What you Need to Know: Winning a K-Grant

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What you Need to Know Winning a K-Grant

• Amy D. Waterman, PhD
• K01 Recipient

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Good thoughts are no better than good dreams,
unless they are executed

• Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Mentorship GrantsWhy Should I Get a K-Grant?

• Easier NIH grants to get 50 chance of
  success. 65 WUSM or BJH K awardees in 2002.
• Guarantees 3-5 years of salary support research
  money.
• Shows your promise as an independent
  investigator, as a scientist and grant-winner.
• Can lead to promotion at WUSM.

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What People Think you Need to Win a K-Grant

• Promise as a researcher
• A Great Research Idea
• Strong Mentor and Institution

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Director of NIMH, Thomas Insel-

• "There is often a sense in the academic community
  that they think of NIMH as a source of support,
  whereas we look at the academic community as a
  source of answers," he said. "We are looking for
  areas where people can complete a study and go
  onnot just add a brick to the wall, but start a
  new wall and finish it."

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What you Really Need The Full Picture
A Grant-Winning Strategy!

• NIH Knowledge
• A Well Prepared K-Grant
• Knowledge of Internal WUSM Grants and Contracts
  Requirements

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What you Need to Know
NIH K-Grant Knowledge
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Purpose of a K-Grant

• To provide support for supervised study
• and research for professionals who have the
  potential to develop into productive, independent
  clinical investigators.

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Specifics of K Awards

• Health professionals who have completed training
  and are seeking 3-5 years of salary and research
  support for a full-time supervised career
  development experience
• 75,000-85,000 for 75-100 effort.
• 25,000 - 50,000 per year allowed for
• tuition, fees, and books
• research expenses supplies, equipment, and staff
  
• travel
• statistical services
• Linked to you, not institution can take it with
  you.

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Learning about K-Grants

• Review Career Wizard Grant Application Decision
  Tool
• http//grants1.nih.gov/training/careerdevelopment
  awards.htm
• Talk to your mentors
• Review funded K-Grants in your area
• Talk to your NIH K-Representative
• Review NIH Website www.nih.gov or
  http//www.csr.nih.gov/review/policy.asp

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Grants for Early Stage PhDs
As a research Ph.D., have you successfully
competed for independent research funding?
NO
YES
K02
Do you need 3-5 years of mentoring?
NO K22 R03 R21
YES KO1, K18 K22, K23, K25 F32
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NIH Career Development Awards (Ph.D.)
K01/K23 Mentored Research Scientist Development Award Patient-oriented research (research for which an investigator directly interacts with human subjects). 3-5 years
K02 Independent Scientist Award Must have peer-reviewed research support by the time of award. Mainly salary support.
K18 Career Enhancement Award For Stem Cell Research Full or part-time training to use stem cells in research. Up to 2 years.
K22 Career Transition Award Early years of faculty position (post-docs may apply). Sponsoring institution not needed at the time of application, but must have one before the award. For less than 3 years (salary and research).
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NIH Career Development Awards (Ph.D.)
K25 Mentored Quantitative Research Career Development Award Professionals with quantitative (i.e., statistics, economics) backgrounds.
F32 The National Research Service Award postdocs within the broad scope of biomedical, behavioral, or clinical research
R03/R21 Small grants to support projects for which there may not be a lot of preliminary data.
R08 Supports 3,4, or 5 year supervision in laboratory or clinical based research.
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HEALTH PROFESSIONAL DEGREEM.D.
As a health professional M.D, have you
successfully competed for independent research
funding?
YES
NO
K08 K23
K02 K12 K18 K23 K25
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NIH Career Development Awards (M.D.)
K02 The Independent Scientist Award Must have peer-reviewed research support by the time of award. Mainly salary support.
K08 The Mentored Clinical Scientist Development Award Health professional committed to a career in laboratory or field-based research.
K12 Mentored Clinical Scientist Development Award To clinicians for research independence. Candidates selected or appointed by the institution (award to institution), rest same as K08/K23.
K18 Career Enhancement Award For Stem Cell Research Full or part-time training to use stem cells in research. Up to 2 years.
K23 The Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award Patient-oriented research.
K25 Mentored Quantitative Research Career Development Award Professionals with quantitative (i.e., statistics, economics) backgrounds.
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NIH Career Development Awards (M.D.)
R03/R21 Small grants to support projects for which there may not be a lot of preliminary data. (50-100K/2 years)
R08 Supports 3,4, or 5 year supervision in laboratory or clinical based research.
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What you Need to Know
Well Prepared K-Grant
OTHERS
YOU
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The Hidden Question Why should the NIH give
YOU 500,000?
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The Answer to the Hidden Question

• Prove
• WUSM supports you as a researcher.
• Your mentors and references are strong.
• You are a promising researcher with a good
  idea and back-up plans.
• Your research will answer important questions
  that the NIH values.

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Environmental Commitment

• WUSM commitment to you as a researcher even if
  you DONT
• win the grant, Protected time
• Availability of Research Resources needed
• lab space, computers, staff, core facilities

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Strong Mentor(s)

• Expertise and Resources needed for project
• Time and commitment to train you for 3-5 years
• Availability to help with grant editing
• Can have several mentors to strengthen grant
• Past record of mentoring others
• Share our stories

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Strong References

• 3 well-known senior researchers
• Researchers who know you advisor, collaborators
  on past research, past employers
• Also helpful if from different department or
  institution

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What you Need to Know
Your Attributes
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A Strong Applicant

• A Promising Beginner Great Education,
  Experience, Commitment, Productivity, so why do
  you still need mentoring?
• 75-100 Protected Time for Research? If not,
  dont apply
• Previous pilot data

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Getting for Pilot Data

• Seed Grant Money (25-100K/year) from
• Barnes-Jewish Hospital Foundation
• Foundations in your research area (i.e. National
  Kidney Foundation, American Society of
  Transplantation)
• Finding Grant Sources
• Community of Science (www.cos.com)
• Private foundations contact
• http//privatefundingsources.wustl.edu/
• http//internalcompetitions.wustl.edu
• Jessica Indrigo,(indrigoj_at_msnotes.wustl.edu
  286-0009)

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What to Prepare

• GRANT SECTIONS
• Non-Research Plan
• Research Plan the science
• Abstract
• STRONG IDEA GOOD WRITING FUNDING
• STRONG IDEA POOR WRITING ? ? ?

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Non-Research Plan Sections(Take This Seriously!)

• Candidate Background
• Career Goals Objectives
• Career Development Plan
• Mentors Statement
• Environment Institutional Commitment
• Budget
• Collaborators

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Candidate Background

• Your resume to this point
• Education Training
• Research Experience
• Research Accomplishments so far
• Commitment to a Research Career
• Previous collaborations
• Academic position.
• Present evidence to show you are a promising
  researcher

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Career Goals Objectives

• Short- Long-term Career Goals
• What you have done
• Need for additional training
• What you intend to do how winning this grant
  will lead to reaching these goals

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Career Development Plan

• Plan to be an independent investigator in your
  area
• Specific skills knowledge plan to learn
• Plan to work with mentors
• Plan to help you be a better scientist generally
• Ethics training
• Personnel lab management training
• Experience presenting at meetings
• Coursework proposed should make sense with your
  science and goals.

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Mentors Statement

• Mentors research qualifications previous
  mentoring experience
• Mentors plan to mentor YOU (meetings,
  supervision, resources provided)
• Recommendation of you as a K-grant recipient

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Other Non-Research Plan Sections

• Environment and Institutional Commitment quality
  of institution in general, support for your type
  of research, support of you specifically
• Budget PHS 398 form budgeting forms (filled out
  by WUSM Budgets people)
• Collaborators Letter of Support

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Research Plan The Science

• 25 Pages
• Sections
• Specific Aims
• Background
• Significance
• Preliminary Studies and Results
• Research Design and Methods

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Points to keep in mind

• State the questions that are clearly
  understandable, EXCITING, and worthwhile
  pursuing.
• Explain the experiment and analysis so that a
  non-expert can follow what you are doing.
• Interpret the results so reviewer can see the
  impact of your experiments
• Convince them that the results are worth
  obtaining worth the money to fund.

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The Important First Page

• Setup (importance of medical problem, give them a
  flavor of the theme of your lab)
• Hypothesis (points to a specific problem leading
  to a statement of your hypothesis)
• Specific Aims (list these approach used, what
  will be accomplished)

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Set-Up

• Discuss
• Your model system or disease, your theme (2-3
  sentences)
• Important unanswered questions (2-3 sentences)
• Potential impact of the results why it is worth
  pursuing these questions
• Summarize your background and significance

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Hypotheses

• Discuss
• From your setup it should be clear that what you
  propose is the next logical step to pursue
• Clear and Simple
• Conclude how proposed aims would help to test
  your hypotheses

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Specific Aims

• Make each aim independent, focused
• Briefly mention What approach you will be taking
  to investigate the aim, and the impact of this
  new knowledge
• Explain what you expect to find
• DONT STATE TOO MUCH. There are no bonus points.
  It has got to be practical.
• ...Are the experiments appropriate doable, to
  support/refute hypotheses? Do they advance
  knowledge?

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Hypotheses Aims
Approach
Question

• To conduct a group-randomized controlled trial of
  225 potential recipients to compare the
  effectiveness of (two) educational approaches
  compared to standard-of-care on three important
  outcomes recipient comfort asking, number of
  living donors evaluated, and number of recipients
  transplanted. Hypothesis Improved recipient
  health education will significantly increase
  recipient comfort asking and the number of living
  donors evaluated, and number of recipients
  transplanted compared with receiving
  standard-of-care.

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Background and Significance

• Dont assume reviewers will read literature, cite
  relevant findings in grant.
• Not a comprehensive review of the literature,
  pertinent literature relevant to your study
• Identify gaps that your research will fill. You
  are directing them towards your Research Plan
• State your researchs importance and health
  relevance
• 2 3 pages recommended.

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Preliminary Studies and Results

• Establish your (or mentors) experience and
  competence
• Prove you have resources to execute what is
  proposed
• Choose figures that emphasize key findings
• Describe published and unpublished results
• 4-6 pages

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Research Design and Methods

• Describe research design and procedures in
  detail. USE SUBHEADINGS.
• Describe how data will be successfully collected,
  analyzed and interpreted (power, statistical
  analysis, how others will help accomplish
  research, controls).
• Discuss how potential difficulties and
  limitations will be overcome (i.e., interpret
  failures, alternatives, if negative results are
  important).
• Include a timetable.
• Human subjects and Animal studies (IRB approval))
• No specific number of pages.

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Abstract

• your goals as a scientist
• your excellent mentors and proposed training.
• your study aims and hypotheses.
• future career goals (i.e. RO1 funding) after this
  project.
• Model abstracts of funded K recipients on CRISP
  databasehttp//crisp.cit.nih.gov/

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Writing Timeline

• 3-6 months in advance
• Idea formulated, Aims and Abstract Written,
  Mentors onboard
• 2-3 months
• Grant Written, Work with WUSM Budget and Grant
  People, letters of support obtained
• Final Month
• Revise Proposal after critiques, prepare
  submission packet

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K-Grant Due Dates
Feb 1 June 1 October 1
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What you Need to Know
Internal WUSM Grant Requirements
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Budget Grants

• 1-2 months in advance, notify Division
  Administrator of intent to submit grant
• 1 month in advance submit draft budget and
  budget justification for internal approval

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Grants Contracts

• Have to receive WUSM Grants Contracts approval
  before mailing grant- 1 week before due date
• Reviews budget, financial disclosure, and
  institutional legal assurances- NOT SCIENCE.
• GC is swamped during NIH guidelines- leave time
  for review!

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What you Need to Know after the Grant Submission
NIH Knowledge
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Grading your Grant

• Candidate Quality of past research, potential to
  develop into an independent researcher
• Career Development Plan Appropriateness and
  clarity of plan, likelihood that plan will
  contribute to the field
• Training in Responsible Conduct of research
  Training in research ethics
• Research Plan Scientific merit of research
  question, design, and methodology
• Mentor Expertise of mentor
• Institutional Commitment Institutions
  commitment to your success
• Budget Appropriate budget for career goals

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NIH Grant Evaluation

• Grant assigned to an Integrated Review Group
  (IRG) study section and NIH institute.
• Request an IRG! http//www.csr.nih.gov/events/stud
  ysectionservice.htm
• 4 IRG members review entire grant, while other
  IRG members review your abstract. Group
  discussion occurs.
• IRB members give your grant a priority score from
  100 (best) -500 (worst). 100-225 is possibly
  fundable.
• Each NIH Division funds 20 of the approved
  for funding grants.

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Communicating with NIH

• NIH Mails Communication
• That grant is received
• Which IRG your grant is assigned to
• Priority Score of your grant
• Pink Sheets reviews of your grant
• Follow-up online or email your K-grant contact if
  you need an update.

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3 Outcomes

• Priority score
• In fundable range 100-175
• Maybe in fundable range 176-250
• Send additional information to NIH about WU, IRB
  approval
• Wait for official announcement
• Not in fundable range prepare resubmission gt250

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All You Need To Win a K The Full Picture
A Grant-Winning Strategy

• NIH Knowledge
• A Well-Prepared K-Grant
• Knowledge of Internal WUSM Grants and Contracts
  Requirements

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One who is prepared, has the battle half fought

• modified Miguel de Cervantes