Experts with demonstrated NIH proposal success offer guidance for early-career faculty

3/8/2022

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IHSI’s National Institutes of Health (NIH) Grant Writing Series wrapped up six weeks of open seminars on March 8, 2022. The 2022 program was the first in its seven-year history to be offered in the spring, attracting researchers from 41 departments and 11 colleges across campus. 

Seminars and discussion sessions were led each week by a unique line-up of faculty who have a demonstrated history of success with NIH proposals. A recording for each session is available to view below, or by visiting the IHSI NIH Grant Writing Series web page

Session 1: Introduction to the NIH 
Catharine Fairbairn, Associate Professor, Psychology 
Thomas Kehl-Fie, Associate Professor, Microbiology 

Session 2: The Peer Review Process 
Jodi Flaws, Professor, Comparative Biosciences 
Alison Bell, Professor, Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior 
Jonathan Sweedler, Professor, Chemistry 

Session 3: Specific Aims Development 
Sharon Donovan, Professor, Food Science & Human Nutrition 
Brian Cunningham, Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering 

Session 4: Building a Successful Proposal, Part 1 
Research strategy, abstract and project narrative sections, rigor and transparency 
James Slauch, Professor and Head, Microbiology 
Andrew Smith, Professor, Bioengineering 
Sepideh Sadaghiani, Assistant Professor, Psychology 

Session 5: Building a Successful Proposal, Part 2 
Administrative and compliance sections 
Daniel Llano, Associate Professor, Molecular and Integrative Physiology 
Patty Jones, Associate Director for Research, Beckman Institute 
Naiman Khan, Associate Professor, Kinesiology and Community Health 

Session 6: Responding to Reviews 
Liliane Windsor, Associate Professor, Associate Dean for Research, Social Work 
Catherine Christian-Hinman, Associate Professor, Molecular & Integrative Physiology 
Gee Lau, Professor, Pathobiology 

The NIH Grant Writing Series prepares faculty to submit their first R01 or other individual investigator proposals to the NIH. In addition to the seminar series, a small cohort of selected faculty participate in a peer review workshop and receive mentorship from a faculty member who has a history of NIH proposal success. Since 2015, 64 junior faculty have been nominated by their departments and selected to complete the full program. These faculty have been awarded more than $57 million from the NIH to date.  

For more information, visit healthinstitute.illinois.edu/education-training/grant-seeking-programs/nih-grant-writing-series