industry & research
Expert guidance
Murdoch University’ s Karen Shaw talks grant writing, service standards with Antonia Maiolo
Dwindling research budgets and increasing pressure on academic staff to justify how they spend their funds mean securing a financial grant is more competitive than ever. Karen Shaw, director of research and development at Murdoch University, understands the often long and difficult grant writing process. She shares her advice on how to prepare a successful application.
What would be your top 10 tips for grant winning? Where possible and appropriate, contextualise your proposal
1 – show how the work would contribute to our understanding of national or international societal problems – or solve them. Seek advice from those in your broad field who have had
2 consistent success in winning grants from the funder you are targeting. Ask if you can see examples of successful proposals. The advice will hopefully confirm that your proposal is appropriate for the funding scheme and that the grant writing approach in terms of style and substance will align with the expectations of the funding body and review panel. A clear and compelling proposal is essential. Summary
3 statements need to articulate the research question and why it is so important. The body of the proposal should contain more specific details on the aims and methodology. Make sure the methodology is appropriate and feasible. Does your team have the necessary expertise and do you have proof of concept data, for example? Direct inputs of expertise from collaborators and letters offering access to equipment may be persuasive.
Find colleagues who are willing to give your proposal a
4 thorough‘ flow and sense’ check; a different set of colleagues may be required for the academic / technical content. Find an experienced external reviewer from your field who will read it with a more critical, expert eye. Make contact with colleagues in your institutional research
5 support office and take every opportunity to network with administrators from funding bodies. The former will guide you through the pre- and hopefully post-award administration. The latter may provide some insight into the idiosyncrasies of the funding review panel and advice on fundable requests( e. g. travel, teaching relief) as well as items that may be ineligible for funding( e. g. commonly used statistical packages). Some funding agencies pay close attention to the research
6 environment and are concerned about the sustainability of benefits arising from the funding. Work that is predicated on a house of cards is, therefore, unlikely to be looked on favourably. Do the benefits of the proposed work continue when the funding stops? Can you give assurances that this will happen?
Demonstrate a thorough knowledge of the field through your
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research rationale / justification sections. Don’ t be afraid to demonstrate expertise and contribution through self-citation. Indeed, it is an advantage to show that your work has been published in prestigious journals and that the proposal builds on previous success.
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A well-crafted proposal is often not enough. Track record can be important. Some funding schemes place a 40 per cent weighting on track record. If you don’ t have one, consider building one in collaboration with others before striking out on your own. Writing papers may be a better investment than time spent writing
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