Predoctoral grant writing among physician-scientist trainees: a national survey of barriers and facilitators of success
7 affiliations
- 1Tom and Anne Smith MD-PhD Program, University of Missouri School of Medicine, Columbia, Missouri, USA.
- 2American Physician Scientists Association, Westford, Massachusetts, USA.
- 3University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
- 4Medical Scientist Training Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA.
- 5Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
- 6Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA.
- 7Department of Anesthesiology, Academic Career Enrichment Scholars Program, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA.
Abstract
Effective grant writing is an essential skill for physician-scientists to achieve academic independence and long-term career success. Previous studies have established that receiving an NIH F30 or F31 during predoctoral training is correlated with success in subsequent training stages and contributes to the retention of physician-scientists in academia. However, many trainees experience challenges in predoctoral grant writing that prevent them from submitting a grant or developing a well-rounded application. Identifying and addressing such barriers and obstacles remains crucial; however, limitations in NIH public reporting exclude data on prospective applicants and applicants who were not awarded grants. In this study, we employed a national survey of trainees to identify perceived needs and barriers to grant writing as well as factors associated with NIH predoctoral grant funding success. We found that limited mentor and sponsor support of the development of quality applications, constrained eligibility timelines, and limited available awards were prominent barriers to submission, while access to previously funded applications was the most valued resource among respondents. Using these findings, we highlight opportunities for interventions at the federal, institutional, applicant, and medical and scientific society levels to improve predoctoral grant writing feasibility and success.
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BibTeX
@article{thomas2026predoctoral,
title = {{Predoctoral grant writing among physician-scientist trainees: a national survey of barriers and facilitators of success}},
author = {Brian J. Thomas and Tiger Zhang and Daniel C. Brock and Timothy J. Ley and W. David Arnold and Cynthia Y. Tang},
journal = {JCI Insight},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1172/jci.insight.208965},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1172/jci.insight.208965},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Predoctoral grant writing among physician-scientist trainees: a national survey of barriers and facilitators of success
AU - Brian J. Thomas
AU - Tiger Zhang
AU - Daniel C. Brock
AU - Timothy J. Ley
AU - W. David Arnold
AU - Cynthia Y. Tang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/01
JO - JCI Insight
DO - 10.1172/jci.insight.208965
UR - https://doi.org/10.1172/jci.insight.208965
AB - Effective grant writing is an essential skill for physician-scientists to achieve academic independence and long-term career success. Previous studies have established that receiving an NIH F30 or F31 during predoctoral training is correlated with success in subsequent training stages and contributes to the retention of physician-scientists in academia. However, many trainees experience challenges in predoctoral grant writing that prevent them from submitting a grant or developing a well-rounded application. Identifying and addressing such barriers and obstacles remains crucial; however, limitations in NIH public reporting exclude data on prospective applicants and applicants who were not awarded grants. In this study, we employed a national survey of trainees to identify perceived needs and barriers to grant writing as well as factors associated with NIH predoctoral grant funding success. We found that limited mentor and sponsor support of the development of quality applications, constrained eligibility timelines, and limited available awards were prominent barriers to submission, while access to previously funded applications was the most valued resource among respondents. Using these findings, we highlight opportunities for interventions at the federal, institutional, applicant, and medical and scientific society levels to improve predoctoral grant writing feasibility and success.
SN - 2379-3708
ER -