PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT The purpose of The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) is to advance the scientific and scholarly study of aging and to promote human welfare by the encouragement of gerontology in all its areas. Each annual meeting of GSA features an outstanding scientific program and social events designed to promote cross-disciplinary exchange, including tutorials, keynote lectures, podium presentations, lively poster sessions, and invited case studies. One of the society’s overarching aim is to cultivate the professional development of early career professionals and students at its annual meeting through engagement through a variety of educational outlets. This R13 application is designed to provide unique career development and mentoring opportunities to trainees interested in pursuing a career in aging research from participating in a pre-conference workshop at the GSA annual meetings. We are proposing to conduct three novel full-day pre-conference workshops starting with the 2018 GSA Annual Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, on November 14th, 2018. These workshops will provide, leadership, mentorship and career development training for pre- and post-doctoral level trainees and early career professionals from diverse under-represented groups, who are interested in pursuing a career in aging research. The long-term success of gerontological research depends on the recruitment and nurturing of talented early career investigators in our profession, particularly those from under-represented groups who can contribute to advances in aging research and who will engage in collaborative, transformative research with other members of the field of aging. Funding from this proposal will eliminate registration costs and reduce travel expenses for the mentees and mentors and will support a technical assistance pre-conference workshop.