159 Benefits of career development grant coaching groups for early career clinical and translational investigators beyond funding success

Abstract

Objectives/Goals: We reorganized the University of Illinois Chicago, Center for Clinical and Translational Science education programs in part to extend assessment beyond funding success. We evaluated the impact of early career grant coaching on applicants’ perceived preparedness for grant submission, confidence in securing grants, and self-reported benefits. Methods/Study Population: Modeled after the National Research Mentoring Network, groups of ~5 investigators who wanted to submit a career development grant proposal met weekly for ~12 weeks with a senior faculty coach to refine aims pages, biosketches, and career development plans using a real-time peer review process. To evaluate impact, we assessed perceived preparedness (“How prepared do you feel to submit your grant proposal?”) and funding confidence (“How confident do you feel in your proposal’s funding chances?”) on entrance and exit surveys using a visual analog scale (max 100 points). Exit surveys also included an open-ended question: “What did you learn or accomplish during the coaching group?” We used paired t-tests to evaluate pre-to-post participation changes and reviewed free responses for additional context. Results/Anticipated Results: From June 2023 to September 2024, 21 people (12 postdocs/1 research assistant professor/7 tenure-track assistant professors/1 other; 13 female) were enrolled in 4 sessions. Seven people did not finish the sessions and were lost to follow-up. For the 14 participants who completed both the entry and exit survey, perceived preparedness for grant submission increased from 30.1 ± 23.5 to 67.1 ± 24.6 (p  =  0.001). Funding confidence in securing funding also increased from 40.8 ± 19.1 to 64.0 ± 20.7 (p  =  0.003). Participants valued the structure and accountability of the groups and reported other benefits, such as improved writing skills. Opportunities for feedback were also appreciated, with one participant stating, “I learned to face my fear of constructive criticism.” Discussion/Significance of Impact: Coaching improved perceived preparedness for grant submission and confidence in securing funding for participants’ current submissions and provided potentially durable benefits such as receiving and positively responding to constructive feedback. The impact of such programs likely exceeds the short-term financial return on investment.