How Research Gets Funded A report by Wayne Wakeland from a workshop given at PSU in late Sept. ’06 by The Grant Institute

Topics Compelling story…abstract More on story: clarity Build relationship with program admin. Review process Strong team Fit of proposed research with program Advice Finding sources of funding PSU specifics

Compelling Story What?  key problem, issue, need, goal, objective, aim –e.g.: answer a burning question or test provocative hypothesis How?  your research design in a nutshell Why?  importance/significance Innovation Research environment and team Dissemination Evaluation (how will you know if successful?)

More on Story: Clarity Succinct, clear, precise sentences –See Journalism department Never make the reader work to follow your thought process Funding sources don’t care what you want to do –Who will benefit First sentence is critical!

Build Relationship Call program administrator –It’s their job to talk with prospective new researchers –They want to fund exciting new research Ask for clarification Bounce off main idea(s) White paper Listen to their advice

Review Process Half of the submissions are not reviewed! –Mostly because instructions were not followed person review panel –Everyone reads abstracts of all proposals 2 or 3 people are assigned to review a given proposal in detail –They serve as advocates assuming the narrative is clear and compelling A proposal with a weak abstract unlikely to be funded

Strong Team Credibility of PI and co-PI’s –Track record –Evidence of potential The research environment is also crucial New researchers must forge a credible support team and/or partnerships

Fit of Proposal with Program Common weakness: funder not interested in the problem Aim the narrative directly at the scoring criteria –Make it easy to find how proposal addresses each criteria

Advice Be persistent (3 tries is typical) Don’t wait until the last minute to write prop. –Thoughtful review, improvement takes time –Submit your proposal well before the deadline! Allow time so that your proposal carefully reviewed internally Follow directions exactly Narrative in body of proposal must be clear Budget must be sensible

Advice, continued Make it easy to skim Use bullets Use boldface Active verbs Simple language

Finding Sources of Funding Community of Science ( Carefully study program purpose and specific objectives or target areas Review prior awards for insights

PSU Specifics Proposal Internal Approval Form (piaf) –Must be filled out well before grant is due Office of Grants and Sponsored Research –Can help with process and approvals, but you must allow sufficient time