research studies; in fact, women now account for roughly half of the participants in NIH-funded clinical trials. However, we haven’t seen a similar pattern in the pre-clinical research involving animals and cells. …. Thus, as announced in May, NIH intends to develop and implement policies requiring NIH applicants to consider sex as a variable in biomedical research involving animals and cells. …. today we announced a formal request for information (RFI) to get input from the research community, and others. As described in the RFI, we want to hear your thoughts on several topics – for example, whether consideration of sex as a biological variable is an issue affecting the reproducibility of research findings ….

Expanding the Impact of Genomic Data

August 27, 2014

Genomic research produces incredibly large amounts of valuable data, often more than one lab can feasibly interrogate. Every day, genomic sequencing costs decrease, and high-throughput technologies advance, allowing scientists to generate large-scale genomic data faster than before. Thus the sharing of these data not only is practical and efficient, it also maximizes the scientific potential of valuable data. This is why it’s important for you to know about the release of the final NIH Genomic Data Sharing Policy.

Women in Biomedical Research

August 8, 2014

It has been a while since I’ve discussed the participation of women in researchand NIH extramural programs, and following up on a recent workshop we held on the advancement of women in biomedical careers, I thought it would be a good time to revisit updated data and discuss issues concerning women in biomedical research.