Boot Camp Gets Early Stage Faculty Off on the Right Foot

Registration is now open for the Early Stage Faculty Boot Camp, formerly known as the Academic Core Curriculum for Junior Faculty. The week long boot camp is designed to educate early stage faculty, like senior instructors and assistant professors, how to maximize use of University of Rochester Medical Center and UR CTSI resources to get their careers off the ground.

When Lauren Solan, M.D., M.Ed., joined the University of Rochester Medical Center faculty as an assistant professor of Pediatrics in 2015, she was urged by several colleagues to participate in the CTSI's Early Stage Faculty Boot Camp.

“The Boot Camp was a wonderful way to meet new people, network across departments and learn about the vast institutional resources,” said Solan.

One of the resources she learned about during the week-long course was the CTSI's KL2 Career Development Program, which supports research efforts and protected time for early stage faculty for two years. Solan applied for the KL2 award shortly after participating in the boot camp. Though she was not accepted on the first round, she received helpful feedback from reviewers that allowed her to successfully reapply the following year.

“I'm very pleased to say that I was funded after my re-application and now have two years of supported time to pursue my research interests,” said Solan. “Were it not for my participation in the CTSI's Early Stage Faculty Boot Camp, I'm not sure I would have been aware of this opportunity.”

The course, which has been very well-received in the past, includes a variety of helpful information sessions. Biostatisticians hold a session on how to get the most out of your statistics consultation. URMC faculty who serve as editors for clinical and basic journals offer detailed guidance on submitting manuscripts for publication. Other sessions discuss the NIH grant submission process, teaching strategies and career advancement for clinician educators, and striking a work/life balance. 

“The main goal is to help junior faculty learn about various resources available at the medical center to help their careers get off to a more efficient start,” says Boot Camp Co-director Ronnie Guillet, MD, PhD, who is also professor of Pediatrics at URMC.

The course draws a mix of PhDs, MDs, and MD/PhDs, who all carry different sets of concerns and points of view that create opportunities for idea sharing at the sessions. Networking lunches during the boot camp offer unique opportunities for collaboration and for early faculty to identify senior faculty mentors.   

This year’s boot camp will be held September 25 – 29, in the Saunders Research Building and Helen Wood Hall.

To register by September 1, click here. 

Michael Hazard | 6/30/2017

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