Current Conditions at the NIH?

[MonkeyArrow]

Was wondering if anyone on here is currently working on campus at the NIH in Bethesda and could give me some insight into how Covid restrictions are affecting operations?

Long story short: I interviewed with a lab for a postbac spot, but the hold up is the in-person lab capacity restrictions. My understanding of things is that guidelines coming from the Office of the Director still have a strict cap on the number of individuals that can be in lab at any given time. My prospective lab is currently right at the cap and is not going to be able to bring any additional people onto campus unless that cap gets loosened. Has anyone heard anything about loosening up restrictions or is anyone else running into any similar problems? I would appreciate any insight or speculation anyone has.

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[jmh7xe]

Hi! Current postbac at the NIH finishing up my two year stint - it's pretty institutionally dependent but definitely enforced. Our institute only allows 1 person per lab bench per alcove so for our lab only 2 people can be here at a time. I'm lucky that only 2 of us have wet lab/functional projects currently ongoing but other labs that have too many people typically will do shifts (including nights) or some people will have to come in on weekends. The same issues apply to shared spaced (tissue culture, flow machines, imaging machines, common spaces, reagent rooms, etc.). I would say it is strictly enforced since majority of NIH research staff is not vaccinated + we are still not receiving close to enough doses from MD's govt. nor the federal govt. However, with the new claim that all Americans will be vaccinated by May, I would say you could be good to go come summer (when most fellows start their postions). Definitely ask your possible PI what the institution's plan is come summertime or even ask for them to put you in contact with your institutions Training Director who might have more insight. Any other questions about the NIH, feel free to DM me + I'll try to help!!

 

[toofastdan]

Hi there - I'm a second year NIH postbac. My institute is at 50% capacity, meaning that only half of all in-person staff can be in lab at a given time. This is especially true if you work in a large lab. We work in shifts of 3-4 days and I work on the weekends -_-

I honestly don't see this cap being loosened until all NIH staff are vaccinated. The NIH has separated vaccination groups into 4 categories (1-4). Group 1 is people who need to work with patients - this group is currently vaccinated. Group 2 is next - they are currently vaccinating this group. Once all groups are vaccinated and cases go substantially down (probably by summer), I can possibly see them easing restrictions. Note: this is my opinion - we haven't heard anything about loosening the cap from NIH leadership yet.

Labs are still hiring postbacs; however, if you want to work in-person right now, you might have to do more searching. Many labs (mine included) have stopped hiring new in-person postbacs due to training concerns. For example, my microscope room only allows 1 person because it's the size of a closet. I was not able to get trained on the microscope and have to rely on others for imaging. Limitations like this are all over the place, but you can still find an in-person lab. Expect to email a lot of PIs and be very upfront with your goals of working in-person safely. You might mention your proposed start date (maybe in June/July where most new postbacs start) and how a lot more people will be vaccinated by this time.

Feel free to PM if you have questions! If you find a good-fit lab, the NIH is one of the best places to spend your gap years!

 

[salmon98]

Also a current NIH postbac. They actually moved on to Group 3 for vaccinations as of yesterday (I know because I received an invite). My PI has hired a bunch of post docs to start in June/July and thinks they’ll be able to work in person despite us currently being at max capacity (but who knows how optimistic that is). They are finally moving quickly through vaccinations so I think you can have some hope to start in person.

 

[MonkeyArrow]

Thank you for all the input, everyone!

My prospective PI is about in line with what everyone else is saying. He is optimistic that things will improve by summer, but he can't say anything definitely of course. The science and the PI sound like a great fit, and I am very excited to take advantage of everything the NIH has to offer. I appreciate all of your offers for advice, and may be in your DMs shortly with questions as they arise!

 

[salmon98]

Just wanted to share an update I received from the director of my institute yesterday: “Regardless of vaccination status, on-site density requirements and safety guidance continue as-is, most likely for the foreseeable future”

everyone who works in person has now been invited to get their first dose