Once investigators achieve their first major grant(s), they naturally tend to scale their programs (more resources, more personnel, more projects). With this shift, they typically have a lot more data and new questions/directions than in those early years of independence when they may have felt that they didn’t have enough (data, papers) or weren’t sure they were proposing enough (aims/sub-aims). … Read More
It may be “Spooky Season,” but one thing you don’t have to be afraid of is that upcoming progress report.
Getting a research grant can be a fraught process that, when successful, brings both relief and excitement. But those feelings might be short-lived as you begin to encounter new worries about being able to accomplish what you proposed to do or having to write more proposals to maintain/expand your funding. “I was so glad that I got a grant, but … Read More
AMA: What exactly is a NOSI and does it change the way you prepare a grant application?
When we help investigators seek research grants, we often need to translate the lingo that funders use. There are a lot of nuances that can be tough to know or remember when you’re not applying for grants every day, and the tendency toward acronyms doesn’t do a lot to aid understanding. In this vein, a key part of grantsmanship is … Read More
Gain Efficiency, Get Back Your Time: Leveraging Processes & SOPs to Streamline the “Knowledge Work” of Research
Got an analysis or experiment to run? I bet you follow a protocol for that. Protocols represent a key part of processes or step-by-step plans of action. Standard operating procedures, protocols, and other forms of process provide critical infrastructure for research to ensure reproducibility, fidelity, consistency, and efficiency, with respect to experimental or analytic endpoints. These are tangible products of … Read More
“So What?”: The Simple Question That Instantly Elevates Your Grant Proposals (and More)
Imagine this: You spent months meticulously crafting your grant application. The research problem is well-defined and the methodology is solid. However, when the reviewers sit down to assess your proposal, they find themselves asking, “So what?” Oof. Over my last 15 years consulting on grant applications, I can tell you that “so what?” is the most common comment I leave … Read More
From Dread to Productivity: Transforming Your Writing Habits for Research Success
In my many years of working with academic STEM PIs, I’ve yet to encounter one who said they got into their career because they just love writing. Even among those who enjoy writing (and they do exist), that part wasn’t the major driver of their decision. Yet, for PIs, writing is central to advancing curiosity-driven pursuits, for example, by preparing … Read More
Why—and How—to Talk with Program Officers at Funding Agencies
Advice abounds on what to do when applying for research grants, and one common suggestion causes a sticking point for less-experienced PIs: contacting the funding agency’s program staff to discuss the upcoming application. We use this advice across our workshops, Q&A sessions, and one-on-one consultations, and investigators often provide some insight into what prevents them from taking this advice. The … Read More
What is ‘grantsmanship’? How strategic thinking improves your chances of success in the grant application process
In sectors where grant funding provides key support to the research enterprise, grant writing is a valued skill. In fact, training and support for grant writing represents the top service demand for our team at CareerVolt. In the context of these services, we often emphasize the equal value of “grantsmanship” (which we sometimes refer to as grant crafting or grant … Read More
Preparing a Compelling Scientific Grant Application
Grants, especially from federal funders, provide an important source of support for advancing scientific and public health research. For example, within the US, federal grants are the second-largest source of research and development dollars, after private businesses (before the 1980s, federal funds were the largest share). Yet, you are probably also intensely aware that there is a lot of competition … Read More
Cultivating Thought Partners to Enhance Your Research
Research is an intellectual pursuit in which discovery arises from asking questions and thinking deeply about where to go next. We often assume that we must have our ideas all worked out before we verbalize them to someone else, especially in the professional setting where we might be concerned about the way our ideas are received (i.e., looking like we … Read More