SUPPORT FOR FACULTY TO TEACH SURVIVAL SKILLS AND ETHICS

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Success in science requires a variety of professional "survival" skills as well as the background and research experience normally provided by pre- and post-doctoral training programs. Thus, ultimately most researchers must learn to communicate effectively (orally or in writing), teach, supervise and mentor, obtain a job and funding, and behave responsibly. Over the past 15 years the PIs have developed a course to provide students with explicit training in these subjects. In addition, they now offer annual trainer-of-trainers workshops in which faculty obtain the instruction and materials necessary to establish such courses at their own institutions. In this proposal, funding is requested to extend their efforts at disseminating their model for providing training in survival skills and ethics. There are three specific aims: (l) To increase the implementation of courses in survival skills and ethics at other institutions. This would be accomplished by providing 36-40 scholarships that will cover the cost of participating in the trainer-of- trainers workshop and provide faculty with small start-up grants for establishing courses in survival skills and ethics at their institutions. (2) To promote the sustainabilitv of courses implemented. This would be done by continuing to assist faculty who attend future (or have attended former) trainer-of-trainers workshop in sustaining courses and workshops in survival skills and ethics by providing them with on-going consultation and support services including updates of materials. (3) To strengthen and expand the evaluation of project effectiveness. This would be done through surveys of participants efforts to implement courses. In these ways the PIs seek to improve graduate and postdoctoral education, promoting explicit instruction in many of the skills that are necessary for success as a professional, yet are often not formally taught in graduate training programs in the sciences.