Guides
Guides for program directors and trainees
Longer how-to pieces for people who run training programs and for the students and postdocs in them. Start with the application guide if you're writing a T32 or T34, or with the student guide if you're choosing a path.
- How to write an institutional training grant application A working plan for T32 and T34 applications, from the go/no-go decision to data tables, the training plan, evaluation and the final internal deadline.
- Program evaluation for research training programs How to set measurable aims, build a simple logic model, choose outcome measures and track trainees after they leave, without a dedicated evaluator.
- Mentoring in research training programs Practical ways to choose, prepare and support research mentors, set expectations with mentoring compacts, and use mentoring teams instead of a single advisor.
- Teaching rigor and reproducibility in training programs What NIH expects for rigor instruction in training and fellowship applications, and how to build it into courses, lab practice and journal clubs.
- Individual development plans for trainees What an IDP is, NIH's reporting expectations since 2014, a simple yearly cycle, and how programs can make IDPs useful instead of a form to file.
- Choosing a research training path as a student For students deciding between applying straight to a PhD, a postbac research year, a master's, or MD/PhD, with what funding exists for each in 2026.
- Writing abstracts and posters for training program conferences How trainees can write a structured abstract that fits the limit, design a readable poster and present it in two minutes, with a counter tool to help.
- Planning conference travel for a group of trainees Budgeting, booking and policies for program directors taking students to conferences, including per diem rules, room sharing and travel awards.