» Guide for Successful Collaboration: From the Handshake to the Collaborative Research Agreement

Successful collaborations foster successful scientific careers. Scientific collaboration is a critical feature of the research process. Not only is it a requirement for the advancement of scientific knowledge, but it is also an important skill for scientists to possess for a successful and productive career. Initiating a successful collaboration is a skill that many scientists have little experience with early in their careers. Collaboration is key to expanding one’s scientific reach, potentially tapping into resources (technologies, reagents, ideas) that might not be immediately available. But, how do you take the first step? How does one collaborate with the pharmaceutical industry? How does one tap into VA/Military research dollars and resources? What are the legal issues of a formal collaboration? What types of collaborations are common?

This Symposium will help to answer these questions by describing various types of collaborations within academia, between academia and industry, and between basic and clinical scientists, and how to initiate them. The Symposium will also discuss more non-traditional collaborations, such as those with the US government and Veterans Administration. Finally, it will also cover what to expect from the legal perspective, specifically the common reasons why collaborations fail or “fall through”.

Initiating Successful Collaborations: A How-to (and how NOT to do) Guide
Stephanie W. Watts, Ph.D. (Michigan State University)

Collaboration With the Pharmaceutical Industry
Stephen A. Douglas, Ph.D. (GlaxoSmithKline)

DTRA, DARPA, USAMRMC, CDMRP, and Other Exciting Acronyms
Janet Harris, R.N., Ph.D. (US Army Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs)

Collaborative Research Agreements: Getting Through the Legal Hurdles
Jay B. Winchester (Judge Advocate, US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command)