Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health - Abstract
The goal of the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in
Women’s Health (BIRCWH) Program is to provide a structured environment that promotes the development of
junior faculty researchers into independent scientists with a commitment to interdisciplinary research
benefitting the health and well-being of women across the lifespan. VCU is a national leader in women’s health
with robust research on sex/gender influences on health, and it offers extensive and varied opportunities and
support for training and research in these areas. The BIRCWH Program will recruit promising early-career
faculty candidates and implement a novel, interdisciplinary mentoring approach matching scholars with a team
of mentors who will bring varied perspectives to the scholars’ research and career development; design and
implement a structured, personalized education and training plan to develop scholars knowledgeable about
women’s health and sex/gender influences who are proficient in study design and conduct, data analysis, and
publication in accordance with best regulatory and ethical practices; and connect scholars with other
researchers and clinicians from across VCU as well as from other universities and with community partners to
encourage interdisciplinary, scientifically rigorous, clinically relevant research on women’s health and
sex/gender differences. With a focus on the five areas of Cancer, Maternal-Child Health, Mental Health and
Addiction, Neuro-Musculoskeletal Health, and Obesity and Cardiovascular Health, the program will leverage
the expertise of VCU’s exceptional women’s health researchers to train junior researchers in areas that are
particularly relevant to women and the study of sex/gender influences on health. The VCU BIRCWH Program
will be directed by an interdisciplinary team of internationally acclaimed women’s health researchers and
administratively housed in the VCU Institute for Women’s Health, providing an environment that supports
sex/gender-focused training and research that transcends any single school or discipline. Scholar candidates
will be recruited from a rich, diverse pool of qualified faculty both within and outside VCU with a particular focus
on identifying exceptional women and minority candidates for the program. Three scholars at a time will
receive salary support, related research and career development funds, and an individual career development
plan (ICD) through the BIRCWH Program. VCU has a long-standing commitment to women’s health research
and practice and a coordinated agenda to train interdisciplinary researchers. The VCU BIRCWH Program will
provide a unique setting to develop a new generation of interdisciplinary investigators trained to improve
women’s health by better understanding the role of sex and gender in disease risk, clinical manifestations,
treatment, and outcomes as well as in health and health care delivery.