News Release

Science's Next Wave Receives $825,000 Grant To Create Grants And Fellowships Database For Young Scientists

Grant and Award Announcement

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

WASHINGTON, D. C., November 4, 1997 -- Science's Next Wave, (http://www.nextwave.org), a Web site with information on careers for young scientists, today received a $825,000 grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI).

The grant will be used to create an extensive database on fellowships, graduate programs and job openings useful to young scientists searching for information on careers and job opportunities. The new database will be the first of its kind to house such a large compilation of non-governmental fellowship information in one location.

"Science's Next Wave is a logical host for this kind of database," said Richard S. Nicholson, Executive Officer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), which publishes Science's Next Wave. "AAAS looks forward to working with HHMI to ensure that the database provides the kind of information that is crucial to a young scientist's career."

Science's Next Wave is a Web site that has become a central gathering place for young scientists looking for career information. AAAS created Science's Next Wave in 1995 and the site currently has more than 23,000 registered users. Regular columns include open forums for discussions on science career topics, features on alternative science careers, news briefs, science career advice and links to other Web resources. A recent popular discussion examined the issue, "Is Tenure Obsolete?" In the "New Niches" section, a young scientist discusses how he made the transition from ski patrolling to a career in biotechnology. This year, Science's Next Wave has expanded its international focus with new editors located in Canada and the United Kingdom.

The HHMI grant will allow Science's Next Wave to expand its content to include fellowship information for physician scientists. The database will debut in early 1998 and will feature profiles of selected foundations and other funding organizations. The profiles will feature four sections - background information on fellowship funders; trends in research; comments from reviewers who have recently selected grants; and profiles of recent award recipients. A later installment will include a collection of pre-doctorate and post-doctorate biomedical funding information.

The creation of Science's Next Wave was made possible through significant funding from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund and support from the Medical Research Council of Canada, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and The Wellcome Trust of the United Kingdom. AAAS, the publisher of the weekly journal Science and other electronic publications, is the world's largest federation of scientists with more than 141,000 individual members and nearly 300 affiliated scientific and engineering societies. The Association conducts a variety of programs in science policy, science education and career development, and international scientific cooperation.

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