Brilliant scientists cannot be lost at the moment their promise is greatest.
The challenge—and the opportunity
The scientific talent pipeline is under strain. Doctoral programs are shrinking, international enrollment is falling, and changes in federal funding are reducing positions in laboratories. Low pay, caregiving costs, and gaps in research support can push exceptional people out of science.
Philanthropy can intervene at the decisive moment.
A research award can keep an idea moving. Dependent-care support can keep a scientist in the field. Travel funding can put a young researcher and their work in front of the collaborators who help launch a career.
Your investment builds the future
FUND EMERGING SCIENTISTS.
Fill gaps where other funding does not exist! Research awards, Travel and Professional Development Awards, and Dependent Care Awards are necessary.
EXPAND THE RECRUITING PIPELINE.
Strengthen Salk’s coveted STEM programs—from our undergraudate summer program (SURF), to our graudate and postdoctoral programs (Edge, Discover, and Rising Stars) with lab skills, mentorship, networks, and inspiration.
BUILD NETWORKS AND COMMUNITY.
Connect the research pipeline to leaders in biotech, venture capital, healthcare, and philanthropy through relationship-focused gatherings.
CELEBRATE INFLUENTIAL LEGACIES.
Honor the scientists and mentors who paved the way, while inspiring those who will follow. Luminaries include Dr. Joanne Chory, Dr. Ursula Bellugi, and so many more.
Why Salk is where talent can thrive
FOCUS ON SCIENCE.
No teaching load and minimal bureaucracy give early researchers time to pursue bold, foundational questions.
INTERDISCIPLINARY BY DESIGN.
Scientists are not siloed; they learn across biology and follow discoveries wherever they lead.
MENTORSHIP THAT IS PERSONAL.
Small laboratories create individual attention, meaningful responsibility, and close scientific exchange.
A RECORD OF EXCEPTIONAL OUTCOMES.
Salk trainees become Nobel laureates, university faculty, biotech founders and executives, venture capital leaders, and even NASA astronauts.
Help the next trailblazer stay in science—and move an idea toward impact.
The therapies and technologies that change lives often begin decades earlier in foundational research laboratories. Salk is where many of those journeys begin. Your support makes sure the people with the courage and talent to start those journeys can keep going.