The AACR Professional Excellence Program (PEP) is a yearlong leadership and professional development experience designed for early‑stage researchers across basic, translational, clinical, and population science fields. Through individualized coaching, structured assessments, and immersive group learning, participants cultivate the skills needed to lead effectively within the scientific and research enterprise.
Target Audience
The program is tailored for early‑stage researchers seeking to strengthen leadership readiness, expand interdisciplinary collaboration skills, and enhance their overall professional impact.
Core Program Components
Individualized and Group Coaching
Participants receive personalized coaching that helps them identify strengths, refine leadership approaches, and apply new strategies to professional challenges in real time.
Assessment Tools
PEP integrates:
- Cognitive assessments
- Conative assessments
These assessments promote self‑awareness, clarity of work style, and more effective leadership behaviors.
Group Learning and Interactive Sessions
Small‑group learning offers opportunities to collaborate, exchange perspectives, and strengthen communication skills through discussion, case-based learning, and applied practice.
Learning Modules
AACR PEP participants engage in a rich curriculum covering a wide range of leadership and professional development topics, including:
- Self-awareness and leadership foundations
- Transdisciplinary team dynamics and scientific collaboration
- Networking and relationship‑building across institutional and community environments
- Grant execution and project management excellence
- Mentorship and sponsorship development
- Mitigation of racial and ethnic disparities
- Artificial intelligence in health science leadership and research
- Managing challenging conversations and navigating conflict
- Advanced communication strategies, framing, negotiation, and emotional intelligence
- Adaptability, creativity, and problem‑solving in complex systems
- Time and resource management: work–life integration, financial literacy, and intellectual property
- Program integration and global impact
Capstone Team Projects
A key component of the AACR PEP experience is the Capstone Team Project, which serves as the culminating academic or professional project for each participant group.
A capstone is a comprehensive project that integrates and applies the knowledge, skills, and leadership strategies participants have developed throughout the program. Each team identifies a real‑world problem or research question and designs a project that bridges theory and practice.
These projects are intended to:
- Address a meaningful scientific, clinical, or organizational challenge
- Demonstrate the application of leadership competencies
- Produce tangible value for patient care, scientific scholarship, or research operations
- Strengthen team collaboration through shared planning, execution, and presentation
Capstone projects allow participants to showcase their growth while generating impactful solutions that contribute to the broader cancer research community.