Johns Hopkins University President calls for increased funding and support for young scientists

In the most recent issue of PNAS, the president of my alma mater, Ronald J. Donalds, discusses the disturbing trend of decreased funding for young scientists saying, “The departure of young scientists from the academic biomedical workforce in turn poses grave risks for the future of science.”

Fig 1 from article: Percent of NIH R01 principal investigators and medical school faculty by age (1980 in pale and 2010 in bold).

The R01 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is one of the largest and most important grants for scientists to independently fund and maintain their careers. Donalds says that the number of scientists 36 or younger who received an R01 dropped from 18% in 1983 to 3% in 2010.

In the article he addresses several theories for why young scientists aren’t receiving grants, including inherent bias in the grant process towards more established scientists, the financial hardship placed on institutions in supporting faculty, and the protracted postdoctoral training period which increases the average age a scientist obtains a faculty position.

He goes on to address each point. In regards to the long training periods he makes several suggestions. As it is well known and recorded that there are far more postdoctoral researchers than available faculty positions, Donalds calls for better career training. “To provide a true foundation of support for early-stage scientists, we will need to construct a pathway to a career in the biomedical sciences that is sustainable, humane and fair.” One solution Donalds offers are more staff scientist positions at core facilities in universities and research institutions.

Donalds also cites the need for “weaning our biomedical workforce away from an overreliance on postdoctoral researchers.” A decade-old report by the National Academy of Sciences suggested imposing a 5-year limit on funding for postdocs, which Donalds suggests should be revisited. He also suggests increased K99/R00 grants, which provide funding for postdoc training as well as establishing their own independent career. Finally he says there is a need for “demystifying the R01” as the most important factor for obtaining and retaining faculty.