Peer-to-Peer Faculty Writing Groups

The Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Faculty Writing Groups Program is designed for junior faculty members, especially those who have Early Stage Investigator status or English-language difficulties, to help formulate and write their first NIH R01 (or equivalent) grants. In P2P groups, PIs will have a space that encourages honest feedback and assessment from their peers, with the end goal of refining their logical arguments and scientific narratives. Junior faculty participants will be paired with senior faculty mentors with strong track records of NIH funding for guidance through the proposal development process. P2P is a joint collaborative effort of the Associate Dean of Research Office, the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs Office, the Department of Medical Sciences & Education, and PD. P2P is managed by PD at Boston University School Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine.

ABOUT P2P

Goals: 

  • Accelerate proposal development process
  • Increase number of opportunities to receive feedback from peers, collaborators, and senior faculty, as well as NIH program officers
  • Increase number of grant submissions from Chobanian & Avedisian SOM
  • Strengthen grant-writing skills of participants
  • Build collaborations and support network of peers and mentors

Program Overview:

Sessions meet approximately every other week and last for approximately 1.5-2 hrs.


PILOT GROUP: Facts & Figures

  • Met May 2018-July 2019, every other week for 2-3 hrs
  • ESL Faculty: 5
  • Funded R grants: 4
    • R21: Score went from 40 to 27
    • R01: Score went from 64 (50%) to 25 (7%)
    • R56: Awarded; submitted the following year and funded as an R01
    • R01: 32 (19%)
  • Total submitted R grants: 9, with 4 reviewed by senior faculty before submission
  • New collaborative projects: 3

P2P Faculty Statistics (May 2018-July 2024)

  • 8 total cohorts
  • 18 unique faculty (identify as a mix of ESL, ESI/new, and clinical)
  • 15 faculty have submitted 52 proposals
  • 15 proposals were reviewed by senior faculty before submission
  • 8 faculty have obtained 15 funded R-level grants totaling $21,303,478
  • Sampling of A0 and A1 scores shown below (shared with permission)

P2P NIH Scores

READY TO JOIN?


Early-career faculty thinking about submitting R01 grants are encouraged to apply. Sessions meet approximately every other week and last for approximately 1.5-2 hrs. If you are ready to make this commitment, please submit a draft of your Specific Aims page, the names of 2-3 preferred senior faculty mentors, and your intended submission date.

****If your home institution is BMC, please first reach out to Dr. Elaine L. Lee.****

Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Faculty Writing Group Request

  • MM slash DD slash YYYY
  • Please upload a copy of your Specific Aims for this proposal. A draft may be uploaded.
    Max. file size: 100 MB.
  • P2P will facilitate an internal review by BUSM senior faculty. Please list faculty whom you may prefer to review your proposal.
    NameEmail 
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Senior faculty with a strong track record of external funding are encouraged to become mentors to junior faculty.
Group Moderators or Faculty Coaches are needed to help guide junior faculty participants in workshops and chalk talks. Moderators or Coaches may not necessarily have the scientific expertise for a participant’s proposal; rather, moderators and coaches are experts in the grantsmanship process.
Internal Reviewers are needed to provide valuable critique and feedback to junior faculty on proposal drafts. We are seeking faculty researchers who fit with a junior faculty participant’s research field and are available to offer scientific guidance.

Mentor for Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Faculty Writing Group Request

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

QUESTIONS

If you have questions about the P2P Faculty Writing Groups Program, please contact Dr. Elaine L. Lee. You may also contact Dr. Andrew Taylor, Associate Dean of Research, and Dr. Hee-Young Park, Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Chair of the Department of Medical Sciences & Education.