Do you aspire to have NIH funding as an early career scientist in the field of
mindfulness, meditation, or contemplative studies? This presentation will feature one junior faculty member’s reflection on five years of experience with an NIH “Pathway to Independence” (K99/R00) award, which helped launch his early career research program on the outcomes and mechanisms of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) training. Strategies for developing a fundable career award idea will be discussed, as will lessons learned about how to create an interdisciplinary mentorship team, build core skills in scientific management and leadership as a new principal investigator, and balance original data collection with the simultaneous need to publish research results and apply for additional grant funding during the career award years. Advanced graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and new assistant professors who seek NIH career award funding are most likely to benefit from this session.
