New investigator
Encyclopedia
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
and new investigators. New investigators would be evaluated in a different way when competing for funding with more seasoned researchers, or they would be able to access funding resources specific to them. The rationale behind is to avoid the current trend that for certain grants
Grant (money)
Grants are funds disbursed by one party , often a Government Department, Corporation, Foundation or Trust, to a recipient, often a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. In order to receive a grant, some form of "Grant Writing" often referred to as either a proposal...
the average age of the researchers receiving it for the first time keeps increasing over the years (See graph).
Definition
The formal definition of a new investigator varies with the funding agency. For example, for the NIH, a new investigator is one that does not have a story of previous funding. Other organizations, such as the Alzheimer's AssociationAlzheimer's Association
The Alzheimer's Association, incorporated on April 10, 1980 as the Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders Association, Inc., is a non-profit American voluntary health organization which focuses on care, support and research for Alzheimer's disease....
, consider a new investigator someone that is less than 10 years past their PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
degree. The Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Canadian Institutes of Health Research is the major federal agency responsible for funding health research in Canada. It is the successor to the Medical Research Council of Canada. It aims to create new health knowledge, and to translate that knowledge from the research setting into real world...
require a maximum of 60 months holding a full time research appointment, and the Leukemia Research Foundation consider them to be within seven years of their first independent position. The Medical Research Council (UK)
Medical Research Council (UK)
The Medical Research Council is a publicly-funded agency responsible for co-ordinating and funding medical research in the United Kingdom. It is one of seven Research Councils in the UK and is answerable to, although politically independent from, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...
simply considers postdoctoral researchers in their first academic post.
The equivalent term Early Researcher (or Early Career Researcher) is also used in different ways, where for example, for the Australian Research Council
Australian Research Council
The Australian Research Council is the Australian Government’s main agency for allocating research funding to academics and researchers in Australian universities. Its mission is to advance Australia’s capacity to undertake research that brings economic, social and cultural benefit to the...
it means someone that received a PhD or equivalent research doctorate within five years, or for the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation must be an independent researcher within the first five years of the start of their independent academic research career.