Preparing a New Generation for Cancer Research

The NIH is, in many ways, analogous to a large research university. Its investigators are often referred to as faculty, and many of its scientists are able to qualify for tenure in the intra-mural programs of their institutes.

The largest NCI training program is run by the Center for Cancer Research, which, as part of the NCI intramural research program, offers fellowships for training in the basic and translational sciences, as well as in the clinic on the NIH campus. For clinical fellows, the NIH Clinical Center brings together, under one roof, the treatment of patients with laboratory science—a unique arrangement for researchers who typically don’t get to do both clinical and basic research on the same research project.

In addition, the NCI Center for Cancer Training (CCT) is dedicated to building cancer research capacity at institutions across the nation and fostering the next generation of the cancer research workforce. NCI supports a range of fellowships, Career Development Awards, Institutional Training Awards, and Institutional Education Awards to help early-stage scientists and clinicians become independent investigators and to encourage senior scientists to become mentors for their younger colleagues.

NCI also has a long history of bringing students into the labs on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Md. Each summer, the campus is infused with new faces of gifted high school students, undergraduates and graduate students who spread out in labs and clinics.

Related Links

Center for Cancer Research fellowship program
Center for Cancer Training