As a PhD researcher you should prepare yourself before applying for Funding
The only way to improve your success rates in procuring grants for your research projects is to understand the system and write a better grants proposal.
Actors and actions
Grant designers or donors, grant applicants, grant reviewers, institutions that host these actors and processes that govern their actions.
What are the aspirations of a researcher ?
- Build a research career, publish in high-impact journals.
- Deepen understanding in your field of expertise; solve difficult problems.
- Build a great lab; mobilize major grants for infrastructure.
- Be an excellent teacher.
- Solve a few socially relevant problems.
- Design effective science and technology policies for your country.
Develop your research idea folder
- Broad of the context
- Outline of the content should be on 1-2 pages.
- Write about the Significant issue about the work and with the critical knowledge gap.
- About your novelty approach.
- Estimation of the time period and money to implement the research work.
- An iterative process to build a robust pipeline of 5-7 days.
Feature of the research ecosystem to get funding
- There are more institutions that are innovative and dynamic and that offer funding and outstanding infrastructure for both research and learning.
- The creation of new technologies is speeding up every day, especially in the rapidly developing sectors of artificial intelligence and data systems. In the current system, there are also many more articles and several patents available. It makes feasible fresh research routes that weren’t previously open.
- There are numerous new avenues for financial options to support young scientists such as young investigator programmes, start-ups, and incubation pathways.
- There are several thorough websites where you may receive numerous new alerts about funding opportunities, making it simple to select a research path.
Understanding a funding agency
First understand funding agency with answer for some question
- Who has the funds?
Government funding agencies, university, industry, and professional groups offer larger sums of money for research, while philanthropic organizations provide smaller sums.
- What does it fund?
The criteria for applying for funds can be determined by looking at the website’s details (vision, mission, agenda). Even if the fund costs slightly less than what you are interested in, you should still apply because there is a chance that you will be approved for funding if the donor is reputable or they impressed your research proposal.
- How does it fund?
The types of funding mechanisms include fellowships, project funding, and international cooperation. The financial information varies for each project.
- When is it funded?
- Whom does it fund?
- What does it fund?
There is always a funding cycle.Some organizations offer grants on a regular basis, while others only do so occasionally, such as once every two years or once every eight months.
And finally,
- What is the structure of the fund?
Structure is crucial when considering financial opportunities. It may or may not be adaptable to your research strategy.
Required content in the proposal resume
- Name, contact details, and social media links
- Education (starting with highest degree), academic (highlights).
- Experience and publications(highlights).
- Languages and digital skills.
- Current professional interests.
- Hobbies.
- Annexes.
- Publications
- Media and public outreach.
- References.
While applying for funding, your CV should mainly highlight your social media links because it’s known to where you learn through and can communicate research ideas.If you already publish many papers, you can highlight the number of publications and experience.
How do you Choose your funders and funding schemes
Phase 1
Examine the annual report and bulletins on the agency website, then investigate the themes that are likely to receive funds. Finally, determine whether the schemes offered on the website are pertinent to your interests.
Select the grants that are best suited for your research procedure, and then verify the programme eligibility. Next, select your ideas from the folder of research ideas.
Phase 2
Create a mind map of your research process using the funding you have access to, and then develop a proposal format using the evaluation criteria and procedure.
Phase 3
- Create a proposal with a specific goal and a persuading strategy.
- The methodology ought to be apparent from the outset to the conclusion.
- Lastly, make plans for conveying the outcome.
- The research should be given a thorough title, and a good abstract should win the grant
Phase 4
The most crucial factor is the budget.
Making a budget demonstrates your capacity to put it into action. Estimate the costs of personnel, documentation, and outreach. Create an operational value for your financial discipline, and then add overhead expenses in accordance with donor and institution standards. Verify the details of your proposal last.