New Investigator Toolkit

About the Course

The goal of the New Investigator Toolkit is to address common gaps in training that surface during the launch of an independent laboratory. These sessions bring together early and mid-career investigators for panel discussions on the development of critical “soft-skills” such as cultivating mentoring skills, building your lab brand, and strategic planning through different career stages. In addition, sessions of budgeting and peer-review provide tangible tips for these important aspects of managing your lab and building your career.

LearnORS will maximize success by allowing the learners to control the rate at which they move forward through segmented content created by experts.

Course Curriculum

NIT1: Essentials of the Peer-Review Process for New Investigators

Alayna Loiselle, PhD
University of Rochester Medical Center

This course outlines the best practices in peer-review, including how to deal with issues rigor & reproducibility and how to handle papers for which you may not have expertise on all aspects of the manuscript. In addition, we outline the benefits and responsibilities of the peer-review process.

NIT2: Developing and Tracking your Laboratory Budget

Dennis Anderson
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

The goal of this session is to help participants understand key aspects of creating and managing a lab budget. Practical discussions about how budget management strategies may vary by funding source, institution type, and career stage. Finally, we will discuss some strategies for risk management to facilitate long-term success.

NIT3: Strategic Planning Across the Career Spectrum

Kyle Allen
University of Florida

Starting a new lab is difficult! This course covers some of the decision points that new/early-stage investigators may face, including how to prioritize different research directions, balancing risk, using funds strategically, hiring and time management.

NIT4: Developing and Refining your Mentorship Style

Kyle Allen
University of Florida

This session walks through different approaches to developing your mentorship and management style. Topics covered include how to set and communicate expectations for your lab members, development of Individual Development Plans, strategies for developing and sustaining a diverse laboratory, and different ways of assessing productivity of your team.

NIT5: Establishing your Lab Brand and Identity

Alayna Loiselle, PhD
University of Rochester Medical Center

This session is focused on developing a vision for your lab, and how that impacts what you and your lab are known for. In other words, your lab ‘brand’. Through an informal discussion, this session will cover how different investigators developed their brand, how they communicate this brand both within their laboratories, and to the broader scientific community, as well as how to handle the ‘re-branding’ during scientific or career transitions.

NIT6: Managing Your Lab Environment: Implementing and Sustaining Best Practices

Alayna Loiselle, PhD (Module Lead)
University of Rochester Medical Center

Lara Silverman, PhD
L.I.S. BioConsulting, LLC.

This session will discuss the key aspects of developing and maintaining a high quality lab environment, including development of Standard Operating Procedures and critical process parameters, training, and documentation.