Scintillon
Assistant
Professor
Entry
Program

Many of the brightest researchers have deep conviction for an academic career; that goal is what they have been trained for and is worth every effort in its pursuit. In reality, bridging the gap between a successful post-doctoral experience and an assistant professorship position can be arduous. Typically, a university would like to see competitive faculty candidates that already have independent research grants or strong proof that they will sometime soon. At the same time, without a tenure-track Assistant Professor title, a postdoc or project scientist can find it nearly impossible to apply for independent grants from the NIH to establish such credentials.

Conventionally, to deal with this dilemma, the hiring institute often takes a risk by offering a sizable startup package to new faculty members so they can conduct research long enough to obtain grant funding. To mitigate this risk, the recruitment committee and department chairs tend to select candidates based on a set of traditional “fundable” attributes, namely: 1) first-authored manuscripts in top tier family journals such as Cell, Nature, or Science; 2) pedigree established from exceptionally respected labs (preferably Nobel Prize winners, academy members, or HHMI investigators) with genuine, strong advocacy by the PI; and 3) demonstrated public speaking skills, excellent didactics (teaching courses), and excellent academic communication. However, if substantial grants are not obtained within those critical first few years, the assistant professor will lose their job and the institute will lose their investment.

The Scintillon Institute believes in the power of these innovative minds to transform real world problems into industry leading solutions. To provide alternative opportunities, either to those stellar candidates who missed the traditional job search cutoffs or those up-and-coming researchers who are truly dedicated to basic research and development with unusual talents and are working to achieve in the 3 attribute categories listed above, we offer a potential pathway to achieving the rank of Assistant Professor through the Scintillon Assistant Professor Entry Program (SAPEP).

After passing a personalized screening process, the Scintillon Institute will provide accepted candidates with the title of Assistant Professor with full authorization to write independent NIH research grants (e.g., R21, R01, R33). More importantly, our highly experienced and distinguished faculty provide hands-on coaching in grant writing and packaging of applications.  Collaborative grants or center grants may also be developed jointly, if appropriate. 

The Scintillon Institute is a private, non-profit institute built by researchers with a broad and aspirational vision to apply basic research to solve real world problems with an emphasis on technology advancement. We have a one-of-a-kind culture that nurtures young talent and helps researchers grow together.

Successful SAPEP participants are expected to secure career-establishing grants, by which time Scintillon will provide institutional support and guidance. As the assistant professors develop through the strong collaborations with senior faculty and industry connections and by experiencing firsthand how a lab is run, the Institute will promote them through the ranks internally and help build their reputation to outside associations and foundations and build their own spinoff biotech companies.  If the new faculty, after spending two thirds of their first major grant at Scintillon, decide to try a different academic environment, such as a university, public, or government institution, Scintillon will assist in the transition, helping the promising careers that start here to continue to be fruitful. 

Please email your letter of interest, research details, and CV to hr@scintillon.org if you are interested in being considered for the SAPEP program.

SCINTILLON INSTITUTE gratefully acknowledges major support for this program from: