#NORDP2018 starts Monday, May 7 in Arlington, VA. Keep checking back here at the blog and on our Twitter feed (@NORDP_official) for live conference updates. Register here: http://www.nordp.org/conferences.
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Who: David Widmer, PhD, Manager of Scientific Development
Where: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Number of years in research development: 8
Length of NORDP membership: 8
Number of NORDP conferences attended: 4
What is the most interesting place you’ve visited? Of course, it will be Arlington, VA for NORDP 2018!
In the 17 years since coming to MSK’s Grants & Contracts unit as a slightly-used neuroscientist/historian of medicine, I have had several grant management roles before leading our Funding Development Team today. We provide funding searches, proposal development resources, complex grant project management, outreach and training for our faculty and fellows.
From my very first interactions with NORDP members back in 2010, I found a friendly, collaborative, and wise group of colleagues willing to help navigate the new world of a Research Development Professional.
Learning the “secret” of grant proposal fundability is grounded in real-life for me: I believe my Fulbright grant was awarded because I focused on the review criteria, the mission of the organization, and the scientific research interests of my host country, Switzerland.
The research experience that I gained during my masters’ and doctoral work at Rutgers, my two years at the Université de Fribourg, and a post-doc at MSK allow me today to stand in an investigator’s shoes when supporting my PIs with research development best practices learned from NORDP.
But it’s interacting and learning from NORDP colleagues online and at the conferences that inspires me in my role. I love the ever-present and growing culture of mentorship. That is why I try to give back to other NORDP-ites as a member (and 2017-2018 co-chair) of the NORDP Mentoring Program Committee and as a mentor myself. I look forward to seeing everyone in Arlington!
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We hope to see you at the Conference, which will be held May 7-9, 2018 at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City in Arlington, VA. For more information about the conference program or to register, visit http://www.nordp.org/conferences. Follow @NORDP_official on Twitter for all the latest #NORDP2018 updates.
NORDP fosters a culture of inclusive excellence by actively promoting and supporting diversity, inclusion and equity in all its forms to expand our worldview, enrich our work, and elevate our profession.
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