Transitioning from training to meaningful employment, whether in academia or beyond, often requires skills not always gained at the bench. The goal of submitted projects should be to help trainees acquire, understand, and demonstrate the skills needed for complex careers.

The Career Guidance for Trainees (CGT) program offers grants of $15,000 - $25,000 to support projects that model affordable, transferable strategies to enhance trainees’ career readiness. Employers seek from Ph.D. applicants what graduate education aims to provide: deep knowledge, hands-on experience, the ability to ask and answer meaningful questions, project management skills, independence, initiative, entrepreneurial thinking, and advanced communication skills.

The Burroughs Wellcome Fund supports pilot projects that help scientists navigate career transitions, whether exploring paths beyond academia, within academic roles, or flexibly applying their intellectual skill set. We seek innovative ideas with the potential to scale. For example, FASEB’s Individual Development Plan and the Preparing Future Faculty program started small but had a significant impact. We encourage applicants to propose ideas that could transform how organizations prepare trainees for fulfilling, successful careers that reflect the value of scientific education.