Slide 22: how to obtain funding: an assistant professor’s guide
Robert M. Raphael, Ph.D.
TN Law Assistant Professor
Dept. of Bioengineering
Rice University
Slide 23: spirit of the fighting irish
Slide 24: writing great grants: a three step recipe
Choose a significant problem
Bonus points if not much work has been done on the problem
More bonus points if you have done the important work
Leave no question that you can accomplish your aims
Established track record of publications
Clear and convincing preliminary data
Write a clear, easy to read proposal
“Calm down, understand the situation and communicate clearly” – We Were Soldiers
Slide 25: big hurdles and pitfalls
Navigating the
Scylla of building on your accomplishments and the
Charybdis of creating new research problems and attacking new research areas, given your situation:
Laboratory techniques not yet working
Students not yet trained/busy with classes
Teaching and other responsibilities
Proposing to do too much
Not making clear the points and connections that are obvious to you
Slide 26: final do’s and dont’s
Do not necessarily assume the person who reviews your grant will be an expert in your area or know why your research is novel
The response to a revised NIH grant is very important
Never appear to be angry or emotional. Just stick to the science. If a reviewer got something wrong (which often happens), just lay out the facts.
This is hard because you have put so much effort into the grant it’s easy to take comments personally.
Criticisms are of the science, not of you!
Get grants done in advance and have colleagues read them !
Resist the thrill of pulling it off on “third and long”
Slide 27: and remember:
Slide 28: acknowledgements
Thanks for Believing in Us!
NSF CAREER
Whitaker Foundation
Texas Advanced Technology Program
National Organization for Hearing Research
NIH NRSA (Greeson, Organ)
NSF-IGERT
Keck Center for Computational and Structural Biology
DOE Computational Science Graduate Fellowship
Slide 29: so you want someone else to pay for your research?
Joan E. Strassmann, Ph.D.
Department Chair
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Rice University
So you want someone else to pay for your research?
Ask important, big questions.
Have several projects at once.
Write clear, well-researched proposals.
Collaborate.
Identify all possible funding sources and learn their cultures.
Don’t let funding consume you. Keep publishing!
Slide 30: number 1 - ask important, big questions.
Do not redo your Ph.D. or postdoc work.
Find a substantially new project if your proposal is rejected twice.
Read deeply and broadly (at least 5 articles a day).
Be creative.
Do not be afraid to do something really different.
Talk to lots of people about research.
Slide 31: number 2 - do several projects at once.
Keeps you excited.
When one project faces problems, another could be blooming.
Increases funding opportunities.
Synergy in thinking about different things can suggest novel pathways.
Increases your visibility.
Slide 32: number 3 - write clear, well-researched proposals.
The proposal must be impeccable, no typos, clear headers, clear flow from hypotheses to methods.
Follow the format of the agency exactly.
Include preliminary data and figures.
Get sample funded proposals by asking people for them, preferably those not too close to your research.
Have several people read your proposal.
Leave enough time, at least 3 months.
Slide 33: number 4 - collaborate.
New ideas often come from collaboration.
Techniques and approaches can be shared.
This is the ONLY way to succeed without turning into a workaholic.
Teamwork is fun!
Find collaborators from a broader pool than is initially comfortable, and bridge the gaps with frequent meetings.
Same-stage collaborators are often best.
Slide 34: number 5 - identify all possible funding sources and learn their cultures.
NSF and NIH are not the only sources of funding.
Learn about those grants requiring nominations, and get them.
Take advantage of your sponsored research office in learning about private funding.
Slide 35: number 6 - keep publishing.
The search for funding can be discouraging.
Keep trying, but don’t forget to keep publishing anyway.
Write up your research quickly.
Write a minireview, review, perspective etc. at least every 2 years.