Trainees also benefit from common resources, including the Association for Academic Surgery Fundamentals of Surgical Research Career Development Courses, American Heart Association Fellow in Training Program, the Department of Surgery Leadership Development Program, multidisciplinary conferences and mentorship activities after formal training.

All our positions will be postdoctoral and will be two years in length. Each trainee will be based in the laboratory of one of the faculty listed in the proposal. In addition to a primary mentor, the trainee can choose a secondary mentor from the mentor list. The primary mentor will be responsible for the creation and direction of the project, and the secondary mentor will be a collaborator of the primary mentor. These all fall under our normal work collaborations.

When the trainee has been chosen and the primary and secondary mentor have been assigned, the trainee will submit to the internal advisory committee a 2-page summary of the research objective with:

• The proposed research
• Specific aims
• A brief list of techniques that will be used
• Expected results

This document will aid the internal advisory committee in recommending courses and identifying other faculty members of the training program or at the University of Michigan that will aid in the training of the fellow in the conduct of this research. The internal advisory committee can suggest changes to the proposed training program based on the fellow’s background and career goals. The trainees will be encouraged to consult other mentors and the program directors for guidance in the planning of their program and in the periodic assessment of their progress in meeting the defined objectives.