Welcome to the UCI Training Grant Support Hub
This centralized resource is designed to empower faculty, trainees and administrators engaged in biomedical research training by offering guidance, curated tools, and institutional support for the development and submission of competitive training grants.
Our integrated approach serves
Faculty
Support for current and prospective Program Directors, including consultation, proposal development for new training initiatives, and access to institutional data, compliance guidance, and best practices that strengthen all training grants.
Research Trainees
Access to funded opportunities and career development resources.
Administrators
Guidance, curated templates, and established best practices, along with tools to ensure compliance and quality of training grant proposals.
Our Support
The Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences and the School of Medicine have made a strategic investment in establishing PhD-level support for training grant development as an integral component of our research development infrastructure. Our support serves every stage of training grant development, from early planning to final submission.
| Service Category | Description |
|---|---|
| Consultation | Consultation to align your vision with current federal funding priorities and agency-specific objectives |
| Proposal Development | Narrative support tailored to NIH, NSF, and federal agency expectations and evaluation criteria |
| Training Data Analysis | Support for consistent and accurate review of training grants data tables |
| Graduate Division Data Management | Assistance with data requests and curation of 5-year Graduate Division Data Tables (Tables 1 and 6A/B) |
| Federal Policy Guidance | Real-time updates on evolving policy requirements, formatting specifications, and submission |
| Letter of Support | Review and editing for competitive positioning |
Our Training Mechanism Focus
Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards (NRSA)
“Sustainable scientific advancement requires deliberate, systematic investment in contemporary training methodologies.“
Our principal focus is on NIH T32 programs, very prestigious and highly competitive funding mechanisms that exemplify UCI’s leadership in biomedical research training. They facilitate the delivery of structured, immersive training environments for outstanding predoctoral and postdoctoral scholars. These programs integrate rigorous mentorship, innovative scientific training, and a strategic career development pathway to prepare future leaders in biomedical science. In addition to T32 programs, we provide support for a diverse array of training grants from other sponsors.
Click here to view all active training grants
Our Senior Training Grants Coordinator
Early Planning Drives Success
Faculty who begin the planning process at least six months prior to submission consistently achieve higher success rates. Early engagement allows for more effective strategic planning, comprehensive data collection, and multiple rounds of thoughtful revision. These are all essential elements of a competitive training grant application.
Foundation Phase: Where to Begin
Timeline: 10-12 months before submission
Institutional Request: Faculty submitting new, renewal, or resubmission applications should coordinate through their respective school’s research development office.
Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences
Contact the Research Development and Administration (RAD) Team
Email: bio-research@uci.edu
School of Medicine
Contact the Research Development Unit (RDU) Team
Email: somrd@hs.uci.edu
New Application 🆕
Kickoff Meeting: Meet with Research Development; assign internal roles
Scope Definition: Define goals, training focus, and key personnel
Funding Institute Confirmation: PI contacts Program Officer (PO) of target NIH Institute/Center (IC) to confirm program alignment and funding interest before proceeding
Renewal Application 🔁
Kickoff Meeting: Review past feedback; assign data leads
Scope Definition: Reassess goals; integrate program outcomes
Funding Institute Confirmation: N/A
Implementation Timeline
Phase 1: Planning & Team Assembly
8-10 months before submission
Note
Finalize mentor list as early as possible – this is the rate limiting step!
- Recruit well-funded mentors and secure early commitments
- Form external advisory board
- Update mentor roster with trainee and publication data (renewals)
- Summarize previous committee input (renewals)
Phase 2: Data Collection & Table Development
6-9 months before submission
- Review current Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA)
- Compile comprehensive past trainee outcomes (renewals)
- Systematically start Collecting Data Tables 2 & 4; NIH Biosketches and Personal Statements from the preceptors
- Request Tables 1, 6A, and 6B from Graduate Division, 6-7 months before deadline to ensure adequate processing time.
Phase 3: Core Narrative & Budget
3-6 months before submission
- Develop comprehensive aims and detailed training structure
- Design innovative curriculum and professional development
- Define measurable success metrics and tracking systems
- Collaborate with financial administrator on budget
- Begin securing commitments from stakeholders and drafting LOS
Phase 4: Finalization & Submission
0-3 months before submission
Deadline
Submit your application package to your pre-award team for review by Sponsored Projects Administration (SPA) at least two weeks before the NIH deadline.
- Complete final narrative and tables for internal review
- Conduct thorough format and compliance review
- Collaborate with your pre-award team to finalize the budget and upload all required documents to the application
Curated Resources at Your Fingertips
Explore our compiled collection of resources drawn from UCI and federal sources, each presented with context to support your training grant application. From our active training grant portfolios to funding incentives, mentorship frameworks, and compliance guidance, these tools support strategic planning and successful submission in alignment with NIH priorities.
For Prospective Program Directors
Planning to Submit a New Training Grant? Start Early and Strategically.
Faculty interested in submitting a new training grant (such as a T32) are strongly encouraged to begin planning at least six months before the submission deadline.
Early coordination helps ensure:
Assembly of interdisciplinary team of experienced mentors
Alignment with institutional strengths and NIH workforce development priorities
Time to gather letters of support and develop thoughtful training plans
Compliance with evolving NIH guidelines
NIH T32 Submission Deadlines
⚠️ Note: Submission requirements and deadlines may vary by NIH Institute or Center. Always verify the latest information with the appropriate NIH contact before preparing your application
Best Practices for Applicants:
- Review IC-specific guidelines, deadlines, and contacts for your application.
- Start early by consulting your school’s research development offices for the School of Medicine & Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences.
- Contact NIH program officers to confirm alignment before submission.
- Allow adequate time for institutional review.
January 25
Winter Deadline
May 25
Spring Deadline
September 25
Fall Deadline
Tools For Faculty and Administrators
A real-time, interactive dashboard displaying all currently funded training grants at UCI. Quickly identify active institutional training efforts without needing to sift through NIH RePORTER. Click here to view all active training grants.
Searchable, curated, and current. Designed to support the preparation of NIH Table 3, this tool offers a streamlined list of active institutional training grants and associated faculty mentors. Click here to view all institutional training grants and faculty list.
Download Instructions:
To download the Smartsheet file, first open the link above. Then, click on the vertical three dots (⋮) next to the sheet title in the top toolbar on your left. From the dropdown menu, choose “Export” and select either Excel or PDF format to download the file.
A centralized workbook designed to support T32 data management and reporting in response to NIH’s updated data requirements (effective January 25, 2025). Click here to view a template for training grant tracking.
Financial Support & Incentives
To advance our graduate research training and foster the next generation of scientific leaders, UC Irvine offers an incentive framework that actively encourages and supports faculty engagement in the development of training grants.
Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences
Submission Incentive
$5,000 per first-time submission
- New and competing renewal applications
- Equitable distribution among multiple Dunlop School principal investigators
- Comprehensive support for submissions through Dunlop School, organized research units, or collaborative partnerships
Award Incentive
$10,000 upon successful funding or renewal
- $5,000 from Dean’s Office plus $5,000 from PI’s home department
- Proportional distribution methodology for multiple principal investigators
Program Requirements
$5,000 per first-time submission
Eligibility: Dunlop School faculty and qualifying joint appointees
Process: Complete Training Grant Incentive Program Form before submission and update with Notice of Award upon funding
Note: Limited to Dunlop School faculty members
School of Medicine
Submission Incentive
$5,000 per first-time submission
- New and competing renewal applications
Award Incentive
$10,000 upon successful funding or renewal
- Provide Notice of Award upon funding
Program Requirements
$5,000 per first-time submission
Process: Complete SOM Training and Research Education Grant Incentive Program Form at least four weeks before submission. This form includes additional details about the program.
Note: Limited to SOM faculty members.
Graduate Division
Submission Incentive
$5,000 per first-time submission
Award Incentive
$10,000 upon successful funding or renewal
Supplmental Benefits:
- 25% institutional match (stipend and tuition only)
$25,000 in flexible research funds
Program Requirements
$5,000 per first-time submission
Applications: $5K Submission Incentive Form and
$5K Award Incentive Form
Resources: Graduate Division Training Grants webpage for comprehensive program details
Faculty Development & Mentoring Programs
UCI Mentoring Programs
Mentorship is a recognized driver of academic productivity, career satisfaction, and grant competitiveness. The Faculty Mentoring Academy is UCI’s flagship mentoring program, designed to build mentoring competencies aligned with NIH expectations. It provides a structured series of interactive workshops covering:
- Establishing clear goals and expectations
- Building culturally responsive and inclusive mentoring relationships
- Navigating difficult conversations
- Promoting mentee independence and career development
Faculty who complete at least three sessions within two years earn a Certificate of Mentorship Excellence, recognizing their commitment to effective, evidence-based mentoring. The Academy also supports early-career faculty pursuing K- and T-series awards and helps strengthen UCI’s institutional culture of mentorship.
Within the Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences, the mentoring program supports faculty at all career stages—from pre-tenure to mid-career—helping mentees build research programs, publication strategies, grant competitiveness, and professional networks. More information is available through the school’s website and the Academic Personnel Office.
The School of Medicine offers mentoring for both Senate and Health Sciences faculty. This includes welcome sessions for assistant and associate professors, dedicated Slack and Zoom communities, hands-on guidance in promotion preparation, regular meetups and workshops, and an annual awards program recognizing outstanding faculty mentors.
GPS-STEM at UCI is a comprehensive, institutionally supported professional development initiative (originally NIH-BEST funded) for STEM PhD students and postdocs. It prepares them for diverse careers through four pillars: Explore, Train, Experience, and Transition. The program offers career panels, workshops on soft skills (leadership, science communication, mentoring), internships, certificate tracks (e.g., business concepts, science policy), and networking, complemented by one-on-one mentoring and continuing education. GPS-STEM cultivates polished professionals ready for careers beyond academia. For the most up-to-date information and full program details, visit the GPS-STEM website.
National Resources
The Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research (CIMER) website offers a robust collection of resources designed to enhance mentorship across all career stages and disciplines. It provides evidence-based training curricula, tools for mentoring. This resource supports institutions, mentors, and mentees through practical, research-informed strategies aimed at improving the quality of mentoring relationships in research environments.
UCI has adapted elements of the CIMER model to develop its Effective Mentoring & Professional Development Certificate Program. Modeled on CIMER’s Entering Mentoring framework, the program is designed primarily for trainees but has also engaged faculty participants. It fosters high-quality mentoring relationships across career stages and supports the development of mentoring skills aligned with national standards.
The Science of Effective Mentoring in STEMM website, developed by the National Academies, offers a comprehensive suite of resources to support mentorship across STEMM disciplines. It features the foundational report, along with podcasts, videos, workshop materials, and evidence-based best practices.
This resource is designed for mentors in STEMM fields and provides valuable tools such as reports, multimedia content, and training materials to enhance mentoring effectiveness and foster inclusive, research-focused learning environments.
NRMN is an NIH-funded initiative committed to cultivating mentorship and advancing career development for individuals at every stage within the biomedical, clinical, behavioral, and social sciences. Its platform, NRMNet, provides virtual mentoring, career development resources, grant-writing assistance, and comprehensive mentor training. Accessible to both mentors and mentees across all career levels in the biomedical, clinical, behavioral, and social sciences, NRMN offers a robust suite of services, including virtual mentoring, career support tools, grant-writing guidance, and extensive mentor training programs.
Research Integrity and Responsible Conduct
NIH expects a thoughtful description of how key principles of scientific rigor are taught and reinforced throughout training. These include evaluating prior foundational research, using rigorous experimental design, accounting for biological variables, authenticating resources, and transparent reporting. The plan should explain how these topics will be taught across multiple stages of trainee development using various formats—coursework, workshops, and mentorship—and how program faculty will reinforce these elements through the context of each trainee’s research project.
NIH’s Format Attachments:
Follow the page limits outlined in the Plan for Instruction in Methods for Enhancing Reproducibility section of the NIH Table of Page Limits, unless otherwise specified in the NOFO. Attach this information as a PDF.
Content:
The plan must describe how trainees will be instructed in the principles important for enhancing research reproducibility. At a minimum, NIH expects instruction on the following core areas:
- Evaluation of foundational research (i.e., rigor of prior studies)
- Rigorous experimental design and data interpretation
- Consideration of relevant biological variables (e.g., sex as a biological variable)
- Authentication of key biological and/or chemical resources
- Transparency in research reporting
Renewal Applications: Describe any changes in instruction over the past project period and plans that address any weaknesses in the current instruction.
Additional Resources:
NIGMS Clearinghouse: Training Modules for Data Reproducibility – Offers short, high-impact educational modules focused on key aspects of research rigor: transparency, blinding, randomization, sample size justification, and proper use of replicates. These materials are ideal for integrating into T32 training programs to meet NIH’s enhanced reproducibility standards.
UCI School of Medicine – Rigor & Responsibility Site – Promotes rigorous, transparent, and reproducible biomedical research in alignment with NIH guidelines. It offers detailed principles on unbiased experimental design and transparent reporting, along with grant resources, training modules, and workshops to support high-integrity research practices.
UCI adheres strictly to both federal mandates and University of California policies, ensuring that all individuals engaged in research receive comprehensive education in the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR).
The NIH has explicit and strict policy requirements for RCR instruction that must be addressed in every T32 application. These include the five mandatory components, which are described in detail:
- Format: Describe the required format of instruction, i.e., face-to-face lectures, coursework, and/or real-time discussion groups. A plan with only online instruction is not acceptable.
- Subject Matter: Describe the breadth of subject matter, e.g., conflict of interest, authorship, data management, human subjects and animal use, laboratory safety, research misconduct, and research ethics.
- Faculty Participation: Describe the roles of mentor(s) and other faculty involvement in the instruction.
- Duration of Instruction: Describe the total number of contact hours of instruction.
- Frequency of Instruction: Instruction must occur during each career stage and at least once every four years. Document any prior instruction during the applicant’s current career stage, including the inclusive dates instruction was last completed.
- Monitoring: Plan must also describe how participation in RCR instruction will be monitored.
Renewal Applications: Describe any changes in formal instruction over the past project period and plans for the future that address any weaknesses in the current RCR instruction. All training faculty who served as course directors, speakers, lecturers, and/or discussion leaders during the past project period must be named in the application.
For further information and guidance on NIH RCR training, please visit:
• NIH RCR Resource
• UCI RCR Resource
Boilerplates, Templates, and Supporting Documents
Graduate Division Boilerplates: If you have trouble accessing the boilerplate links above, please visit Graduate Division Training Grants Webpage. You’ll find these templates in the middle of the page under “Training Grants Boilerplates.”
• Boilerplate: Campus Resources for Graduate Students
• Boilerplate: Graduate Recruitment & Retention Templates
• Boilerplate: Postdoctoral Scholar Resources
Advancing Biomedical Discovery Through Research Training
UC Irvine is deeply committed to advancing biomedical discovery and cultivating research talent. The graduates of our training grant programs go on to make meaningful contributions to science, medicine, and public health through careers in academic research, higher education, biotechnology, pharmaceutical innovation, and government and nonprofit scientific organizations.
Benefits of Training Programs
1. Financial Support
They offer a stipend, tuition coverage, and health insurance.
2. Immersive Research Training
Protected time for mentored, hands-on scientific investigation.
3. Mentorship
Personalized guidance from distinguished UCI faculty across disciplines.
4. Career Development
Customized programming in grant writing, professional development, and networking.
5. Cutting-Edge Infrastructure
Access to state-of-the-art laboratories, technologies, and core facilities.
What You Need to Know Before Applying
Each training program at UC Irvine has its own research focus, eligibility requirements, and application process. Prospective applicants are encouraged to explore individual Training Grant pages for specific information on:
• Research focus and training objectives
• Application procedures and deadlines
• Faculty mentors and program leadership
• Trainee expectations and milestones
Current Training Programs and Open Positions
Important: Use the table below to check whether a program currently has open trainee positions.
The table provides a list of currently active training grants at UCI, direct links to each program’s website, contact PIs, and up-to-date information on available training positions.
| Grant Title | Website Link | Contact PI(s) | Type | Open Positions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interdisciplinary Training Program in Skin Biology | Website | Andersen, Bogi | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Epilepsy Research Training Program | Website | Baram, Tallie Z. | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| A Training Program for Interdisciplinary Cancer Research | Website | Fruman, David A. | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Training in Translational ADRD Neuroscience (TITAN) | Website | Grill, Joshua | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Institute for Clinical and Translational Science NRSA Postdoctoral Research Training Core | Website | Head, Elizabeth | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Mathematical, Computational and Systems Biology | Website | Lander, Art | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Neuroimmunology Training Program | Website | Lane, Thomas | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Interdisciplinary Training Program in Hearing Research | Website | Metherate, Raju | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Medical Sciences Training Program | Website | Monuki, Edwin | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Visual Sciences Training Program (VSTP) | Website | Palczewski, Krzysztof | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Immunology Research Training Grant | Website | Pearlman, Eric | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Virus-host interactions: a multi-scale training program | Website | Semler, Bert L. | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Statistical Training to Enhance the Excellence of Research (STEER) in Biomedical Sciences | Shahbaba, Babak | T32 | ||
| Training in the Neurobiology of Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease | Website | Tenner, Andrea | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Training Program in Stem Cell Translational Medicine for Neurological Disorders | Website | Thompson, Leslie M. | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| The UC Irvine Center for Neural Circuit Mapping training program in Alzheimer’s disease research | Website | Xu, Xiangmin | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| Howard Schneiderman Training Program in Learning and Memory | Website | Yassa, Michael A. | T32 | Check Open Positions |
| MAXIMUS: MAXimizing Training in MUScle Research | Website | Yokomori, Kyoko | T32 | Check Open Positions |
Contact Us
For assistance with new, renewal, or resubmission applications, faculty should contact the office below corresponding to their primary appointment.
School of Medicine Faculty
📧 Email: somrd@hs.uci.edu
Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences Faculty
📧 Email: bio-research@uci.edu