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Some Insights on Successful (and Not So Successful) Research Grantsmanship : Reflections from a US Visitor

Christopher B. Barrett Cornell University (Visiting Prof, Dept. of Economics, Univ. of Melbourne) February 22, 2013 presentation Faculty of Business and Economics, University of Melbourne. Some Insights on Successful (and Not So Successful) Research Grantsmanship :

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Some Insights on Successful (and Not So Successful) Research Grantsmanship : Reflections from a US Visitor

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  1. Christopher B. BarrettCornell University(Visiting Prof, Dept. of Economics, Univ. of Melbourne)February 22, 2013 presentationFaculty of Business and Economics, University of Melbourne Some Insights on Successful (and Not So Successful) Research Grantsmanship: Reflections from a US Visitor

  2. Introduction • Why is grantsmanship important? • Resources • Research costs $. Grants are typically the main source. • Visibility • Grantsmaking organizations take a keen interest in the results of projects they fund. Built-in audience for your work and often dissemination/publicity as well. • Linkages • Reviewers/program officers can often link you to people, • groups or new work underway of which you were unaware. • Feedback • Early constructive criticism improves research quality • Success breeds success • Successful grants often bring noncompetitive follow-on $.

  3. My qualifications/ limitations • Lots of grants experience: • >60 external grant awards up to $3.6m each, total >$28m. • Most are competitive project grants from (US) NSF, USAID, US Dept. Of Agriculture, US Dept. of Energy, EC, DfID, 3ie • Career development grants (MacArthur, Pew) • Several major training grants (NSF, Rockefeller, USAID) • Competitive successes have elicited multiple – some large! – invited awards (WB, RF, Gates, Pew, USAID, FAO, USIC, etc.) • Review regularly for NSF, USAID, etc. Frequent panelist. • Helped create/run large university seed grant program • But narrow: • Empirical development/agricultural economist focused on micro and policy-related issues, mainly in Africa. • No success with ARC (n=1). • Never PI on proposals to NIH or to corporate donors.

  4. Basic process Develop idea/ prelim findings File reports on time A rough funded research project development cycle (2-24 months to award) Develop base proposal/budget Complete all project steps Search for grant sources Negotiate contract details Draft proposal/ get feedback Contact POs/ submit LOI Redraft proposal/ Submit on time Receive award/ reviews It takes TIME… both to prepare winning proposals and to do the work. Apply early and often. (worst case vs. 2nd worst case)

  5. Key principles: The 6 Rs • The ‘6 Rs’ of successful research grant proposals: • Originality • Relevance • Relationships • Results • Reading • Writing

  6. Originality • Innovative ideas • Agencies want interesting new ideas that improve a scientific field or the world… Especially for research and career development grants from scientific agencies (e.g., NSF), but even true for training grants • Key issues: • Who reviews the proposals? Establish the sort of originality they might be looking for … basic/applied. • Why is this interesting/important? • Is the contribution in theory, methods or empirical results? • If empirics, clearly specify hypotheses and explain what theory(ies) give rise to these hypotheses, how falsifiable/testable, identify prospective competing hypotheses, and make the identification strategy clear

  7. Relevance • Relevance to the sponsor agency • Different grantsmakers want different things: basic vs. applied, disciplinary vs. problem-focused, sector-specific or not, etc. Know your audience/sponsor! • This means that proposals need to be adapted from one agency to the next … straight recycling almost always fails. • Relevance to the field/broader world • Especially for government-funded research, the agency has political masters … give them the ‘broader impacts’ summary they need to justify your grant: how will your work help solve societal problems? • Is the original discovery promised worth knowing? Why?

  8. Relationships • Relationships w/program officer(s) • They don’t want to waste their time or yours. • Ask them whether your ideas have a chance. • Find out how the review process works and who makes the decisions ultimately and on what criteria. • Ask them for sample (un)successful proposals. • Ask them for feedback after a decision (esp. an adverse one). • Relationships w/other investigators • Give others constructive, timely feedback and ask for it in return. • Recognize others’ contributions … we all stand on the shoulders of giants. Crediting others in no way reduces your contributions. If anything, it enhances your credibility!

  9. Results • Agencies want some assurance a grant will pay off • Clearly articulated impact pathways • Is the research plan sound, in terms of data, methods, etc.? Why should funder believe findings will prove valid? • Is there a clear strategy for publication, uptake, etc.? • Track record of CI/PI and team • Are PIs qualified to do the work? Pay attention to the cv s! • Do PIs have a record of delivering promised results? • Especially for interdisciplinary projects, the viability of the whole is crucial to success … sell the team! • Preliminary data show the approach has promise • - Try to leverage current research to seed the next project.

  10. Reading • Read the instructions! • The program solicitation will usually bring out the key areas (incl. buzzwords!) to emphasize. • Failure to follow submission instructions precisely commonly leads to outright rejection • Read the relevant literature • - Nothing buries a proposal faster than an obvious ignorance of where the current research frontier lies. Don’t waste too much space on lit review, but be sure to cite the key seminal and current contributions on which you propose to build/improve. • Read other (un)successful proposals • If asked, colleagues and program officers will often share prior proposals related to your proposed theme. • Query program officers about their perceived weaknesses.

  11. Writing • First page/abstract is make-or-break: • This is the one thing all reviewers/panelists/POs read. POs use it to assign the proposal to reviewers. • Review panelists in major competitions handle many (often 15-50) proposals. Catch their interest right away. • Program officers and many panelists are not a specialist in your area. So make the general case clearly and concisely. • Describe the conceptual forest not the technical trees: why does this matter? What outcomes and impacts to expect? • Ask colleagues/nonspecialist friends to take 5-10 minutes to read and critique your 1st page/abstract • Be clear and concise • Focus less on the research, than on marketing the research. Persuasive writing differs subtly from scientific writing. • Rewrite and edit ruthlessly … ‘shitty first drafts’

  12. Other crucial details • Budgets • Draft a budget early, establish what is feasible and cost effective, then design accordingly. • Delicate balance b/n dangers of underbudgeting and padding • Know the matching expectations (formal and informal) • Get early input from accounting staff on budget/justification • Contracting Details If You Win • Know the intellectual property rights provisions! • Be clear about budget variance rules • Know and heed the reporting requirements • Get subawards established promptly (they take time  ) • Institutional Review Board • – Do it promptly/accurately!

  13. US opportunities for Australians • US federal government grants: • Usually restricted to US-based PIs • But lots of opportunities for subawards w/US partners • Some programs specifically aimed at international collaborations, for example, NSF’s Partnerships for International Research and Education (PIRE) or Catalysing New International Collaborations (CNIC) programs • Programs’ target dates/deadlines published far in advance. They operate on strict schedules, with very precise instructions and zero tolerance for noncompliance. So start early and pay attention to program announcement details!

  14. US opportunities for Australians • US federal government grants: • Main entry point to search for award opportunities and for most government agency applications: grants.gov

  15. US opportunities for Australians • Foundation, international agency and corporate grants: • Rarely any restrictions on the nationality of the PI or lead institution. But relationships matter, so sometimes an advantage to applying with a US partner. • Lots of opportunities … the key is comparative advantage (e.g., related to Australia, Oceania or Southeast Asia) • Often wise to approach foundations when the financial markets have been doing well (b/c law obliges them to disburse a minimum share of endowment each year) • Program officers will typically ask for a concept note and then walk you through the process if they want to proceed.

  16. Thank you Thank you for your time and attention Comments/questions?

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