Project Development and Evaluation Workshop
May 19-21, 2026

The Burroughs Wellcome Fund announces a workshop for early career administrators whose work focuses on the career development of PhD scientists.

The workshop will focus on developing participants’ research evaluation skills while creating new career focused interventions or activities for use at the participants’ home institutions. In the year following the workshop, participants will each develop their research and evaluation networks, run their project with support from a $15,000 grant from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, submit their results for presentation a national meeting, and produce a rigorously prepared manuscript for publication.

Eight seats are available.

The application process uses the Burroughs Wellcome Fund’s grant submission system and requires a signature from the applicant’s institutional grants office indicating willingness to accept a grant to support a project developed at the workshop.

Who may apply?

Academic administrators whose work is at least 80% focused on career development activities pertaining to graduate students or postdoctoral fellows at a research focused institution in the United States or Canada and who have been in this type of role for at least 3 years (36 months) but not more than 7 years (84 months) may apply.  Employees of both non-profit degree-granting institutions and independent research institutes may apply.

Typically, successful applicants will be running substantial activities within graduate career centers, postdoctoral offices, or interdepartmental graduate programs. Some, but not most, faculty serve roles that are appropriate — the requirement for 80% effort is a good guide. This workshop is not targeted to education researchers or trainees in education research unless they meet all other requirements above (time in position, 80% effort focused on providing career development to grad students and/ or postdocs).

Selection criteria

Selection will be based on the creativity of the application, the strength of the institutional commitment, and the strength of accompanying letters. We expect that the workshop will reflect a diverse geographic range, a variety of institution types, and a diverse group of practitioners, just as our Career Guidance for Trainees competitive grant program

does.

Application deadline

March 12, 2026