Training Grants Resources

PDF: Developing a Diversity Plan for STEM Education Grant Proposals

Tips, best practices, and further resources including a directory of potential U of A consultants and partners

For Trainees

The Graduate Center Office of Fellowships is available to help any UArizona graduate student seeking additional funding for their graduate education. Please see their extensive set of resources here: Office of Fellowships.

Trainees and Mentors in the College Medicine: Please see this website for numerous internal and external fellowship opportunities, best practices for applying from UArizona, and other resources: College of Medicine Trainee Opportunities.

PDF: Federal Sponsors' Inclusive Language Guidance

A style guide based on language guidelines provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Document: Institutional Letter of Support Template

This adaptable template can be used to create an institutional letter of commitment for your T32 or R25 grant proposal.

Box folder with PDFs: Logic Models

Training Options

A university-wide MENTOR Institute Training is available for Faculty, Graduate Students and Post-docs. Please read more about the two levels of training available (each takes about 60 minutes to complete) and how to register here: MENTOR Institute Training. 

Short description of the MENTOR Institute training: 

The U of A offers mentoring workshops through the MENTOR (Mentorship through Effective Networking, Transformational Opportunities, and Research) Institute. This program is based on the National Research Mentor Network and the Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research training. The 2-hour MENTOR Institute training focuses on building effective mentoring skills, for both the mentor and the mentee. Content includes creating individualized mentoring plans, setting expectations, and regularly reviewing the mentoring relationship. The training includes a synchronous discussion-based session where participants share their mentoring philosophy and practice positive communication. These training activities will help ensure faculty provide high quality research and professional mentorship, while trainees feel empowered to maximize the benefits of mentorship.

For training focused on effective mentorship of undergraduates, the Inclusive Mentoring of Undergraduate Researchers training is available for Faculty, Staff, Graduate Students and Post-docs. Completion of this six-hour synchronous online course (delivered in 1.5-hour increments) and two written documents (a mentor-mentee compact and a mentoring philosophy statement) will result in a digital badge awarded through U of A’s Division of Undergraduate Education.  

Short description of the Inclusive Mentoring of Undergraduate Researchers training:

The Inclusive Mentoring of Undergraduate Researchers training curriculum addresses the following key topics: aligning expectations, maintaining effective communication, mentoring in a culturally responsive manner, and articulating your mentoring philosophy and plan. The content is presented using an evidence-based, interactive approach designed to help mentors develop skills for engaging in productive, culturally responsive research mentoring relationships. The training provides mentors with an intellectual framework, an opportunity to experiment with various methods, and a forum in which to solve mentoring dilemmas with the help of their peers. At the completion of the training, mentors will have articulated their own approach to mentoring and have a toolbox of strategies to draw upon when confronted with mentoring challenges. 

Mentoring activity ideas

PDF: Graduate Student Mentorship Program Ideas & Resources

PDF: Undergraduate Mentorship Program Ideas & Resources

Website: ntgcop.org

This national volunteer-led group meets tri-annually to discuss guidelines and share resources for NIH training grants, particularly T32s. Consider joining if you are a training grant director, or if you support training grants as a research administrator or research development specialist. This group also dialogues with NIH on policies, guidance and issues related to data tables. 

The Center for Educational Assessment, Research, & Evaluation, housed in the College of Education, offers customized program evaluation services. Contact CEARE staff, Drs. Adriana Cimetta (Associate Research Professor) and Rebecca Friesen (Research Scientist) to request an initial meeting: cimetta@arizona.edu; rfriesen1@arizona.edu.  

Dr. Sanlyn Buxner, Associate Research Professor in the College of Education, has extensive experience as both a STEM education researcher and as an evaluator of STEM education programs. To request an initial meeting write to Dr. Buxner at buxner@arizona.edu. 

The Southwest Center for Research on Women has decades of experience evaluating projects centered on marginalized communities and individuals, with expertise on not only assessing program impacts, but also identifying and responding to unexpected impacts, whether positive or negative. To request an initial meeting, write to SIROW Director, Josephine Korchmaros at jkorch@arizona.edu. 

Dr. Stephanie Murphy, Associate Research Professor and Director of the Women in Science and Engineering Program, provides both qualitative and quantitative program evaluation. Her expertise includes intersectionality, community-based research, and structural equity issues within STEM education. Write to Dr. Murphy at sumurphy@arizona.edu. 

Cancer Training Program Evaluation staff provide evaluation services for training grants focused on cancer/oncology. 

Informational page: Responsible Conduct of Research

Many grants require information about the pool of students relevant to the proposed project. Metrics might include the number of students in a major, demographics (e.g., ethnicity, gender, income, first-generation status), retention and graduation rates, or non-academic factors such as mental health needs. 
See your options for gathering this information on students. 

Box folder: U of A Funded Training Grant Proposals

PIs who have been awarded a training grant have generously shared their proposal as a reference for others within the University of Arizona community who wish to apply for a training grant themselves. Please note: by accessing this library, you agree to keep the information within confidential and not to share outside of the University of Arizona.  Funded proposals in this folder (please see link above) include: 

1. NIH Diversity Supplement

2. NIH T32 (three examples)

3. NSF REU Site Grant

We welcome additional proposals for this growing library!