# Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP)

> **NIH NIH R25** · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · 2024 · $178,498

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Effective mentorship is a critical component for academic and career development, particularly for trainees
underrepresented (UR) in the biomedical workforce. The Mount Sinai Post-Baccalaureate Research Education
Program (PREP) has a long history of successfully training UR scholars for biomedical graduate programs (e.g.,
PhD or Md-PhD). This important work requires dedicated time and effort to adequately support the unique needs
of UR trainees, who may need more support and attention. Substantial data reveals that racial and other biases
persist in biomedical education. For example, a 2022 Pew Research study found that nearly half of all Black
workers in STEM (48%) experienced mistreatment in their STEM education, with over one-third reporting that
someone treated them as if they could not understand scientific concepts (34%) or made them feel as though
they did not belong in STEM (34%). There is growing recognition that higher rates of attrition among racial/ethnic
graduate students will hamper efforts to diversify our biomedical workforce – efforts that are critical to our ability
to conduct high-level science and deliver optimal health care. Cultivating a culture of inclusivity and psychological
safety within the research training environment are important components to developing a diverse biomedical
workforce. Thus, the goal of the proposed supplement is to enhance the Mount Sinai PREP in two ways: 1) well-
being and psychosocial support for trainees and 2) additional anti-racism and -bias training for faculty mentors.
The proposed activities will provide unmet psychosocial support for our PREP trainees by offering opportunities
to discuss their mental and emotional well-being as URM trainees, and mentor training specific to mitigating
racism and racial stereotypes for program faculty. We will accomplish these goals by partnering with faculty from
the Mount Sinai Center for Scientific Diversity (CSD) who will lead monthly group discussions with PREP trainees
on relevant well-being topics including scientific identity, sense of belonging, imposter phenomenon and
resilience. Additionally, PREP faculty mentors will participate in a 5-week mentor training workshop (1.5-hour
sessions) lead by CSD faculty. The workshop curriculum will teach mentors practical strategies for mitigating
racism and racial stereotypes in their research labs as well as within their mentor-mentee relationships.
Outcomes will be evaluated at the individual level (i.e., PREP trainees and faculty mentors) and program level
(e.g., number of participants) for each component (e.g., mentor training and well-being discussion sessions).
Our long-term goal is to impact the research experiences of our PREP trainees and the overall effectiveness of
our PREP program. If proven successful, we will obtain institutional support to sustain the proposed activities in
both Mount PREP and across all research training programs within the institution.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11039520
- **Project number:** 3R25GM064118-23S1
- **Recipient organization:** ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI
- **Principal Investigator:** ERIC A SOBIE
- **Activity code:** R25 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $178,498
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2024-07-01 → 2025-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11039520

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11039520, Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP) (3R25GM064118-23S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11039520. Licensed CC0.

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