| The National Institutes of Health has
recently reorganized its career development awards (the "K-series") so
that the 14 previous categories have been combined into six. These awards
are available to researchers across the span of career experience, from
very new investigators to senior scientists. They are organized by career
level, the type of previous training, and whether a mentor is required.
Not all Institutes support all of these programs, however. Before developing
an application, be sure that the appropriate Institute is participating,
and has a priority to fund an award that fits your goals.
Briefly, the new awards are organized as follows:
MENTORED RESEARCH SCIENTIST DEVELOPMENT AWARD (K01)--an award
to provide research scientists with an additional period of sponsored research
experience as a way to gain expertise in a research area new to the applicant
or in an area which would demonstrably enhance the applicant's scientific
career. This award is generally reserved for individuals interested
in switching to a new research field, for individuals who have interrupted
their career because of illness or pressing family care responsibilities,
or for faculty at minority institutions who wish to enhance their capacity
for independent research.
INDEPENDENT SCIENTIST AWARD (K02)--an award to support recently
independent scientists with outstanding potential to become future leaders
in biomedical, behavioral or clinical sciences.
SENIOR SCIENTIST AWARD (K05)--an award to support senior scientists
who are recognized leaders in the field.
ACADEMIC CAREER AWARD (K07)--an award to support individuals
who wish to develop expertise in a specific academic area or to support
acknowledged experts to develop curricula and research capacity within
an academic institution.
MENTORED CLINICAL SCIENTIST DEVELOPMENT AWARD (K08)--an individual
award for clinicians who need an intensive period of mentored research
experience.
MENTORED CLINICAL SCIENTIST DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM AWARD (K12)--the
program variant of the K08.
In 1998, NIH announced the creation of "Special K' awards, specifically
for training clinicians in patient-oriented research. These are described
in the Handbook Chapter, "NIH
PROGRAM TO SUPPORT CLINICIAN-RESEARCHERS".
See Also:
NIH
New Research Training Opportunities
NIH
Research Training Page
National Institutes of Health
Acronymic Guide to DHHS
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