Career Development Program

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A multi-directional approach for research translation requires the seeding of new ideas, as well as the development of productive interdisciplinary research teams of basic and clinical scientists, and preparing the next generation for success. 

To assist in achieving these goals, the EHSC supports an active Career Development Program (CDP) that promotes goal setting, facilitates networking and collaboration, and increases access to resources and expertise to help guide members at all career stages. It builds upon our ongoing success in mentoring early stage investigators and integrates with other career development initiatives and efforts including the UR CTSI, Office of Faculty Development, and Office of Equity and Inclusion. 

The EHSC has a long and successful tradition of recruiting and mentoring early career faculty, attracting new investigators to environmental health sciences, and fostering faculty development across all career stages. The CDP supports the success of early career faculty using a multi-pronged approach that includes the following activities:

1. Mentoring Committees: The CDP supports early career faculty through individualized Mentoring Committees. Early career faculty develop a comprehensive career development plan addressing professional growth, expectations, and individual career objectives. 
2. Grant and manuscript writing support: The CDP brings together relevant faculty to review grant applications and manuscripts and provide constructive feedback and thoughtful discussion of new ideas.
3. Career Development Forum: The CDP Lead organizes quarterly meetings where early career faculty can learn from other Center members about a range of career development topics, such as time management, faculty promotion and tenure process, mentoring students and postdocs, and strategies for hiring and managing research teams.  
4. Early Career Program: To further enhance career development of early career faculty, we provide financial support to such faculty members affiliated with the Center.
5. Taking Aims Forum: The Center organizes a monthly forum called “Taking Aims” that promotes collaborative thinking in a constructive, supportive environment.
6. Integration with Pilot Project Program (PPP): To support career development, PPP and CDP Leads work together with early career faculty and investigators new to EH to strengthen their PPP proposals. 
7. Regulatory Training and Responsible Conduct of Research: The UR Office of Research supports the safe, legal, and ethical conduct of research by offering programming to assist with Export Control, Human Subjects Protection, Institutional Animal Care and Use, HIPAA Privacy, Research Safety, Research Integrity, and the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR). 
8. Community Engagement and Media Training: We partner Center members with the Community Engagement Core (CEC) and the UR Communications office to obtain assistance to develop a plan for disseminating information to the general public, policy makers, public health professionals and/or educators via media interviews, press releases, editorials, and/or community meetings.

For more information, please contact Edwin van Wijngaarden, Career Development Program Director.