Council on Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Early Career Development

The Council's Early Career Development program encourages and assists promising students, post-doctoral fellows and junior faculty as they seek to establish successful careers in science. At the core of these efforts is the Early Career Committee, which serves as an advocate for young investigators. Through direct interaction with the Council leadership, the committee works to ensure networking opportunities, career development symposia and service opportunities that fit the needs of the early career AHA members.

Introduction to the AHA Mentoring Program

Interested in becoming a member of the Lifestyle Early Career Committee?

Submit an Early Career Committee interest form

Early Career Committee

Chair

Brittany Pate, BS, PhD

Brittany Pate, BS, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow
Emory University

Chair Elect

Photo coming soon

Jenny Jia, MD, MSc

Assistant Professor of Medicine and Preventive Medicine
Northwestern University

Immediate Past Chair

Katherine Collins-Bennett, PhD

Katherine Collins-Bennett, PhD

Assistant Professor
Duke University School of Medicine

Members

Tara Allen, MD, MSc

Tara Allen, MD, MSc

Fellow, Cardiovascular Epidemiology
UCSD

Lawrence J. Appel, MD, MPH, FAHA

Lawrence Appel, MD, MPH, FAHA

Professor of Medicine Epidemiology and I
 

Romit Bhattacharya, MD, FAHA

Romit Bhattacharya, MD, FAHA

Massachusetts General Hospital

Photo coming soon

Sinclair Carr, MS

PhD Candidate
Harvard School of Public Health

Shawna Follis, PhD, MS

Shawna Follis, PhD, MS

Instructor K99 Fellow, Stanford Medicine
Stanford Univeristy

Photo coming soon

Joshua Labadah, BSC, MPhil

The University of Texas at El Paso

Kyla Lara-Breitinger

Kyla Lara-Breitinger, MD, MS

Cardiologist
Mayo Clinic

Steve Nguyen, MPH, PhD

Steve Nguyen, MPH, PhD

Assistant Professor
UC San Diego HWSPH

Photo coming soon

Mingyu Zhang, PhD, MHSc

Assistant Professor of Medicine

Staff

Denise Levy

Denise Levy

National Sr. Director, Professional Membership
American Heart Association

Early Career Events

EPI|Lifestyle 2027

March 1–4, 2027
Westin Boston Seaport
Boston, Massachusetts
Learn more about #EPILifestyle27

Young Investigator Awards

The Young Investigator Awards recognize outstanding endeavors by new investigators in research activities and encourages continued biomedical research careers, related to cardiovascular function and diseases, including basic science, integrated physiology and clinical problems.

Student Scholarships

The objective of Student Scholar awards is to stimulate student scholars in medicine, nursing, public health, nutrition and other allied health disciplines to carry out research projects related to cardiovascular disease, stroke and basic science.

Career Skills

Presentations


Educational Opportunities

Meetings and Conferences

Funding Opportunities

Searching for Funding Opportunities

Types of Grants

  • Pilot Funds include NIH R03 or small grants ($50k year)
  • NIH K awards – 2-5 years in length, large portion is PI salary with small research budget
  • NIH R01’s Investigator initiated awards – can be in response to PA’s— (up to $500K year, up to 5 years)
  • Responses to RFA’s
  • Other independent funding

Please visit the American Heart Association's Research Funding Opportunities for more information about the following Grants and Awards.

  • Medical Student Research Program
    The student research program encourages promising students, including women and members of minority groups underrepresented in the sciences, from all disciplines to consider research careers while supporting the highest quality scientific investigation broadly related to cardiovascular disease and stroke. The research opportunity will allow students to work for 8, 10 or 12 weeks with a faculty/staff member on any project broadly related to cardiovascular disease/function or stroke. The goal is to encourage students to consider a future academic career in this area.
  • Predoctoral Fellowship
    Helps students initiate careers in cardiovascular and stroke research by providing research assistance and training.
  • Clinical Research Program
    Encourages early career investigators who have appropriate and supportive mentoring relationships to engage in high quality introductory and pilot clinical studies that will guide future strategies for reducing cardiovascular disease and stroke while fostering new research in clinical and translational science, and encouraging community- and population-based activities.
  • Undergraduate Student Research Program
    The purpose of this undergraduate research training program is to encourage promising students from all disciplines, including women and members of minority groups underrepresented in the sciences, to consider research careers while supporting the highest quality scientific investigation broadly related to cardiovascular disease and stroke.
  • Fellow-to-Faculty Transition Award
    Provides funding for trainees with outstanding potential for careers as physician-scientists in cardiovascular or stroke research during the crucial period of career development that spans the completion of research training through the early years of the first faculty/staff position. The award provides a supportive mentored experience during this period of transition. The award will
    1. greatly enhance the awardee's chances of obtaining a high-quality faculty/staff appointment;
    2. improve the awardee's success and retention in an investigative career in cardiovascular science; and
    3. develop the mentoring skills of the awardee as a potential future mentor.
  • Postdoctoral Fellowship
    Helps trainees initiate careers in cardiovascular and stroke research while obtaining significant research results under the supervision of a sponsor or mentor; supports individuals before they are ready for some stage of independent research.
  • Beginning Grant-In-Aid
    Promotes the independent status of promising beginning scientists.
  • Scientist Development Grant
    Supports highly promising beginning scientists in their progress toward independence by encouraging and adequately funding research projects that can bridge the gap between completion of research training and readiness for successful competition as an independent investigator.
  • Grant-In-Aid
    Encourages and adequately funds the most innovative and meritorious research projects from independent investigators.

Basic Science Track

Predoctoral Training Grants

Postdoctoral Training Grants

Early Career/Transition Grants


Clinical Science Track

Predoctoral Training Grants

Postdoctoral Training Grants

Early Career/Transition Grants

Science Social Media