Helpful Information for Faculty and Staff Involved With National Institutes of Health (NIH) Training Grants
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Site Visit Tips
If you are submitting a new T32 application, or if you are applying for renewal of an existing grant, and are requesting additional trainee slots or weren't site visited in the last funding cycle, you are likely to be informed that the Review Group will perform a site visit. You will receive information from them about their plans for the visit, including the dates on which they will come, a roster of the site visit team members, and documents which they expect you to prepare in advance of the visit.
You will be asked to prepare an agenda according to their instructions. You will also be asked to provide additional documents which could include biographical sketches for the students who will be interviewed during the visit, updated tables of faculty research support and training records, or other information.
You will also need to arrange some logistics at their request; the site visit team will need information about hotel accomodations (they will make their own reservations and pay this cost on their own), and they will ask you to have lunch, refreshments (and possibly breakfast) available for the team. They will inform you of the per diem allowed for meals, and each team member will reimburse you for the cost of their lunch. They will need transport to and from the airport and hotel; you may wish to use the hotel shuttle service for this purpose.
It is important to ensure that the team is comfortable and that the day goes smoothly. Provide easily readable name tags for everyone taking part in the site visit, including the visitors; take additional materials that might be helpful to the hotel so they have them when they arrive, but don't need to carry them on the airplane (this could include maps, final detailed agendas, etc.)
It may be useful to include University administrators (Dean, Associate Dean, etc.) for a brief session to explain the institutional support and back up for the training program. The agenda is very tight with the team meeting up to 80 people in one day, so administrator presentations should be kept to 15 minutes. Explain to all UW participants that punctuality is very important.
You may find it useful to hold training sessions for the students and faculty who will be involved with the site visit several days prior to the visit. It is imperative that all involved parties understand the importance of this single and brief opportunity to highlight the strengths of your program. They should be prepared to answer questions like the following:
Examples of Questions the Site Visit Team May Ask
A. Questions for the Steering Committee and Administrative Officials- Summarize the campus support for this training grant.
- Discuss the place of this training grant in the broader context of long range campus priorities.
- Clarify the relationships between the core departments and the training grant.
- Identify distinct student pools for the training grant.
- How do you determine which faculty should be affiliated with the grant?
- How do you track student progress?
- How do you select trainees?
- What unique training will trainees recieve (different from other students in the home department(s)?
- Discuss ethics training.
- Discuss minority recruitment.
- What do you think the strengths of the training grant program are?
- Are there any areas in which you would like to see changes in the next five years?
B. Questions for Students/Postdocs
- How many laboratory rotations did you do, and how long were they?/How did you select the laboratory you joined?
- What sort of advising did you recieve while during your rotation period?
- How did you find out about the training grant?
- What did it take to become a trainee?
- What are the defining features and positive aspects of being a trainee?
- What sort of ethics training have you received? Please comment on what you learned.
- Did you know about this training grant when considering alternative schools/training locations? Did it influence your decision?
- What is the function of your thesis committee/postdoctoral advisor, and how do you interact with them?
- Why did you choose to attend graduate school/pursue postdoctoral training, and what are your career goals?
- What do you think the strengths of the training grant program are?
- Are there any areas in which you would like to see changes in the next five years?
C. Questions for Faculty Trainers
- How do faculty learn about the training grant?
- What did it take to become a trainer?
- How would you compare training grant students/postdocs to those at other institutions you have worked at?
- Have you particpated in ethics training and other training grant activities?
- What do you think the strengths of the training grant program are?
- Are there any areas in which you would like to see changes in the next five years?