The Sylvester Faculty Development Program (FDP) seeks to provide junior faculty with the resources and guidance needed to develop a successful research program. The FDP was founded on the idea that specific, content-oriented mentoring will promote the scientific excellence, career advancement, and career fulfillment of junior faculty and help them become leaders of the next generation of academic cancer researchers and physicians. The FDP comprises the following components:
- Mentorship
- Career tracking
- Travel awards
- Specific Aims review
- Grant writing support and funding opportunities
- Lunch with the Leader
- FDP First Fridays
- Junior Faculty Lecture Series
- K12 Calabresi Clinical Oncology Research Career Development Program
Mentorship
The mentoring relationship is the cornerstone of the Faculty Development Program. Sylvester research program leaders, departmental leadership, and Faculty Development Program leaders collaborate to suggest pairings, matching junior faculty members who have a cancer research focus with senior faculty mentors invested in their career development. The initial mentorship relationship has a one-year term. At the end of the first year, the junior faculty member may continue with the original mentor or switch mentors.
Career Tracking
Annually, junior faculty, in consultation with their mentors, develop an individual development plan (IDP) to identify research goals and plans for the coming year. Faculty Development Program leadership read, review, and provide feedback on the IDP, and facilitate follow-up as needed.
Travel Awards
A competitive grant process provides support to offset costs of junior faculty travel to and involvement in scientific conferences and workshops. These awards facilitate collaborations outside of Sylvester, enhance career growth, and promote varied opportunities for research development.
Specific Aims Review
Specific Aims reviews provide faculty members an opportunity to receive feedback on planned submissions early in the grant writing process. PIs receive a summary statement and individual reviewer comments on score-driving strengths, score-driving weaknesses, and grantsmanship issues.
The review takes place about 3 months before the grant deadline to help guide overall research direction.
To schedule a grant review, complete the Specific Aims review request form or contact Vaughn Edelson at vte3@miami.edu.
Additional Grant Writing Support
- Recordings and materials from the “Writing Competitive Fellowships and Mentored Grants” and “Mentoring Your Trainee Through a Grant” workshops.
- Log into http://courses.miami.edu
- Search for “Grant Writing Workshop” and request enrollment.
- You will receive an email confirmation with your enrollment to the course.
- Access the course via http://courses.miami.edu
- Office of the Vice Provost for Research and Scholarship: The OVPRS offers tools to find funding, statistics and methods consulting, resources for proposal writing and review, and more.
- Miami CTSI: The Miami CTSI offers several opportunities to assist and mentor faculty investigators through the grant writing process, including full grant reviews, 1:1 consultations, recorded modules, and an introductory writing course.
- UM Writing Center: Consultants are available to help faculty, postdocs, and grad students to write clear, concise grants, manuscripts, presentations, and more.
- NIH Resources
- NIH Early Career Reviewer Program: Investigators without an R01 can apply to participate in a study section.
- NIH Grants Getting Started
- NIH Grant Writing Tips
Lunch with the Leader
This quarterly series gives junior faculty the opportunity to meet as a group with Dr. Stephen D. Nimer to share their experiences and ideas and hear from the Cancer Center Director and others around Sylvester and the University about issues that are important to junior faculty.
FDP First Fridays
This monthly research-focused networking series, facilitated by the Assistant Director for Faculty Development, is an opportunity for junior faculty to give and receive feedback from their peers and discuss pertinent career development issues. Topics include writing a strong Specific Aims page, how to craft the introductory letter for a grant resubmission, when and how to contact a journal editor or Program Officer, the promotion and tenure process, personnel and trainee management issues, and more.
Junior Faculty Lecture Series
This lecture series showcases the exceptional work being done by junior faculty members and provides a unique opportunity for informal critique and scientific discussion amongst junior and senior faculty members. Visit the Sylvester events calendar to view upcoming lectures in this series and other events.
Calabresi Clinical Oncology Research Career Development Program
The goal of the K12 Calabresi Clinical Oncology Research Career Development Program is to identify and mentor new faculty leaders in patient-oriented, clinical cancer research who will translate fundamental knowledge and new technologies from the laboratory to the clinic and to the community.
Learn more about the Calabresi Clinical Oncology Research Career Development Program.
Faculty Development Program Contact Information
Joseph Rosenblatt, M.D.
Associate Director for Faculty Development
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center
Professor, Departments of Medicine and Microbiology & Immunology
William J. Harrington Chair in Hematology
Email: jrosenblatt@med.miami.edu
Scott Welford, Ph.D.
Assistant Director for Faculty Development
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center
Professor, Department of Radiation Oncology
Email: scott.welford@med.miami.edu
Vaughn Edelson
Senior Project Manager
Phone: 305-243-1516
Email: vte3@med.miami.edu