Research Scholars Program RSP

What is the Research Scholars Program?

A one-year, multi-component investment in the research success of junior faculty and their mentors. RSP integrates strategies from national, evidence-based programs with existing campus programs to:

Provide professional development curricula to support the cohort’s academic and professional research success.
Engage UK’s collaborative scientific community through multilevel mentorship, sponsorship and coaching to embed the cohort in research environments committed to inclusive excellence, collegiality and productivity.
Establish a scientific and social networking structure for the cohort to reduce isolation, build community and provide support for faculty to overcome institutional or structural challenges, and facilitate connections within the research community and the overarching institution.

Announcements

Dee Dlugonski Highlighted in UKNow for Research on Global Gender Exercise Gap

Dee Dlugonski had always been an athlete. She grew up swimming and the sport stuck with her as she became a Division I college athlete at Penn State and then started her coaching career in the years after. Although she loved being a coach for a sport she was passionate about, she wanted to do more.

View All Research Scholars Program Announcements

Who is Eligible for the Research Scholars Program?

Research-intensive junior faculty who will help to enhance diversity in behavioral/biomedical sciences. Eligibility criteria include:

U.S. citizen or permanent resident
Doctoral-level degree (MD, PhD, DMD, DDS, DO, PharmD)
Full-time UK Assistant or Associate Professor
Commitment of at least 30% effort to research
Priority given to investigators who have not yet achieved multiyear extramural funding as Principal Investigator

Why Join the Research Scholars Program?

For participating junior faculty, the RSP offers tailored professional development and multi-faceted mentorship.
For participating mentors, the RSP offers evidence-based training and support to promote junior faculty research success.
For UK overall, the RSP may enhance the diversity of the research workforce. RSP also serves as a pilot project enabling us to compete for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Faculty Institutional Recruitment for Sustainable Transformation (FIRST) Program award, a highly competitive six-year award cluster hiring grant opportunity.