Proposals and Getting Funded

Proposals and Getting Funded Michael Wysession & Richard Yuretich Morning: The Big Picture Afternoon: Proposals

It takes as much time to do research on a problem of low importance/interest as one that is of high interest/importance • Cultivate interesting and important ideas • Collect ideas • Allow TIME for review, winnowing and sorting, revision and improvement • Consider institutional expectations • Build on institutional strengths • Consider a collaboration • Multi-PI (can be fun!) • Senior colleague (pros and cons) Choose a Project Carefully

Mixture of types • Federal vs. private foundations • Instrumentation (do as a research “group”) • Student support • REUs (Research Experiences for Undergraduates) • Collaborations (etc.) • Use smaller grants to • Build your experience & capabilities • Collect preliminary data • Build confidence in your capabilities • (Typical award size of a ‘new investigator’ project is not as large as that of veterans, but may have higher success rate) • Set realistic goals for # & type of proposal submissions Build a Portfolio of Grants

Let people know what you are doing! • Reviewers, panel members, and program directors should know of your work • Blow your own horn (at the right time and in key, of course) • Balance your time spent on complementary activities of research, dissemination (publications and presentations), and proposal writing Stake Your Claim

Build upon your previous papers to write your proposal • Use parts of your proposal in your papers (e.g., Introduction, Data and Methods, Reference list, Figures) • Align your teaching with your research when possible • Try a graduate or senior undergraduate seminar on the topic • Align your advising with your research when possible • E.g., senior thesis; class assignments Professional Synergy (i.e., Recycling)

Email a request for a time to call them • Seek them out at meetings • Build a relationship • Always do a review if asked • Volunteer to be on a panel Contact Your Program Officer

Is a scholar in your field (usually) who knows what everybody is doing & is formative in directing the scholarship of your field Can be permanent or temporary Coordinates & runs the review process Executes or makes funding decisions, depending upon agency policies Oversees grants, budgets, etc. Advocates for your field in competition with other research areas and budget priorities. Continues to work with you throughout your grant and is interested in your success. The Role of the Program Officer

(After doing your homework) Does your program fund this type of research? What is the program budget and success rate, how many proposals in a competition? What is the typical size of a successful ‘new investigator’ project in this program? What is the review and decision making process in this program? Are there special programs for which I qualify and how can I be considered for them? Are you aware of other agencies or organizations that fund this kind of project? Questions to Ask Your Program Officer

Focus on the Big-Picture Important Scientific Question Being Addressed!! • It should sound like it is the most important thing in the world • Assume that the reviewer assumes that you know how to do what you propose to do (i.e., don’t bore them with details or too many equations) • …but it doesn’t hurt to give a good, brief explanation • Have CLEAR HYPOTHESES and CLEAR TESTS to distinguish between them • If possible, use sample or synthetic data to show a proof-of-concept Preparing the Proposal: Goals

Follow the rules (read the Grant Guide carefully!) • Due Date • Pre-proposals • Margins, point size, vertical and horizontal spacing • Don’t write too much; don’t make the proposal seem crammed • Allow generous space for figures • Break up pages (don’t have too many “book” pages) • But, use all the pages that are given to you Preparing the Proposal: Format

Reviewers are tired, overworked, overcommitted, underpaid, rushed, generally fair but inherently skeptical (like you!) Don’t Annoy Them! Write in a simple, clear, clean style. Don’t make the reviewer work hard to read the paper Don’t assume they have read your previous papers or are experts in your field But, also don’t insult them Imagine you are writing for a colleague in your department whom you respect, i.e. an educated professional. Preparing the Proposal: Writing Style

Intellectual Merit • How will this change our understanding of the world? • How do we know you will be able to do what you propose? • Broader Impacts • How will this influence scientists in other fields? • Are there societal or public benefits to the research effort? • Will any publicly-accessible products, data sets, codes or educational materials be produced? • What educational opportunities are you providing? • Are you allocating sufficient resources to the broader impacts? Preparing the Proposal: “Intellectual Merit” and “Broader Impacts”

Your chance to describe your expertise • Give a brief description of the overall project • Give a brief description of the main scientific results • If you don’t have prior support, put in one sentence to this effect. • Include Broader Impacts • Put at the beginning, to set up your project • A page or so is good (out of 15) Preparing the Proposal: Results from Prior Funding

Introduction • Include authors who might be reviewers (!) • Demonstrate a NEED for your project • Data and Methods • A little goes a long way; be clear, but don’t bore • Figures and Captions • A reviewer should understand the project just from the figures and captions • HYPOTHESES and PROPOSED WORK • This is the focus of the proposal • How will your results distinguish between the different hypotheses? • Personnel, Tasks, and Timeline • Be VERY SPECIFIC as to who will be doing what, and when Preparing the Proposal: Main Body

References • Be thorough but not excessive • Don’t hesitate to include your previous works (and include your papers/abstracts from the “Results from Prior Funding” section), but don’t “pad” the list • Be sure to include references from everyone who might be a reviewer • Bio/CV • Be attentive to rules (thesis Advisor, recent collaborators, relevant and significant publications) • Current and Pending Support • Include summer/yearly salary months Preparing the Proposal: Other Parts

Your salary (up to a month) Salary for post-docs, research staff, grad students, undergrads (and benefits and fringes!) Travel to meetings (you and students) – get quotes! Computer software, licensing, shared time, and hardware Lab costs Publications (assume 2+ color; get quotes!) Materials and supplies, “Other” Don’t underestimate costs; Ask for what you need! Don’t worry about the total $$ if you can justify it Build in inflation for multiyear grants Off-campus overhead rates (tricky!) Preparing the Proposal: Budget and Budget Justification

Take this very seriously! • Choose people who know your work, but are not direct competitors. • Be aware of conflicts-of-interest (collaborators on past projects, post-doctoral advisors, etc.). • Cultivate reviewers • Send them reprints • Invite them to give department seminars • Ask a senior colleague (mentor?) for a pre-review Suggesting Reviewers

Program Officer • Checks to make sure it meets basic criteria • “Peer” Mail Reviews (people like you!) • For NSF: aim for about 5 • Numbers AND comments important • Program Officer • Decides on which proposals to have panel consider. • Panel • Provides additional feedback for program. • Often helps rank proposals. • Some programs (AGS in NSF) do not use panels • Program Officer • Makes the funding decision. The Review Process (NSF)

Success rates are typically 10-30% • But, many of these are resubmissions, so… • Resubmissions are the norm! • Take reviewer comments seriously (just like a paper) • Respond to all comments (and SAY SO!) • If they don’t understand something, assume you didn’t explain it well enough • Your program officer will tell you if it is time to move on Resubmission

Name • Institution • What interests you • Why it is important Professional Introductions

Proposals and Getting Funded