New PI Lab Setup Checklist
Answer 7 questions and get a personalised setup checklist tailored to your lab type, team, funding stage, and compliance requirements.
New PI Lab Setup Checklist: Team Roles, Software & Your First 90 Days
Starting your first lab? This free tool generates a personalised new PI checklist based on your specific situation. Whether you are setting up your first lab in a wet, dry, or computational environment, it covers the tasks most new Principal Investigators miss in their PI first 90 days — from EH&S registration and budget codes to team onboarding and data management policies. No sign-up required.
Free Tool
New PI Lab Setup Checklist
Answer 7 questions. Get your personalized checklist.
Answer a few questions about your lab and get a checklist built around your specific situation — your team size, funding stage, lab type, and compliance requirements. It covers the things most people don't think about until it's too late. Takes about 2 minutes.
7
Questions
~2
Minutes
100%
Free
No account required. Your answers stay in your browser.
Frequently asked questions
What should a new PI do in their first 90 days?
In the first 90 days, a new PI should confirm lab space and obtain access keys, register with EH&S and complete safety training, secure a budget account code, set up IT and data storage, complete any required IRB or IACUC protocols, onboard team members, establish lab meeting cadence, and define data recording policies. The specific tasks vary by lab type, team size, and compliance requirements — use the tool above for a personalised list.
What is a new PI questionnaire?
A new PI questionnaire is a structured set of questions used to determine the specific administrative, compliance, and operational tasks a new Principal Investigator needs to complete. The tool above is an interactive version: answer 7 questions about your lab type, team size, funding stage, and compliance requirements, and it generates a custom checklist.
What do I need to set up my first lab?
You need: confirmed physical space, an active institutional budget account code, EH&S registration, safety training, IT and data storage access, HR paperwork for any incoming personnel, compliance protocols (IRB/IACUC if applicable), vendor accounts, and a system for tracking experiments, samples, protocols, and equipment.
How long does it take to set up a new research lab?
Critical tasks — EH&S registration, budget setup, IT access, safety training — should be done in the first week. Most new PIs need 30 days for onboarding tasks and compliance protocols. Full operational setup, including lab culture, meeting cadence, and data management policies, typically takes 90 days.
A note from the founders
We're 3 months old. You'd be one of our first labs.
We're not going to show you fake testimonials. Instead, here is exactly what being a founding lab means for you:
A direct line to us
Not a support ticket queue. Not a chatbot. You get direct access to the people building Paraclyst.
Top priority, always
Your lab comes first. Issues you raise jump to the front of the line, every time.
Feature requests built in days
If you need something, tell us. We ship features in days, not quarters.
Founding-lab pricing, locked for life
Whatever you pay as a founding lab is what you pay forever. No price increases, no exceptions.
Founding-lab discount code
Use this code at checkout to lock in your 20% discounted founding-lab price.