Understanding Career Success and Its Contributing Factors for Clinical and Translational Investigators

Abstract

Purpose To understand the factors that facilitate career success for career development awardees in clinical and translational science and to reconceptualize understanding of career success for this population. Method In 2013–2014, the authors conducted semi-structured interviews with former NIH KL2 or K12 scholars from nine Clinical and Translational Science Award-funded institutions. Participants either had or had not secured independent funding at least two years after the end of their last K award. Questions covered the factors that facilitate or hinder junior investigators’ transition to independent funding. Interviews were recorded and transcribed and the transcripts analyzed thematically. Results Forty individuals participated, with equal representation by men and women and by independently and not independently funded investigators. Personal factors that facilitated success included: networks, persistence and resilience, initiative, autonomy, and personal and professional balance. Organizational factors included: appropriate mentorship, protected research time, and institutional resources and support. Even independently funded participants described challenges regarding career direction. Five participants without independent funding modeled a broad spectrum of successful career paths, having assumed leadership positions not reliant on grant funding. Alternative definitions of career success included: improving public health, enjoying work, seeing mentees succeed, and receiving external acknowledgement of successes. Conclusions Awareness of the factors that facilitate or hinder career success can help junior faculty, mentors, and institutional leaders support career development in clinical and translational science. New definitions of career success are needed, as are career paths for faculty who want to engage in research in roles other than principal investigator.

Reaching for the stars: Iranian nurses’ perceptions of career success

“…Our findings resonate with others who set to conceptualize career success in other health professions, founding that patient recovery‐centred care and establishing good relationships with patients were the top determining aspects of health provider's career success (Robinson et al. ; Takeuchi et al. ).…”

“…; Robinson et al. ; Rubio et al. ), and feeling of external acknowledgement for work success (Robinson et al.…”

“…), and feeling of external acknowledgement for work success (Robinson et al. ) as important affective aspects of career success. This also aligns with arguments that Asian cultures are driven by immaterial, internally driven rewards of work (Tlaiss ), and the nature of nursing being ‘helping’ profession.…”

“…), and improving health of patients, enjoying work, seeing mentees succeed and receiving external acknowledgement of success (Robinson et al. ). This suggests that career success across health professions will also differ according to one's position and roles within the organization.…”

Leadership Lessons: Developing Mentoring Infrastructure for GEMSSTAR Scholars

“…These challenges are particularly evident for GEMSSTAR scholars practicing in a procedure‐oriented field. GEMSSTAR planners purposely selected mentors capable of advising mentees on overcoming funding setbacks and maintaining a robust research portfolio, while maintaining wellness amidst a healthy work‐life balance based upon personal experience . Illustrating mentors' personal journeys of success on top of failure—and the persistence that rendered opportunity from disappointment—opened mentees' perspectives around shared challenges and like‐minded determination between specialties and across funding streams .…”