Early-career investigators achieve success with grant process through mentorship program
During the first cycle of the R01 Boot Camp, faculty members submitted 17 NIH grant applications
July 13, 2023 — After being awarded smaller research grants, David Hammers, Ph.D., had his eyes on receiving a game-changing grant that would really drive his studies forward.
“I’d never been able to get over the big hurdle of the R01 grant,” said Hammers, an assistant professor in the department of pharmacology and therapeutics, whose research involves developing therapeutics for muscular dystrophy.
One year after the UF College of Medicine launched the R01 Boot Camp — where the college’s senior researchers connect with early-career investigators to help them complete grant proposals for funding from the National Institutes of Health, often categorized as R01 grants — participants submitted 17 grant applications this summer, with more expected in the fall. Two faculty members who submitted grants in the middle of the program, including Hammers, have already had their submissions accepted by the NIH, totaling more than $3 million in funding.
“My specific niche is understanding the mechanisms that lead to the fibrosis associated with these devastating muscle diseases,” Hammers said. “And with this funding, we’ll be able to get deeper into that research to identify the mechanisms involved and potential therapeutics for muscular dystrophy, based on our promising findings so far.”
A project under the research pillar of the college’s strategic plan, the boot camp is part of a new research training and workforce development program spearheaded by the College of Medicine Office of Research. During the nine-month mentorship experience, faculty prepare elevator pitches on their research, attend a grant writing workshop, hold breakout sessions with teammates and set aside time in their schedules to write grants.
Hammers said one of his main takeaways from participating in the program was learning how to articulate his ideas and the science behind them to proposal reviewers and then learning how to pitch those ideas to broader audiences so they understand why it’s important to fund his project.
“Even though I could clearly talk about the science, I got a better idea of how to … use the right phrasing that puts a good polish on it,” he said. “It was great to learn those skills, because it’s usually something you have to gain through direct experience rather than mentoring and coaching.”
Maryam Rahman, M.D., M.S., an associate professor in the Lillian S. Wells Department of Neurosurgery, participated on Hammers’ team and said her favorite part of the R01 boot camp was working with colleagues beyond her usual network of clinicians and neurosurgeons to collaborate and share insights.
“We all have our own circles of people who we lean on to help us in grant writing, and I felt like the boot camp gave me the opportunity to reach out of my usual circle of mentors and confidants to get a different perspective on campus to help with the development of my grant,” said Rahman, whose lab focuses on identifying novel immunotherapy approaches to address brain cancer. “I think this is what makes UF great, because people are helping not out of obligation but to truly be mentors. What a beautiful thing it is to sit in a room with people who are invested not only in their own success, but who are also want to pull you up with them.”
Rahman resubmitted her R01 proposal this month and will learn about its status from reviewers this fall.
“The success of all our participants is a tremendous validation of the vision and work that have been put into the program,” said Elias Sayour, M.D., Ph.D., an associate professor in the departments of neurosurgery and pediatrics, who serves as co-director of the boot camp, along with Azra Bihorac, M.D., M.S., and Dan Wesson, Ph.D. “It’s also a reminder that the best is yet to come.”
