This year’s career development session on Tuesday, December 10th from 1:30 p.m.-3:00 p.m., will address an issue central to launching a successful research career: How to obtain grants in today’s stringent funding climate. In a tightly constricted economic time, ideas for funding strategies will be discussed.  The session will be geared towards early-career individuals who are beginning their independent research trajectories and trying to establish themselves. This year’s panelists include, Linda Brady, Dennis Charney, Maurizio Fava, Steve Hyman  and Bita Moghaddam.  In addition to concrete suggestions for maximizing funding success, the panel will discuss the role funding plays in overall career development (for example, getting a position, obtaining tenure/promotion, etc.).  A range of perspectives (MD, PhD, and clinical vs. basic research) will be represented by this diverse group of panelists with a variety of experience: study sections, scientific advisory boards, NIH staff, and department chairs/deans. Our panelists have broad expertise in reviewing and obtaining grants from a variety of sources, as well as successfully ‘shepherding’ trainees through the complex funding terrain.  The session will begin with structured questions (solicited in advance from junior ACNP attendees) followed by an open question and answer period, moderated by members of the Membership Advisory Task Force.  Topics to be covered include: recent funding information from NIH (who is getting

funded and when, and what is the plan for retaining junior talent/new investigators); when is it best to apply and how to select the optimal grant mechanism based on career level (K-award versus R21 versus R01 versus K99/R01); NIH versus private foundation grants; academia-industry funding collaborations; individual grants versus being part of a multi-PI team and how that is viewed for career development. We look forward to your participation in this session.