Purpose & Scope

The NIH Management Cadre Program (MCP) was established in 1994 to train and qualify successful and highly motivated NIH employees currently at the GS/GM grades 12, 13, or 14 levels to help meet the future leadership staffing needs of the NIH. The MCP is designed to enhance the career growth and potential of all employees who participate and represents an important component of NIH's efforts to develop highly trained, experienced, and well-qualified candidates for management positions. NIH is committed to ensuring that access to this program is inclusive of women, underrepresented minorities, and persons with disabilities.

The MCP provides a combination of on-the-job training, academic courses, and selected short assignments to prepare individuals to compete for advancement and/or career change to leadership positions that include administrative or managerial responsibilities. Participants continue to perform in their current positions and remain on the payrolls of their Institutes and Centers (ICs). Their ICs cover the cost of all tuition, fees, materials, equipment, and supplies for academic and non-acedemic training as well as for travel to and from classes, parking, and other expenses associated with the completion of the program. The ICs grant participants time to pursue the developmental and training opportunities required for completion of the program—approximately 20% of the participant's time for a period of 18 months.