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Nurs Outlook 62 (2014) 469e474
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The National Institute of Nursing Research Graduate Partnerships Program (NINR-GPP): An opportunity for PhD students Mary B. Engler, PhD, RN, MSa,*, Joan K. Austin, PhD, RN, FAANb, Patricia Grady, PhD, RN, FAANc a
National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Nursing Research, Division of Intramural Research, Bethesda, MD b Indiana University School of Nursing, Indianapolis, IN c National Institute of Nursing Research, Bethesda, MD
article info
abstract
Article history: Received 1 August 2014 Accepted 20 August 2014 Available online 23 August 2014
The Institutional Graduate Partnerships Program (GPP) offered by the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) provides an exceptional opportunity for students who are enrolled in any PhD program in nursing across the nation to complete dissertation research on the premier research campus of the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD. The goal of this doctoral fellowship program, which is up to 3 years in length, is to train promising doctoral students in basic and clinical research. This knowledge and skill set is necessary for the next generation of nurse scientists to ultimately conduct translational research. In this article, the authors describe the program, eligibility requirements, application procedures, and selection criteria for NINR-supported GPP nursing students. Also provided are tips for interested students and outcomes of current and former NINR-supported GPP students (NINR-GPP).
Keywords: Dissertation research Mentoring Nursing PhD training
Cite this article: Engler, M. B., Austin, J. K., & Grady, P. (2014, DECEMBER). The National Institute of Nursing Research Graduate Partnerships Program (NINR-GPP): An opportunity for PhD students. Nursing Outlook, 62(6), 469-474. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2014.08.009.
Introduction There is an increased need and demand for scholarly, well-trained, nurse scientists. The long-standing shortage of PhD-prepared nursing faculty is projected to increase as a result of retirements of current nursing faculty (AACN, A. A. o. C. o. N., 2014; Allen, 2008). Nurse scientists are needed to develop a scientific evidence base for clinical practice in a health environment that
is becoming increasingly more complex (McDermid, Peters, Jackson, & Daly, 2012). The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) has long been committed to addressing these needs by training the next generation of nurse scientists to have the necessary skills and knowledge to design and develop innovative research and novel treatments. The NINR partners with doctoral nursing programs throughout the United States through the NIH Graduate Partnerships Program (NINR-GPP) to help meet that goal.
* Corresponding author: Mary B. Engler, National Institutes of Health, NINR, Division of Intramural Research, 1 Cloister Court, Rm 253, MSC 4733, Bethesda, MD. E-mail address: [email protected] (M.B. Engler). 0029-6554/$ - see front matter Published by Elsevier Inc. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2014.08.009
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NINR Intramural Program The NINR-GPP is offered through the NINR Division of Intramural Research (DIR) on the campus of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD. At the NIH, GPP students have a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in a research-intensive, interdisciplinary environment that fuels the advancement of science throughout the world. NINR-GPP students are officially affiliated with the NINR-DIR, where nurse scientists are conducting cutting-edge basic and clinical research broadly in the area of symptom science. The research is at the interface of biology and behavior, addressing both patient assessment and biomarkers related to symptoms, such as fatigue, traumatic brain injury, and gastrointestinal disorders, and forms the basis for clinical interventions to alleviate these symptoms. There are three branches within the DIR: Biobehavioral, Symptom Management, and Tissue Injury. Research conducted in the Biobehavioral Branch focuses on the interplay of behavioral, biological, and environmental determinants of health and wellness across populations. Current scientists are focusing on the areas of digestive disorders and clinical neuroscience. In the Symptom Management Branch, research focuses on improving the understanding of the underlying biological mechanisms of symptoms, their effect on patients, and the biological and behavioral bases for how patients respond to interventions. Current areas of research in this branch include genomic and clinical biomarkers, symptom biology, and cardiovascular symptoms. Research conducted in the Tissue Injury Branch includes clinical and laboratory-based studies on the mechanisms of tissue injury, including the identification of molecular targets and pathways activated in response to cellular damage, to provide greater understanding of the pathophysiology associated with tissue injury and identify novel targets for therapeutic intervention. The research foci in this branch include brain injury, vascular biology, and muscle disease. More information about research being conducted in the NINR-DIR is available on the NIH website (http://www.ninr.nih.gov/ researchandfunding/dir#.Ut2R4j9OkY1). The NINR-DIR also sponsors other training activities in which NINR-GPP students can participate such as the annual Summer Genetics Institute (SGI). The SGI is an intensive, 1-month training program that provides didactic and laboratory training in genetics as a foundation for future research. In a recent survey of 187 NINR-SGI graduates from 2000 to 2009, these graduates were found to have successfully integrated their genetics knowledge into clinical practice, research, and teaching, and half of the SGI graduates have continued with further genomics course work (Hickey, Sciacca, & McCarthy, 2013). Students who are interested in the NINR-GPP are encouraged to apply to the SGI. Research skills gained from attending the SGI have enhanced the
genetics knowledge base and laboratory skills of doctoral students, who were later selected for the NINR-GPP.
NINR-GPP Program Activities The goal of the NINR-GPP program is to encourage and support the training of nursing doctoral students who are motivated to undertake careers in basic or clinical research. The NINR-GPP provides funding for doctoral students in nursing with high scholastic potential to complete their dissertation research. Nursing students in the NINR-GPP program complete the didactic portion of their program at their home academic institutions and then come to the NIH campus to complete research for their dissertation. The NINR-GPP students’ dissertations are co-mentored by their faculty advisors at their academic institutions and senior research scientists at the NIH. Students complete the degree requirements and receive their doctoral degree from their academic institution. Communication between the students’ dissertation advisors at their academic institution and their mentor at the NIH is critical to the success of the students throughout the entire training program. Table 1 provides for an overview of the NINRGPP. Dissertation research conducted by NINR-GPP students should align with the following areas described in the NINR Strategic Plan: health promotion and disease prevention, symptom science, self-management, and palliative and end-of-life care (NINR, NIH, 2011). Most past NINR-GPP students have focused their dissertation research in areas of pathophysiological mechanisms related to symptoms and symptom management, health promotion and disease prevention, tissue injury, and genetics/genomics. The research aims of current NINR-GPP students are as follows: To characterize the sleep-related phenotype associated with an abnormality in the PAX6 gene as well as refine and perform preliminary validation studies on age-appropriate tools to measure sleep in adolescents. To explore the relationship of fatigue intensity and mitochondrial function during cancer therapy. To examine the effect of returning cardiomyopathyassociated gene variants of uncertain significance on research participants’ perception of risk and level of distress. To investigate sensitivity to tumor necrosis factorrelated apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL), a protein that has been found to potently induce cell death in breast cancer cells. To determine whether adiposity and physical activity are associated with endometriosis. To examine the effects of stress on immune function in humans, specifically, the effects of norepinephrine
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Table 1 e Description of Selected Aspects of the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) Graduate Partnerships Program (GPP) Program Area Description Program goal Eligibility Program entry
NIH mentor
Training committee
Percent effort Financial support Co-mentored dissertation
The goal of the NINR-GPP is to train promising doctoral students to be the next generation of nurse scientists who conduct innovative basic, clinical, and translational research. The NINR-GPP is open to doctoral (PhD) students who are currently enrolled in any school of nursing and who are citizens or permanent residents of the United States. Students are admitted to the NINR-GPP after completing their course work and candidacy examinations for the doctoral degree at their academic institution. They matriculate to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) campus to complete their dissertation research. NINR-GPP students may complete up to three laboratory research rotations at the NIH before beginning their dissertation research. During the laboratory rotations, students select a NIH mentor who will serve as a co-mentor for the dissertation along with the dissertation committee chair from their academic institution. When the student comes to the NIH, a formal training committee is established and meets regularly until graduation. Members minimally include the university mentor, the NINR training director, and the NIH mentor. The fellowship is full-time, which translates to the NINR-GPP student spending 40 hours per week on the NIH campus. NINR-GPP students are financially supported for up to 3 years. Support includes a yearly stipend, tuition allowance, health insurance, and modest sums for travel. The NINR-GPP student’s dissertation research is co-mentored by the dissertation chair at the home institution and the NIH mentor.
on CD8 T-cell function, and if epigenetic changes are a molecular mechanism for how stress alters CD8 Tcell function. NINR-GPP students actively participate in NIH graduate research symposia and NINR-DIR monthly meetings, where there are regular presentations of ongoing research by NINR-DIR scientists. Students become familiar with the research that is being conducted by investigators in the NINR-DIR and also present their own research projects to NINR-DIR scientists. In addition, NINR-GPP students have an opportunity to become familiar with the research of other NIH investigators. Important components of the program are rotations in the laboratories of NIH senior scientists, where students have the opportunity to do intensive clinical or laboratory work in an area of their dissertation research interest, and at the Clinical Center (i.e., the research hospital on the NIH campus). More information on the Clinical Center is available on the following website: http://clinicalcenter.nih.gov/index.html. These experiences are often with scientists who are outside the NINR-DIR. For example, one current student, in addition to her work in the NINR-DIR, completed a clinical rotation in the Clinical Center at NIH to learn about clinical aspects of the disorder she was studying, as well as laboratory rotations in exercise physiology and rehabilitation medicine and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Generally, NINR-GPP students complete these research rotations before performing their dissertation research. The student generally spends 8 to 12 weeks in each rotation. Ideally, rotations build on each other and lead to the dissertation research. Once candidates have been selected for the NINR-GPP, the NINR training
director works closely with the students and their academic advisors in their home program to help identify potential NIH intramural investigators for these laboratory rotations. Ideally, students interact with potential NIH scientists about their research interests before coming to the NIH campus. During the first 2 to 3 weeks after the student comes to the NIH campus, the student completes the process of identifying a senior scientist for the first of their three rotations. After the NINR-GPP students have completed their rotations and have selected a laboratory to do their dissertation research in, the NINR-GPP students are integrated into the senior scientist’s laboratory and research team. They participate actively in the laboratory meetings, and the senior scientist serves as the mentor for their dissertations and co-chairs the dissertation committee with the student’s faculty advisor from the student’s home institution. Once the NIH mentor has been selected, he or she becomes a member of the NINR-GPP student’s training team, which minimally consists of the NINR training director and the student’s co-mentors. Throughout the program, the NINR-GPP students meet with the NINR training director as a group to discuss training, mentoring, and career issues related to becoming a nurse scientist. In addition, the training director helps students to become aware of the large number of opportunities and resources on the NIH campus in which students are eligible to participate. Students also have opportunities to travel to regional and national nursing conferences and other scientific meetings to present their research; gain scientific knowledge and skills; and network with colleagues, potential collaborators, and future employers across the country. This NINR-GPP student group also provides peer feedback on student poster and platform presentations for
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professional meetings as well as for NIH-sponsored graduate symposiums.
Opportunities and Resources at the NIH NINR-supported GPP nursing students are also members of the broader GPP community at the NIH with its wealth of resources and professional development opportunities. The GPP provides graduate students the opportunity to perform their doctoral dissertation research in the NIH Intramural Research Program. There are currently approximately 400 students in the broader GPP, with the NINR-GPP as one of the NIH’s Institutional Partnerships. The Office of Intramural Training and Education (OITE), and the central GPP office within the OITE, coordinates a variety of programs; provides individual assistance; and prepares resources to enhance the scientific, professional, and career development of all NIH trainees. Intramural research training at NIH is well-known for its unprecedented availability of and access to specialized resources. On the NIH campuses, there are a large number of regularly offered presentations by scientific experts from NIH and the academic community. Weekly clinical center grand rounds, lecture series, courses for graduate credit, and scientific interest groups are routinely presented. For example, the NIH Director’s weekly seminar series typically hosts Nobel laureates and other leading scientists. OITE offers a wide range of programs for GPP students to develop their research skills including courses on writing papers for scientific journals, writing grant proposals, presenting research posters, and making oral presentations. OITE also has programs including symposia, seminars, and annual retreats for leadership, mentoring, and teaching skills. A major event for GPP students is the NIH Career Symposium, which is a full day of panels with information on career opportunities in the sciences. Regular opportunities for students to present their ongoing research are available on the NIH campus (e.g., the Annual NIH Graduate Student Research Symposium and the monthly NIH Graduate Student Seminar Series).
fellow’s research activities are supported through their senior scientist mentor’s intramural research laboratory and institute at the NIH. Potential applicants for the NINR-GPP should begin the process by meeting with their academic advisors to discuss the possibility of applying. Students are encouraged to consider participation in the NINR-GPP during the first year of their doctoral work so they can plan their doctoral course work accordingly. It is important that the student’s academic advisor be actively involved and supportive of the student’s application because the academic advisor will play a key role in shaping the student’s research interests as well as in identifying a NIH senior scientist for the student’s dissertation research. If the academic advisor is supportive of an application, the next step is for the student to contact the NINR Training Director, Dr. Mary Engler, to discuss the student’s research interests and the application process. Before submitting an application, students should explore the NINR website and follow links that describe the NIH’s Institutional NINR-GPP (NINR, NIH, 2014). Students are encouraged to apply to the NINR-GPP in the second or third year of their doctoral program and before their final year of doctoral course work, at least 1 year before the planned inception of the dissertation research. All doctoral course work and candidacy examinations must be completed before coming to the NIH campus. Most NINR-GPP fellows begin their fellowship in the fall, but some flexibility does exist to begin at other times. Selection into the NINR-GPP is based on an applicant’s curriculum vitae, grade point average, clinical and research experience, and letters of reference. Especially important in the selection process are the student’s commitment to scholarship and the degree of match between the student’s research interest and the research area of an intramural investigator. Completed applications are reviewed by a committee identified by the training director that includes NINR intramural research investigators and extramural nursing faculty who have experience in doctoral research training. Top candidates are invited for an inperson interview at the NIH.
Tips from Current Students
NINR-GPP Eligibility, Application, and Selection Process
We asked current students to provide tips for doctoral students who might be interested in applying to the NINR-GPP. Their suggestions and comments follow:
To be eligible for the NINR-GPP, applicants must be citizens or permanent residents of the United States, be currently enrolled in a PhD program in any of the nation’s schools of nursing, and have completed all course work and candidacy examinations. Up to 3 years of funding is available and begins when the student comes to the NIH campus. NINR-GPP trainee support includes a yearly stipend, tuition allowance, modest sums for travel, and health insurance during the years that the student is a fellow on the NIH campus. The NINR-GPP
Before coming to the NIH, students should reflect on their overall goals for their graduate experience as well as career aspirations. The NINR-GPP program provides a plethora of research opportunities, and there truly is the feeling that in your research anything is possible. It is important to get a firm foundation in statistics, preferably biostatistics, while doing doctoral course work. Biostatistics is a necessity regardless of the laboratory that a student is in or what type of research
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the student does at NIH; biostatistics course work is really necessary to grasp its application in research. It is helpful to learn laboratory skills before coming to the NIH campus. I set up different practica that allowed me to work on various laboratory-based projects before coming to the NIH in knowing that I would end up working in a wet laboratory. That was perhaps the most useful thing that I did before coming to the NIH. Begin looking for a potential laboratory and NIH mentor as soon as possible before making a decision. I highly recommend meeting the mentor and touring the laboratory. I have found that the best teaching environments are ones in which there are a variety of students including postdoctoral, predoctoral, postbaccalaureate, and summer students. This is an intense program and having a mentor who is patient, supportive, and, most importantly, willing to teach you, makes a dramatic difference. Be sure to select a laboratory in which you feel confident you will have the support you need. To be successful in this program, it is important to be flexible in your research ideas because there is a very good chance that your research topic will change and evolve. In order to have a good experience at the NIH, within the NINR-GPP program, it is important that you can find a mentor who is interested in a similar research topic. I would urge potential applicants to spend time researching mentors within the NIH as early as possible. One of the main challenges of the program is time management and balancing your needs with that of your laboratory, NINR, and your university. That being said, it is very nice to have many people invested in your future. In communications with potential mentors, NINRGPP students should highlight their background and any prior laboratory/clinical experiences, so the mentor will have a good idea if the student is ready to start in the laboratory/clinic and if any basic lab training is needed.
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at the NIH. A major limitation was that the program was available only to students from T-32efunded schools, and students with excellent academic records and an excellent fit with the GPP program were not eligible. Another issue surfaced when 3 years of funding were used for course work and only 2 years of funding remained for dissertation research, which was not long enough for some students. A final lesson learned was that research interests of some students changed during course work, and there was no longer a good fit between their research interests and NIH opportunities. A number of changes were implemented in 2012 including the introduction of the current program, which expanded accessibility to make it available for all nursing doctoral students nationwide, and hiring a new training director who has a strong background in both research and doctoral education.
Former and Current Students
Program History
To date, 16 fellows have participated in the NINR-GPP. Of these, 12 (75%) have either successfully completed the program or are currently in the program. Specifically, six have completed the NIH portion and have received a PhD from their academic institutions, and six are current fellows actively engaged in research within their NIH mentor’s laboratory. One of the six current students was admitted under the current, 3-year NINRGPP program. Two of the 16 (12%) have completed the NIH portion of their program and are still in the process of completing their dissertations, and two students (12%) did not complete the NIH portion of the program because their research interests evolved and were no longer a good match with the NIH opportunities. All six of the current NINR-GPP students are on the NIH campus and are in the process of conducting dissertation research. Of the six current students, all have made research presentations, five have at least one refereed publication, and three have received an award (e.g., Poster Competition Award or Graduate Student Research Award). Here are comments from some about their experience in the NINR-GPP.
The first NINR-GPP students were admitted in 2004 with a goal of admitting approximately two students per year from six schools of nursing. In 2008, the program was expanded to include all schools of nursing that had an active NIH NINR T-32 award (i.e., National Research Service Award institutional grant), which supports predoctoral and postdoctoral research training. During this period of the NINR-GPP, students were provided a total of 5 years of funding, which included support for course work while at their academic institution and for their dissertation research at NIH. It was anticipated that students would have 2 years of support for course work at their home university and 3 years of support for dissertation research
The NINR-GPP program offers a unique graduate experience. As co-chair of the graduate student council, I can attest to the abundance of opportunities available including writing- and presentationfocused workshops, career development, and social activities. As I reflect on my experience in the NINRGPP program, I believe that the graduate student community really sets the NINR-GPP program apart from other programs. It is exciting enough to read about the incredible discoveries of scientific research. This program allows me to be part of that amazing process within the context of my dissertation interest. In my time here, I have formed lasting relationships with people across scientific disciplines, which have
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shaped my research and life experiences. The graduate students that I have met are truly remarkable, and I am proud to have them as future colleagues. The six students, who have successfully completed the NINR-GPP and also finished their PhDs, have strong outcomes and are on track toward productive academic nursing careers. All have published in refereed journals, and three have been successful in receiving external funding for their research. Sources for funding were the NIH, U.S. Department of Defense, Midwest Nursing Research Society, and American Cancer Society. Four former NINR-GPP fellows are in schools of nursing; three are assistant professors (e.g., University of Iowa, University of Pittsburgh, and Radians College of Nursing), and one is a postdoctoral fellow (Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing). One graduate is an assistant clinical investigator in the intramural program at the NINR, and one graduate is a researcher in a hospital setting. The following comments from some of these graduates indicate just how important the NINR-GPP was to their careers: My university-based doctoral education was superb. Participating in the NINR-GPP, however, opened additional doors that would otherwise not have been possible. The NINR-GPP program provided support and encouraged me to focus on research areas that were important to my goals and visions. I particularly appreciated the opportunity that the NINR-GPP offered me to complete my dissertation in a truly interdisciplinary environment. Maintaining close ties with my home university program helped me ground my work in nursing, while the group at NIH introduced me to research questions, methods, and theories that I simply had not considered to that point. The NINR-GPP was a critical step in my development as a clinical translational neuroscientist. The knowledge and skills I gained via collaborative mentoring agreements between leading scientists at my university and the NIH were unlike any other educational experience I could have received as a traditional BSN-PHD student. I could not have conducted the dissertation study I completed had I not been an NINR-GPP fellow, and I am forever grateful for the strong foundation it has given me. The NINR-GPP program provided me the opportunity to work with an amazing interdisciplinary team focusing on translational research. It was a great opportunity to collaborate and develop a professional network. The NINR-GPP afforded me an opportunity to do my “dream PhD” project. I was able to do international, translational genetics work with a multidisciplinary team. I learned both clinical and bench genetics from wonderful mentors at the NIH and had the experience of a lifetime! I continue to use everything I learned on a daily basis in my current research.
What I learned at NIH influences my professional life every day. The methods that I learned during my time in the NINR-GPP are those that I employ in my pilot studies. It’s not an overstatement to say that the exposure to new and different models and approaches truly changed my scholarly orientation and approach to my research.
Conclusion The NINR is dedicated to increasing the number of well-trained nurse scientists who will conduct research in clinical settings and join the faculty workforces in schools of nursing. The NINR-GPP is one of a number of funding mechanisms for training that is offered by the NINR. The NINR-GPP has a 10-year history of supporting the doctoral research of promising nursing students who come to the NIH campus to conduct their dissertation research. The environment with its many resources provides an unparalleled opportunity for research. Although the newly revised NINR-GPP program is in its early stages and outcomes are still forthcoming, the program provides students with the expertise and training to design and develop innovative research and novel treatments.
Acknowledgments The authors thank Ann Cashion, PhD, RN, FAAN, Scientific Director, National Institute of Nursing Research, Sharon Milgram, PhD, Director, Office of Intramural Training and Education (OITE), and Philip Y. Wang, PhD, Deputy Director, Graduate Partnerships Program, OITE, National Institutes of Health.
references
AACN, A. A. o. C. o. N. (2014). Nursing faculty shortage fact sheet. Retrieved from http://www.aacn.nche.edu/media-relations/ FacultyShortageFS.pdf. Allen, L. (2008). The nursing shortage continues as faculty shortage grows. Nursing Economics, 26(1), 35e40. Hickey, K. T., Sciacca, R. R., & McCarthy, M. S. (2013). Descriptive survey of Summer Genetics Institute nurse graduates in the USA. Nursing & Health Sciences, 15(1), 3e8. McDermid, F., Peters, K., Jackson, D., & Daly, J. (2012). Factors contributing to the shortage of nurse faculty: A review of the literature. Nurse Education Today, 32(5), 565e569. NINR, National Institues of Health. (2011). Mission and Strategic Plan. Retrieved from http://www.ninr.nih.gov/aboutninr/ninrmission-and-strategic-plan#.UxiY4z98qxo. NINR, National Institutes of Health. (2014). NINR’s Graduate Partnership Program. Retrieved from http://www.ninr.nih. gov/training/trainingopportunitiesintramural/graduatepartnership-program#.Uxianj98qxo.
Nurs Outlook 62 (2014) 469e474
www.nursingoutlook.org
The National Institute of Nursing Research Graduate Partnerships Program (NINR-GPP): An opportunity for PhD students Mary B. Engler, PhD, RN, MSa,*, Joan K. Austin, PhD, RN, FAANb, Patricia Grady, PhD, RN, FAANc a
National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Nursing Research, Division of Intramural Research, Bethesda, MD b Indiana University School of Nursing, Indianapolis, IN c National Institute of Nursing Research, Bethesda, MD
article info
abstract
Article history: Received 1 August 2014 Accepted 20 August 2014 Available online 23 August 2014
The Institutional Graduate Partnerships Program (GPP) offered by the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) provides an exceptional opportunity for students who are enrolled in any PhD program in nursing across the nation to complete dissertation research on the premier research campus of the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD. The goal of this doctoral fellowship program, which is up to 3 years in length, is to train promising doctoral students in basic and clinical research. This knowledge and skill set is necessary for the next generation of nurse scientists to ultimately conduct translational research. In this article, the authors describe the program, eligibility requirements, application procedures, and selection criteria for NINR-supported GPP nursing students. Also provided are tips for interested students and outcomes of current and former NINR-supported GPP students (NINR-GPP).
Keywords: Dissertation research Mentoring Nursing PhD training
Cite this article: Engler, M. B., Austin, J. K., & Grady, P. (2014, DECEMBER). The National Institute of Nursing Research Graduate Partnerships Program (NINR-GPP): An opportunity for PhD students. Nursing Outlook, 62(6), 469-474. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2014.08.009.
Introduction There is an increased need and demand for scholarly, well-trained, nurse scientists. The long-standing shortage of PhD-prepared nursing faculty is projected to increase as a result of retirements of current nursing faculty (AACN, A. A. o. C. o. N., 2014; Allen, 2008). Nurse scientists are needed to develop a scientific evidence base for clinical practice in a health environment that
is becoming increasingly more complex (McDermid, Peters, Jackson, & Daly, 2012). The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) has long been committed to addressing these needs by training the next generation of nurse scientists to have the necessary skills and knowledge to design and develop innovative research and novel treatments. The NINR partners with doctoral nursing programs throughout the United States through the NIH Graduate Partnerships Program (NINR-GPP) to help meet that goal.
* Corresponding author: Mary B. Engler, National Institutes of Health, NINR, Division of Intramural Research, 1 Cloister Court, Rm 253, MSC 4733, Bethesda, MD. E-mail address: [email protected] (M.B. Engler). 0029-6554/$ - see front matter Published by Elsevier Inc. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2014.08.009
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NINR Intramural Program The NINR-GPP is offered through the NINR Division of Intramural Research (DIR) on the campus of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD. At the NIH, GPP students have a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in a research-intensive, interdisciplinary environment that fuels the advancement of science throughout the world. NINR-GPP students are officially affiliated with the NINR-DIR, where nurse scientists are conducting cutting-edge basic and clinical research broadly in the area of symptom science. The research is at the interface of biology and behavior, addressing both patient assessment and biomarkers related to symptoms, such as fatigue, traumatic brain injury, and gastrointestinal disorders, and forms the basis for clinical interventions to alleviate these symptoms. There are three branches within the DIR: Biobehavioral, Symptom Management, and Tissue Injury. Research conducted in the Biobehavioral Branch focuses on the interplay of behavioral, biological, and environmental determinants of health and wellness across populations. Current scientists are focusing on the areas of digestive disorders and clinical neuroscience. In the Symptom Management Branch, research focuses on improving the understanding of the underlying biological mechanisms of symptoms, their effect on patients, and the biological and behavioral bases for how patients respond to interventions. Current areas of research in this branch include genomic and clinical biomarkers, symptom biology, and cardiovascular symptoms. Research conducted in the Tissue Injury Branch includes clinical and laboratory-based studies on the mechanisms of tissue injury, including the identification of molecular targets and pathways activated in response to cellular damage, to provide greater understanding of the pathophysiology associated with tissue injury and identify novel targets for therapeutic intervention. The research foci in this branch include brain injury, vascular biology, and muscle disease. More information about research being conducted in the NINR-DIR is available on the NIH website (http://www.ninr.nih.gov/ researchandfunding/dir#.Ut2R4j9OkY1). The NINR-DIR also sponsors other training activities in which NINR-GPP students can participate such as the annual Summer Genetics Institute (SGI). The SGI is an intensive, 1-month training program that provides didactic and laboratory training in genetics as a foundation for future research. In a recent survey of 187 NINR-SGI graduates from 2000 to 2009, these graduates were found to have successfully integrated their genetics knowledge into clinical practice, research, and teaching, and half of the SGI graduates have continued with further genomics course work (Hickey, Sciacca, & McCarthy, 2013). Students who are interested in the NINR-GPP are encouraged to apply to the SGI. Research skills gained from attending the SGI have enhanced the
genetics knowledge base and laboratory skills of doctoral students, who were later selected for the NINR-GPP.
NINR-GPP Program Activities The goal of the NINR-GPP program is to encourage and support the training of nursing doctoral students who are motivated to undertake careers in basic or clinical research. The NINR-GPP provides funding for doctoral students in nursing with high scholastic potential to complete their dissertation research. Nursing students in the NINR-GPP program complete the didactic portion of their program at their home academic institutions and then come to the NIH campus to complete research for their dissertation. The NINR-GPP students’ dissertations are co-mentored by their faculty advisors at their academic institutions and senior research scientists at the NIH. Students complete the degree requirements and receive their doctoral degree from their academic institution. Communication between the students’ dissertation advisors at their academic institution and their mentor at the NIH is critical to the success of the students throughout the entire training program. Table 1 provides for an overview of the NINRGPP. Dissertation research conducted by NINR-GPP students should align with the following areas described in the NINR Strategic Plan: health promotion and disease prevention, symptom science, self-management, and palliative and end-of-life care (NINR, NIH, 2011). Most past NINR-GPP students have focused their dissertation research in areas of pathophysiological mechanisms related to symptoms and symptom management, health promotion and disease prevention, tissue injury, and genetics/genomics. The research aims of current NINR-GPP students are as follows: To characterize the sleep-related phenotype associated with an abnormality in the PAX6 gene as well as refine and perform preliminary validation studies on age-appropriate tools to measure sleep in adolescents. To explore the relationship of fatigue intensity and mitochondrial function during cancer therapy. To examine the effect of returning cardiomyopathyassociated gene variants of uncertain significance on research participants’ perception of risk and level of distress. To investigate sensitivity to tumor necrosis factorrelated apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL), a protein that has been found to potently induce cell death in breast cancer cells. To determine whether adiposity and physical activity are associated with endometriosis. To examine the effects of stress on immune function in humans, specifically, the effects of norepinephrine
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Table 1 e Description of Selected Aspects of the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) Graduate Partnerships Program (GPP) Program Area Description Program goal Eligibility Program entry
NIH mentor
Training committee
Percent effort Financial support Co-mentored dissertation
The goal of the NINR-GPP is to train promising doctoral students to be the next generation of nurse scientists who conduct innovative basic, clinical, and translational research. The NINR-GPP is open to doctoral (PhD) students who are currently enrolled in any school of nursing and who are citizens or permanent residents of the United States. Students are admitted to the NINR-GPP after completing their course work and candidacy examinations for the doctoral degree at their academic institution. They matriculate to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) campus to complete their dissertation research. NINR-GPP students may complete up to three laboratory research rotations at the NIH before beginning their dissertation research. During the laboratory rotations, students select a NIH mentor who will serve as a co-mentor for the dissertation along with the dissertation committee chair from their academic institution. When the student comes to the NIH, a formal training committee is established and meets regularly until graduation. Members minimally include the university mentor, the NINR training director, and the NIH mentor. The fellowship is full-time, which translates to the NINR-GPP student spending 40 hours per week on the NIH campus. NINR-GPP students are financially supported for up to 3 years. Support includes a yearly stipend, tuition allowance, health insurance, and modest sums for travel. The NINR-GPP student’s dissertation research is co-mentored by the dissertation chair at the home institution and the NIH mentor.
on CD8 T-cell function, and if epigenetic changes are a molecular mechanism for how stress alters CD8 Tcell function. NINR-GPP students actively participate in NIH graduate research symposia and NINR-DIR monthly meetings, where there are regular presentations of ongoing research by NINR-DIR scientists. Students become familiar with the research that is being conducted by investigators in the NINR-DIR and also present their own research projects to NINR-DIR scientists. In addition, NINR-GPP students have an opportunity to become familiar with the research of other NIH investigators. Important components of the program are rotations in the laboratories of NIH senior scientists, where students have the opportunity to do intensive clinical or laboratory work in an area of their dissertation research interest, and at the Clinical Center (i.e., the research hospital on the NIH campus). More information on the Clinical Center is available on the following website: http://clinicalcenter.nih.gov/index.html. These experiences are often with scientists who are outside the NINR-DIR. For example, one current student, in addition to her work in the NINR-DIR, completed a clinical rotation in the Clinical Center at NIH to learn about clinical aspects of the disorder she was studying, as well as laboratory rotations in exercise physiology and rehabilitation medicine and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Generally, NINR-GPP students complete these research rotations before performing their dissertation research. The student generally spends 8 to 12 weeks in each rotation. Ideally, rotations build on each other and lead to the dissertation research. Once candidates have been selected for the NINR-GPP, the NINR training
director works closely with the students and their academic advisors in their home program to help identify potential NIH intramural investigators for these laboratory rotations. Ideally, students interact with potential NIH scientists about their research interests before coming to the NIH campus. During the first 2 to 3 weeks after the student comes to the NIH campus, the student completes the process of identifying a senior scientist for the first of their three rotations. After the NINR-GPP students have completed their rotations and have selected a laboratory to do their dissertation research in, the NINR-GPP students are integrated into the senior scientist’s laboratory and research team. They participate actively in the laboratory meetings, and the senior scientist serves as the mentor for their dissertations and co-chairs the dissertation committee with the student’s faculty advisor from the student’s home institution. Once the NIH mentor has been selected, he or she becomes a member of the NINR-GPP student’s training team, which minimally consists of the NINR training director and the student’s co-mentors. Throughout the program, the NINR-GPP students meet with the NINR training director as a group to discuss training, mentoring, and career issues related to becoming a nurse scientist. In addition, the training director helps students to become aware of the large number of opportunities and resources on the NIH campus in which students are eligible to participate. Students also have opportunities to travel to regional and national nursing conferences and other scientific meetings to present their research; gain scientific knowledge and skills; and network with colleagues, potential collaborators, and future employers across the country. This NINR-GPP student group also provides peer feedback on student poster and platform presentations for
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professional meetings as well as for NIH-sponsored graduate symposiums.
Opportunities and Resources at the NIH NINR-supported GPP nursing students are also members of the broader GPP community at the NIH with its wealth of resources and professional development opportunities. The GPP provides graduate students the opportunity to perform their doctoral dissertation research in the NIH Intramural Research Program. There are currently approximately 400 students in the broader GPP, with the NINR-GPP as one of the NIH’s Institutional Partnerships. The Office of Intramural Training and Education (OITE), and the central GPP office within the OITE, coordinates a variety of programs; provides individual assistance; and prepares resources to enhance the scientific, professional, and career development of all NIH trainees. Intramural research training at NIH is well-known for its unprecedented availability of and access to specialized resources. On the NIH campuses, there are a large number of regularly offered presentations by scientific experts from NIH and the academic community. Weekly clinical center grand rounds, lecture series, courses for graduate credit, and scientific interest groups are routinely presented. For example, the NIH Director’s weekly seminar series typically hosts Nobel laureates and other leading scientists. OITE offers a wide range of programs for GPP students to develop their research skills including courses on writing papers for scientific journals, writing grant proposals, presenting research posters, and making oral presentations. OITE also has programs including symposia, seminars, and annual retreats for leadership, mentoring, and teaching skills. A major event for GPP students is the NIH Career Symposium, which is a full day of panels with information on career opportunities in the sciences. Regular opportunities for students to present their ongoing research are available on the NIH campus (e.g., the Annual NIH Graduate Student Research Symposium and the monthly NIH Graduate Student Seminar Series).
fellow’s research activities are supported through their senior scientist mentor’s intramural research laboratory and institute at the NIH. Potential applicants for the NINR-GPP should begin the process by meeting with their academic advisors to discuss the possibility of applying. Students are encouraged to consider participation in the NINR-GPP during the first year of their doctoral work so they can plan their doctoral course work accordingly. It is important that the student’s academic advisor be actively involved and supportive of the student’s application because the academic advisor will play a key role in shaping the student’s research interests as well as in identifying a NIH senior scientist for the student’s dissertation research. If the academic advisor is supportive of an application, the next step is for the student to contact the NINR Training Director, Dr. Mary Engler, to discuss the student’s research interests and the application process. Before submitting an application, students should explore the NINR website and follow links that describe the NIH’s Institutional NINR-GPP (NINR, NIH, 2014). Students are encouraged to apply to the NINR-GPP in the second or third year of their doctoral program and before their final year of doctoral course work, at least 1 year before the planned inception of the dissertation research. All doctoral course work and candidacy examinations must be completed before coming to the NIH campus. Most NINR-GPP fellows begin their fellowship in the fall, but some flexibility does exist to begin at other times. Selection into the NINR-GPP is based on an applicant’s curriculum vitae, grade point average, clinical and research experience, and letters of reference. Especially important in the selection process are the student’s commitment to scholarship and the degree of match between the student’s research interest and the research area of an intramural investigator. Completed applications are reviewed by a committee identified by the training director that includes NINR intramural research investigators and extramural nursing faculty who have experience in doctoral research training. Top candidates are invited for an inperson interview at the NIH.
Tips from Current Students
NINR-GPP Eligibility, Application, and Selection Process
We asked current students to provide tips for doctoral students who might be interested in applying to the NINR-GPP. Their suggestions and comments follow:
To be eligible for the NINR-GPP, applicants must be citizens or permanent residents of the United States, be currently enrolled in a PhD program in any of the nation’s schools of nursing, and have completed all course work and candidacy examinations. Up to 3 years of funding is available and begins when the student comes to the NIH campus. NINR-GPP trainee support includes a yearly stipend, tuition allowance, modest sums for travel, and health insurance during the years that the student is a fellow on the NIH campus. The NINR-GPP
Before coming to the NIH, students should reflect on their overall goals for their graduate experience as well as career aspirations. The NINR-GPP program provides a plethora of research opportunities, and there truly is the feeling that in your research anything is possible. It is important to get a firm foundation in statistics, preferably biostatistics, while doing doctoral course work. Biostatistics is a necessity regardless of the laboratory that a student is in or what type of research
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the student does at NIH; biostatistics course work is really necessary to grasp its application in research. It is helpful to learn laboratory skills before coming to the NIH campus. I set up different practica that allowed me to work on various laboratory-based projects before coming to the NIH in knowing that I would end up working in a wet laboratory. That was perhaps the most useful thing that I did before coming to the NIH. Begin looking for a potential laboratory and NIH mentor as soon as possible before making a decision. I highly recommend meeting the mentor and touring the laboratory. I have found that the best teaching environments are ones in which there are a variety of students including postdoctoral, predoctoral, postbaccalaureate, and summer students. This is an intense program and having a mentor who is patient, supportive, and, most importantly, willing to teach you, makes a dramatic difference. Be sure to select a laboratory in which you feel confident you will have the support you need. To be successful in this program, it is important to be flexible in your research ideas because there is a very good chance that your research topic will change and evolve. In order to have a good experience at the NIH, within the NINR-GPP program, it is important that you can find a mentor who is interested in a similar research topic. I would urge potential applicants to spend time researching mentors within the NIH as early as possible. One of the main challenges of the program is time management and balancing your needs with that of your laboratory, NINR, and your university. That being said, it is very nice to have many people invested in your future. In communications with potential mentors, NINRGPP students should highlight their background and any prior laboratory/clinical experiences, so the mentor will have a good idea if the student is ready to start in the laboratory/clinic and if any basic lab training is needed.
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at the NIH. A major limitation was that the program was available only to students from T-32efunded schools, and students with excellent academic records and an excellent fit with the GPP program were not eligible. Another issue surfaced when 3 years of funding were used for course work and only 2 years of funding remained for dissertation research, which was not long enough for some students. A final lesson learned was that research interests of some students changed during course work, and there was no longer a good fit between their research interests and NIH opportunities. A number of changes were implemented in 2012 including the introduction of the current program, which expanded accessibility to make it available for all nursing doctoral students nationwide, and hiring a new training director who has a strong background in both research and doctoral education.
Former and Current Students
Program History
To date, 16 fellows have participated in the NINR-GPP. Of these, 12 (75%) have either successfully completed the program or are currently in the program. Specifically, six have completed the NIH portion and have received a PhD from their academic institutions, and six are current fellows actively engaged in research within their NIH mentor’s laboratory. One of the six current students was admitted under the current, 3-year NINRGPP program. Two of the 16 (12%) have completed the NIH portion of their program and are still in the process of completing their dissertations, and two students (12%) did not complete the NIH portion of the program because their research interests evolved and were no longer a good match with the NIH opportunities. All six of the current NINR-GPP students are on the NIH campus and are in the process of conducting dissertation research. Of the six current students, all have made research presentations, five have at least one refereed publication, and three have received an award (e.g., Poster Competition Award or Graduate Student Research Award). Here are comments from some about their experience in the NINR-GPP.
The first NINR-GPP students were admitted in 2004 with a goal of admitting approximately two students per year from six schools of nursing. In 2008, the program was expanded to include all schools of nursing that had an active NIH NINR T-32 award (i.e., National Research Service Award institutional grant), which supports predoctoral and postdoctoral research training. During this period of the NINR-GPP, students were provided a total of 5 years of funding, which included support for course work while at their academic institution and for their dissertation research at NIH. It was anticipated that students would have 2 years of support for course work at their home university and 3 years of support for dissertation research
The NINR-GPP program offers a unique graduate experience. As co-chair of the graduate student council, I can attest to the abundance of opportunities available including writing- and presentationfocused workshops, career development, and social activities. As I reflect on my experience in the NINRGPP program, I believe that the graduate student community really sets the NINR-GPP program apart from other programs. It is exciting enough to read about the incredible discoveries of scientific research. This program allows me to be part of that amazing process within the context of my dissertation interest. In my time here, I have formed lasting relationships with people across scientific disciplines, which have
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shaped my research and life experiences. The graduate students that I have met are truly remarkable, and I am proud to have them as future colleagues. The six students, who have successfully completed the NINR-GPP and also finished their PhDs, have strong outcomes and are on track toward productive academic nursing careers. All have published in refereed journals, and three have been successful in receiving external funding for their research. Sources for funding were the NIH, U.S. Department of Defense, Midwest Nursing Research Society, and American Cancer Society. Four former NINR-GPP fellows are in schools of nursing; three are assistant professors (e.g., University of Iowa, University of Pittsburgh, and Radians College of Nursing), and one is a postdoctoral fellow (Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing). One graduate is an assistant clinical investigator in the intramural program at the NINR, and one graduate is a researcher in a hospital setting. The following comments from some of these graduates indicate just how important the NINR-GPP was to their careers: My university-based doctoral education was superb. Participating in the NINR-GPP, however, opened additional doors that would otherwise not have been possible. The NINR-GPP program provided support and encouraged me to focus on research areas that were important to my goals and visions. I particularly appreciated the opportunity that the NINR-GPP offered me to complete my dissertation in a truly interdisciplinary environment. Maintaining close ties with my home university program helped me ground my work in nursing, while the group at NIH introduced me to research questions, methods, and theories that I simply had not considered to that point. The NINR-GPP was a critical step in my development as a clinical translational neuroscientist. The knowledge and skills I gained via collaborative mentoring agreements between leading scientists at my university and the NIH were unlike any other educational experience I could have received as a traditional BSN-PHD student. I could not have conducted the dissertation study I completed had I not been an NINR-GPP fellow, and I am forever grateful for the strong foundation it has given me. The NINR-GPP program provided me the opportunity to work with an amazing interdisciplinary team focusing on translational research. It was a great opportunity to collaborate and develop a professional network. The NINR-GPP afforded me an opportunity to do my “dream PhD” project. I was able to do international, translational genetics work with a multidisciplinary team. I learned both clinical and bench genetics from wonderful mentors at the NIH and had the experience of a lifetime! I continue to use everything I learned on a daily basis in my current research.
What I learned at NIH influences my professional life every day. The methods that I learned during my time in the NINR-GPP are those that I employ in my pilot studies. It’s not an overstatement to say that the exposure to new and different models and approaches truly changed my scholarly orientation and approach to my research.
Conclusion The NINR is dedicated to increasing the number of well-trained nurse scientists who will conduct research in clinical settings and join the faculty workforces in schools of nursing. The NINR-GPP is one of a number of funding mechanisms for training that is offered by the NINR. The NINR-GPP has a 10-year history of supporting the doctoral research of promising nursing students who come to the NIH campus to conduct their dissertation research. The environment with its many resources provides an unparalleled opportunity for research. Although the newly revised NINR-GPP program is in its early stages and outcomes are still forthcoming, the program provides students with the expertise and training to design and develop innovative research and novel treatments.
Acknowledgments The authors thank Ann Cashion, PhD, RN, FAAN, Scientific Director, National Institute of Nursing Research, Sharon Milgram, PhD, Director, Office of Intramural Training and Education (OITE), and Philip Y. Wang, PhD, Deputy Director, Graduate Partnerships Program, OITE, National Institutes of Health.
references
AACN, A. A. o. C. o. N. (2014). Nursing faculty shortage fact sheet. Retrieved from http://www.aacn.nche.edu/media-relations/ FacultyShortageFS.pdf. Allen, L. (2008). The nursing shortage continues as faculty shortage grows. Nursing Economics, 26(1), 35e40. Hickey, K. T., Sciacca, R. R., & McCarthy, M. S. (2013). Descriptive survey of Summer Genetics Institute nurse graduates in the USA. Nursing & Health Sciences, 15(1), 3e8. McDermid, F., Peters, K., Jackson, D., & Daly, J. (2012). Factors contributing to the shortage of nurse faculty: A review of the literature. Nurse Education Today, 32(5), 565e569. NINR, National Institues of Health. (2011). Mission and Strategic Plan. Retrieved from http://www.ninr.nih.gov/aboutninr/ninrmission-and-strategic-plan#.UxiY4z98qxo. NINR, National Institutes of Health. (2014). NINR’s Graduate Partnership Program. Retrieved from http://www.ninr.nih. gov/training/trainingopportunitiesintramural/graduatepartnership-program#.Uxianj98qxo.
