On October 28-29, 2019, the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences (MCB) hosted the first annual CAREER Awardees Conference, which was attended by 36 current principal investigators. The conference enabled awardees to share information on their research and broader impact programs with each other and NSF staff, discuss current and future directions in molecular and cellular biological sciences, and form new connections within the MCB CAREER awardee community.

The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is a National Science Foundation (NSF)-wide funding opportunity for early-career faculty. Recipients of the prestigious, five-year award are selected for their potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the missions of their respective departments or organizations.

The conference, anchored by seminars and a poster session, included activities to foster networking and stimulate collaborations amongst awardees. Program officers from each of the four divisions within the Directorate of Biological Sciences (BIO), as well as from the Directorate of Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS) and the Directorate of Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE), presented flash talks informing attendees about how MCB interfaces with other programs within NSF. Conference organizer Manju Hingorani (Program Director, Genetic Mechanisms cluster, MCB) noted that an important goal of the conference was for the attendees to come away with new ideas on advancing their research and educational programs.

The responses from attendees were overwhelmingly positive. “This has been a fantastic opportunity to meet other scientists across domains and feel better connected to the NSF,” said one. “Learning outside my area of expertise” was most rewarding, noted another. The conference gave one attendee “several new ideas that I am itching to try out. I also linked up with two to three people for potential collaborations” – a sentiment expressed by many others as well.

MCB plans to host this conference annually for CAREER awardees in their second and fifth years of the five-year award period in order to facilitate knowledge transfer between scientists at different points in their academic careers.  If you would like to find out more about the program, please visit the CAREER website. If you have questions or are interested in applying to the program, please contact a Program Director in MCB.