NIH research funding success in dermatology training programs, a cross-sectional analysis

Training programs with strong research funding are crucial to academic dermatology and are essential to the development of future dermatology researchers. While previous studies have examined the influence of individual investigator characteristics on funding success, no studies to our knowledge have examined the influence of dermatology training program characteristics on successful receipt of NIH funding. Here, we used publicly available data regarding NIH funding and dermatology training programs to understand the factor influencing successful NIH funding. The results of our study showed strong associations of funding success with the strength of the associated college of medicine, as well as an association with programs having departmental status vs. divisional status. The factors that influence successful funding are multiple, and while many factors cannot be changed or mitigated, our study may provide support to programs who have yet to achieve departmental status.