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AAMC Career Development Program for MOSAIC Scholars

The AAMC Career Development Program for Maximizing Opportunities for Scientific and Academic Independent Careers (MOSAIC) Scholars provides a multichannel educational program for cohorts of National Institutes of Health (NIH)-awarded K99/R00 scholars.

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K99/R00 scholars are promising post-doctoral researchers with a research or clinical doctorate degree. MOSAIC K99/R00 scholars hail from diverse backgrounds, for example from groups underrepresented in research, as they transition from postdoctoral appointments into academic research faculty positions.

The AAMC engages the MOSAIC scholars in a curriculum throughout all award years that includes skills-building workshop participation, immersive activities with their local institutional and AAMC-identified mentors, and leadership and professional development conference attendance with field experts and peers nationwide.

Local mentors and institutional leaders are engaged to promote dissemination of promising mentoring, career development, and other institutional practices to foster a diverse workforce.

Learn more about the AAMC Career Development Program for MOSAIC Scholars below.

For more information about this program, please contact us.

About MOSAIC and the AAMC

About the MOSAIC Program

The goal of the MOSAIC program is to facilitate the transition of promising postdoctoral researchers from diverse backgrounds into independent faculty careers in research-intensive institutions.

The program consists of two components: an institutionally-focused research education cooperative agreement (UE5) and an individual postdoctoral career transition award (K99/R00) to enhance diversity. The AAMC, along with the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the American Society for Cell Biology, and the American Society for Cell Biology are the four UE5 grantees.

Meet our MOSAIC Scholars

About the AAMC

A not-for-profit association dedicated to transforming health care through innovative medical education, cutting-edge patient care, and groundbreaking medical research, the AAMC serves and leads the academic medicine community to improve the health of all.

The AAMC is committed to increasing the diversity, equity, and inclusion of the biomedical research workforce.

Learn more about the leadership team for the AAMC Career Development Program for MOSAIC Scholars.

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Information for Potential Scholars

How to Apply

Scholars are recipients of the NIH MOSAIC K99/R00 funding opportunity. This award is designed to facilitate the transition of promising postdoctoral researchers from diverse backgrounds into independent, tenure-track or equivalent faculty positions at research-intensive institutions. NIH staff will assign awarded scholars to UE5-awarded scientific and career development cohorts.  For more information, please see MOSAIC Frequently Asked Questions.

Program Activities

As part of the AAMC Career Development Program for MOSAIC Scholars, scholars participate in a variety of skills-building activities, leadership and professional development, and networking. These activities include the following:

Leadership and professional development

Mentorship engagement and networking

  • Regular engagement with an AAMC-identified mentor throughout the years of the program.
  • Access to a customized AAMC MOSAIC mentorship curriculum hosted by the National Research Mentoring Network to engage in culturally responsive mentorship.
  • Yearly 1.5-day networking and learning events held at the AAMC building in Washington DC each spring with scholars from multiple cohorts.
  • Informal virtual Get-Togethers with other scholars for advice and support.

AAMC resources

  • Access to an extensive network of faculty and leadership at AAMC-member institutions- across disciplines, medical specialties, and types of graduate degrees (MD, MD-PhD, and PhD) and AAMC-communication resources.
  • Access to various AAMC professional development and leadership resources, including new resources developed as part of the MOSAIC curriculum.

The AAMC MOSAIC curriculum engages scholars throughout all years of their award. This table (PDF) offers an overview of the curriculum by year.

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Information for Potential Mentors

Engagement of Local Mentors and Research Leadership

The scholars’ local mentors and institutional leaders will be engaged throughout the program. This engagement will help foster each scholar’s experience in the program and encourage the implementation of evidence-based approaches to enhance diversity more broadly at the participating institutions.

As a local mentor for a scholar in the K99 phase, you will:

  • Participate in an orientation webinar with the AAMC to introduce you to the program.
  • Attend yearly virtual meetings of institutional mentors to share strategies for supporting scholars locally.
  • Receive an AAMC update after each workshop to learn about the scholars’ experience.

As a research leader for a scholar in the R00 phase, you will:

  • Attend yearly virtual meeting of research leaders to learn about the program and share strategies for supporting scholars.
  • Receive an AAMC update after each workshop to learn about the scholars’ experience.

Seeking AAMC-Identified Mentors

The AAMC is looking for faculty and leaders at AAMC-member institutions to help nurture the careers of MOSAIC scholars as they transition from postdoctoral to academic research faculty positions.

Mentors will be selected by the AAMC through mentor-matching based on the scholar’s development interests, needs, and other characteristics such as discipline, specialty, and degree. As a mentor, you will:

  • Attend a virtual Check-In session with other AAMC Mentors during the initial mentorship year, facilitated by the Center for the Improvement of Mentoring Experiences in Research (CIMER).
  • Meet virtually with your scholar monthly during their K phase of the K99/R00 award and the first six months of their R phase as a new faculty member. During the remaining part of the award, meet with your scholar however often you mutually agree.
  • Engage your scholar as needed with an optional National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN) curriculum tailored for the MOSAIC program. The curriculum includes topics like dealing with stress, microaggressions, identity as a scientist, impact of cultural identity, aligning expectations, perseverance, work-life balance, and the importance of networking.
  • Engage your scholar in career planning discussions, provide coaching on grant writing, and help them to identify the right institutional environment for them.

To learn more about mentor requirements or to apply, please contact the AAMC.

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The MOSAIC program is supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number UE5GM139181. The content of the website is the responsibility of the AAMC and does not necessarily represent the official view of the National Institutes of Health.