Dare to Make an Impact

Dare to make an

IMPACT A Guide to Growing Your Research Career at FAU

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Dear Faculty, Welcome to Florida Atlantic University. We applaud your decision to pursue an academic career and share your enthusiasm that great things can arise out of research and creative scholarship.

We recognize that your lives as faculty are busy. You juggle teaching, mentoring, service and research and often wonder how to accomplish it all.

We also recognize that it can be confusing and intimidating to navigate and understand all of the different administrative processes that are required of you as a researcher. The Office of Research Development is here to help. We help faculty find research funding, building university-wide teams and strengthening grant proposals, as well as navigating the complexity of grant administration.

Please know that we are here to support you. We want you to succeed. As part of our commitment to your growth as a researcher, we hope you will enjoy this book on how to launch (or re-activate) your research career at FAU. Within the book, you will find best practices from knowledgeable sources like researchers, program officers and administrators, to help position you for tenure, grant awards and a tremendous sense of accomplishment in your research career. We look forward to working with you!

– The FAU Research Development Team

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Table o Co

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f ntents 1. Define Your Niche

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2. Develop a Plan

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3. Identify Grants and Awards

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4. Develop a Writing Routine

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5. Grow Your Network for Grant Success

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6. Join a Group or Align with a Pillar

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7. Create a Mentoring Circle

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8. Cultivate Your Advisors

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9. Engage in Peer Review

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10. Persist and Resubmit

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1. Define Your Niche It’s easy to develop a great idea. We’ve all had flashes of brilliance about how to save the world, or to even solve the most obscure problem. But if you don’t have a compelling, novel idea that will advance your field forward, you need to think again.

So, how do you find this elusive niche?

Examine your passions Choose a topic that you find interesting. This is a common theme in career development folklore, but it’s worth repeating. There’s a reason you chose to pursue a doctorate in your field, and part of that reason is that you could envision yourself pursuing time examining a unique question. If you don’t find your research question intriguing, you won’t enjoy it, and you won’t be willing to put in the time it takes to craft a strong grant proposal.

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If you aren’t interested in the project, it is likely to show in your proposal, and it will be difficult to get funded. You may also be one of those people who are multi-passionate or intrigued by multiple topics. Perhaps you don’t want to choose just one area of research.

While that’s fine, you still need to find the common thread that cohesively unites your field of inquiry. For example, many bioengineers seek to improve multiple health conditions by developing expertise in a core methodology. A scientist may advance knowledge on epilepsy, stroke and traumatic brain injury, but do so through his signature research in bioinformatics. This maximizes the scientist’s impact in multiple areas of interest through a unique niche or expertise.

Determine if your idea is original No matter how novel your research idea may sound to you, other groups may already have been working on the same topic for some time – or surprisingly, some important answers to your research question may have already been published. Be “lovingly ruthless” as you assess the novelty of your own idea. Make sure its truly unique. The goal is to make sure you have the best proposal possible to compete in a pool of other, equally fabulous ideas. This works the other way, too. Do not assume that your question has already been investigated. Do your research before you settle on a niche.

Here’s how: Investigate Look at who and what got funded in the past. Ask mentors, colleagues or the Office of Research Development to point you in the direction of FAU funded researchers and their topics. This gives you a sense of how wide or narrow your field is. It also gives you a list of possible collaborators or colleagues who may be willing to share their successful applications with you, giving you appropriate scope and depth of a successful research plan.

Review Review grant agency websites. These can give you a critical sense of what has been successful. Agencies typically list previous award recipients and sometimes abstracts online. This list is critical as it shows the agency’s interest (or lack thereof) in supporting your area of research.

For NIH grants, the most comprehensive and centralized resources are NIH RePORTER and Matchmaker. NSF’s website is one of the best sources; they list previously funded projects and interactive maps of funding by region and by scientific directorate.

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Search Perform an extensive literature search. Common sources are PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, etc., but choose the venue appropriate for your discipline. Seek help from your University librarian – they are a great resource. Keep in mind that even if you don’t find any publications related to your idea, that doesn’t mean it’s not currently being investigated. For example, if you’re a clinical researcher, certain clinical studies that are still in process must be listed on ClinicalTrials.gov; this gives you a glimpse into how much or little is being studied in your area of consideration.

Align Another important consideration is to determine if your area of interest is responsive to, and aligned with, a sponsor’s mission. To do so, carefully look for mission statement and funding priorities to ensure your idea is a good fit.

Here are some suggestions: • NIH: Review for list of institute-specific strategic plans.

• NSF: Look at their “Big Ideas” page or explore their directorates’ overviews.

• NEH: Review their strategic plan for specific objectives and strategies to guide your proposal.

• HRSA Strategic Plan: Explore their top five goals and program overviews.

• CDMRP Research Programs: Click through their currently-funded research programs.

Find the Intersection Your niche lives at the intersection – intersection of

1. your interests 2. the gaps in the literature 3. a sponsor’s priorities * Don’t forget: Never pursue a niche that you’re not passionate about.

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2. Develop a Plan Set aside some time to develop a personal strategic plan for the next few years to secure research funding. Creating a strategic plan to guide you makes finding and competing for funding less overwhelming, helps use time more efficiently, and enables the development of a coordinated research agenda. After all, your goal is not to win just one grant, but a series of grants over time that will help support your line of scholarship as you progress in your academic career. In fact, many of the things you’ll need to do to plan your research proposals can be accomplished in parallel with other responsibilities.

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Tip

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Tip Tip

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Here are Some Tips: Tip 1. Start small and early. As a postdoc or a new faculty member,

you are often tempted to try to “land a big grant” quickly — even in the absence of a track record. You would be better served securing a series of small grants first. Given that grant funding today is more difficult to obtain than ever before, starting early in your career and capitalizing on the advantages of your early-career status is key. Grant programs specifically aimed at new faculty members and postdocs provide the highest chances for success. Those grant programs typically do not require significant preliminary data. Instead, funding decisions rely most heavily on the promise and potential of a candidate — your training to date, your mentors and your topic’s importance.

Another key advantage of early-career grant programs: You are competing against a smaller pool of people, instead of regular grant programs where you are competing with a large pool of midcareer and senior investigators with established track records. Remember that your eligibility for early-career grants will expire in a few years, so seize the opportunity while it lasts.

Tip 2. Dream big. Early on in your career it’s critical to envision your

ultimate large grant. Typically a major grant (for example, an NIH R01 10

grant) would include five aims. Once you’ve envisioned your big grant, your next steps become clear: Bit-by-bit, bite off small chunks of that larger project by writing small grants designed to support one or more of your five specific aims. A series of small awards will not definitively achieve your aims, but they will show that each of your aims is feasible and achievable. This approach is critical, as grant review panels often see a large grant as the culmination of a growing body of work progressing from modest seed grants to larger awards, in a cumulative fashion.

Tip 3. Analyze strengths and weaknesses. Ask yourself (or an

objective colleague) to identify areas of research strength, and how to highlight them? Also identify your areas of weakness. This could be a small publication record, limited statistical skills, or lack of a collaborator or a community resource. If you are deficient in some areas, these are things that may take a year or two to develop, and must be tackled first, or in parallel, by pursuing smaller pots of grant funding.

Likewise, examine your time commitments. Do you have a heavy teaching load that limits your ability to write grant proposals? Start small. Plan to join an existing team or do a smaller pilot study, or write manuscripts from your doctoral data collection, rather than jumping into a large grant writing venture. Conversely, if you have a great start-up package and all the equipment you need, and some protected time to do research, you may be itching to write an R01 proposal. If so, go for it.

Analyze your institutional resources. Is there a small pool of funded mentors in your area of interest? Then you may be better off pursuing a different mechanism than one that requires substantial mentoring and training (such as the NIH K Award). Is there a large pool of undergraduates? Then perhaps you should pursue funding that blends research with education. Your available resources will dictate what you are able to pursue, so analyze these well. Speak with knowledgeable staff in the Division of Research or senior colleagues within your Department of College.

Tip 4. Seek Feedback. Meet periodically with your department chair or research dean. Ask if you are expected to secure external funding early in your career, or if publications are more important? How is funding counted in the promotion and tenure process in your department?

Are certain types of grants or funders more highly valued than others?

Revise your strategic plan based on unexpected developments, departmental feedback or changes in your interests.

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3. Identify Grants and Awards Selecting the appropriate funding mechanism As an individual researcher, you are in the best position to select the funding opportunities most relevant to your career objectives. Only you know the unique nuances of your field. Therefore, take the time to develop your own process for searching and organizing research funding opportunities. You’ll want to narrow down your target agencies (e.g., NIH, NSF, DoE, etc.) and mechanism (career development, pilot grant, research project, etc.). Once you have cultivated a small collection of potential grant opportunities, reach out to a qualified colleague, mentor or staff person to help you sift through the appropriate funding opportunity for you.

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So, where to start?

Some of you are eager to jump right in and apply for the biggest grant you can find. However, unless you had a rare doctoral and postdoctoral career where you published extensively and studied under a Nobel Laureate, this is not the best way to start. A measured approach will serve most faculty better in the long run, keeping you focused and motivated as you pursue your long-term research goals.

Institutional Funding Start small and work up from there. Most institutions have internal or “seed funding.” This can be your startup package, funds maintained by the Division of Research, or other sources. At FAU, most seed funding emanates from the Research Pillars. Certain Colleges also have seed funding to stimulate external funding for their faculty. Apply for these smaller pots of money to establish pilot data and test proof of concept for larger grant proposals.

Career Development Awards Many federal agencies have targeted initiatives for early career investigators. Some, such as NIH K awards, may require you to have a funded mentor, while others do not. Regardless, most of these mechanisms are sensitive to any limitations you have as a new faculty member, and won’t expect the same amount of publications and productivity as a later stage investigator. Take advantage of these opportunities! Career Development Awards offer you another opportunity for incremental funding to build your research program and add needed research skills. Keep in mind that many career development awards require you take a different approach than the standard narrowlydefined research proposal. You must (gasp!) envision your future. In other words, where do you see yourself in five or ten years? What do you want to be known for one day when you’re accepting the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize?

Here are some examples of career development awards: • • • • •

National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award National Institutes of Health (NIH) K Awards Department of Energy Early Career Research Program American Cancer Society Research Scholar Award The National Academies of Sciences (NAS) Gulf Research Program Early Career Fellowship 13

Funding from Federal Agencies Funding from federal agencies is often seen as the holy grail of research funding. Faculty are able to secure larger amounts and often garner more prestige for these awards compared to foundation and internal awards. However, federal funding is very competitive, so make sure you have built a solid research history and publication record from smaller sources of funding before pursuing federal funding.

Funding from Foundations Funding from foundations may serve as a source of pilot funding or replace traditional federal funding. It is particularly important when seeking foundation funding to understand the mission and agenda of that foundation. Some foundations have very narrow interest or are managed by a small board or family structure. In these cases, you often must be invited to submit a proposal or have a “connection.”

Other foundations function much like federal grant agencies and have competitive funding opportunities. Note: At FAU, access to support related to foundation funding is managed through two separate but related entities: Sponsored Programs and University Advancement.

Contact your college’s research administrator or dean if you need guidance in navigating foundation funding.

In the meantime, check out these resources for foundation funding: • Grant Forward • FAU Foundation Relations

Funding in the Humanities Research funding of interest to university faculty in the humanities is most often focused on scholarly research, which differs, in most cases, from funding for the technical disciplines and the social and behavioral sciences. There is also a distinction between funding for institutions with a humanities-related mission focus (museums or other cultural institutions), and programs that seek funding to promote the humanities to a wide public audience or advance it through teacher training (like funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities [NEH]) or the U.S. Department of Education (DoED). Funding for scholarly research in the humanities is distributed widely across a vast number of institutions such as museums, libraries, collections, centers, archives, associations, endowed programs and institutes. Note: some humanities grants are paid directly to individuals while others disburse funds to the institution; review the funding announcement carefully for these distinctions.

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Resources: • • • • •

National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) U.S. Department of Education Institute of Museum and Library Services Department of State (Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs) *Funds scholarly research through the Fulbright Program.

• How to Get a Grant from NEH • How to Write Effective Proposals in Humanities, Susan Stanford Friedman, Department of English, University of Wisconsin-Madison • Funding Your Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences: A Practical Guide to Grant and Fellowship Proposals, Routledge Press, 2017.

Funding from State Agencies The State of Florida funds research and programs to address priority areas that affect the health and wellbeing of Floridians. Many of these grants enable you to leverage state resources to ultimately secure larger federal funding. However, state grants can sometimes be difficult to locate on agency websites. Contact the Office of Research Development if you need help.

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Florida Department of Health Florida Department of Cultural Affairs Florida Department of Transportation My Florida Click on “Search Advertisements” and search by agency.

If you can’t narrow down by agency, then narrow down by “Advertisement Type” (e.g., “Grant Opportunities”). These searche may yield many results, but will allow you to cast a wider net for State of Florida grant opportunities.

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Finding Funding: Search Engines and Sites Search engines can be a wonderful resource for two reasons: 1) you can tailor a search to your unique interests, expertise and stage of career (among other criteria) and 2) you can have funding opportunities delivered to your inbox, rather than having to search for them. A few common search engines are:

• Grant Forward

Grant Forward is a search engine updated daily to include funding opportunities from a variety of federal and private sources. Login from FAU the first time to create and verify your account – then you can access the site from anywhere.

• Grants.gov:

This database centralizes funding announcements for all federal grant-making agencies. You can easily conduct simple or advanced searches and get personalized emails recommending opportunities related to your research.

• Web of Science:

FAU’s edition of web of science (WoS) includes databases in science, social sciences and arts and humanities. You can easily conduct traditional searches across the databases or find articles that cite a previously published work. The beauty of WoS is that it gives you a historical perspective of who has funded your peers’ research, allowing you to plan a path forward for your own grants.

WoS also allows you to find more obscure funding sources than typical federal or state agencies.

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4. Develop a Writing Routine Develop a writing routine so that writing becomes second nature to you.

Throughout your career, you may juggle writing journal publications, grant proposals, books and lesson plans. Having a built-in writing routine will carry you a long way in your academic career. Here are some tips to help you do it:

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1. Carve out Time.

It is important to set aside a specific time to write. Try to adopt a make-time mindset rather than a find-time mindset, and remember that writing needs to be a priority if you’re going to climb the ladder to academic success. Experts recommend writing for at least 30 minutes each day, and scheduling in specific projects for specific weeks in your calendar as if they were non-negotiable meetings.

2. Start Small.

If a writing project seemsdaunting, break it down into manageable tasks. For example, a grant proposal that you’ve never written before may seem insurmountable until you write the first section. Don’t feel bad about starting with the easiest bit of the project, either – sometimes just getting started is the best thing you can do.

3. Convey Enthusiasm.

Research can becomplex, but it doesn’t have to be boring. Think about your grant writing like the first few lines of a lengthy novel. Readers make a decision instantly about putting the book down or continuing to read on based on those first few engaging lines. The same applies to your grant proposal, especially the one-page specific aims or project summary statements that precede a typical grant proposal. Get creative and craft sentences that make reviewers want to read further.

4. Join a Writing Group.

This can be as informal as gathering a few colleagues together once a week for a set time to write. Take advantage of the like-minded goals and interests of your peers and gather their input on your work as you offer feedback on theirs. You’ll not only improve the quality and quantity of your writing, but you’ll strengthen the community of your colleagues and create a supportive network of scientists.

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5. Stick to the Schedule.

We all hit writer’s block and lose motivation at some point, but it is vital to keep pushing through these walls. Even if you throw out half of what you write later, you are still making progress because writing always involves trial and error. Figure out what motivates you, remind yourself of your goals, and push through the wall.

6. Create an inviting Workspace.

If your desk is cluttered with other projects and to-do lists, it will distract you every time you look away from the computer. When your writing time comes, remove everything distracting or unnecessary from your desk and turn off your phone and email alerts so that your mind and eyes don’t wander.

7. Experiment with Routine.

If it feels daunting to embark on a new long-term writing schedule, try a week-long experiment and adjust from there. Write a little bit every day, Monday through Friday, then step back and readjust. Do you work better in short bursts every day, or do you need long blocks of time? Are you more focused with a cup of coffee and a colleague by your side, or do you need complete silence and solitude? Try out a few writing environments to determine what best prompts your productivity.

Although you may have been writing your whole life as a student and scholar, writing requires a whole new level of discipline when it is not assigned as homework. Don’t be discouraged if it takes you some time to learn the ropes of your own writing regimen; each scholar is different and with a little experimentation and a lot of discipline, you’ll be churning out your best writing in no time.

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5. Grow Your Network for Grant Success Science is evolving. In today’s competitive research environment, funding agencies want to see researchers collaborate and conduct team science. Therefore, the importance of growing your scientific and scholarly network—with colleagues in and outside of your discipline – cannot be overstated. Junior faculty and seasoned faculty alike need to master the subtle art of strategic networking.

Three Reasons Why You Should Network: 1. Fresh Ideas. Research and inquiry depends on a cross pollination

of ideas and perspectives. Because real-world solutions are often multidisciplinary, having multiple perspectives represented in your research will make you more appealing to funders. Whether you enter into formal collaborative research or just bounce ideas around over a cup of coffee, networking is sure to widen your perspectives and freshen up your research, instantly making you more marketable.

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2. Recognition by Peers. If you’re a highly motivated young scholar, you may have been a legend in your town or university. Now that you’re embarking on the academic tenure track, how many people know you beyond those boundaries? Whether you’re looking to increase your Google Scholar index or get your first big grant, you need other scientists nationwide to remember your name (and your work). Sharing your research through networking and social media has the added bonus of the citation benefit – as your name and work reach new eyes, citations are likely to increase.

3. Career Growth. The old adage is still true: “It’s not just what you

know, but who you know.” Coveted job offers, speaking engagements, and prestigious awards still come from primarily from referrals, so it is important to start establishing connections early on in your career.

One study shows that 85 percent of all jobs are filled as a result of networking. Yes, an impressive CV is important, but your connections will have far more sway in getting you attention.

How to Start Networking Research Profile Sites: There are plenty of research profile sites

that allow you to network from the safety of your own computer.

LinkedIn is a great place to start for any professional, whereas Mendeley and Research Gate are specialized resources for scientists.

Don’t discount the resources your own university offers either – FAU Libraries’ Scholarly Communication Program offers invaluable support and guidance for important topics related to research and expanding your network.

Social Media: You may never have guessed that a social media

presence could enhance your scholarly reputation, but studies are showing that sharing articles and scholarly updates on Facebook and Twitter can increase article views and, eventually, citations. Twitter is the most popular among scientists, although Instagram is proving itself to be a promising platform for communicating research through captivating images that just may end up going viral. For some inspiration, check out the Top 10 Scientists on Twitter, or read about how one of FAU’s own, Hunter Hines, uses Instagram to share the wonder of microbiology with his thousands of followers.

Conferences and Seminars: Of course, online networking can only go so far; face-to-face interaction is the way to build lasting

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relationships. While presenting your research to peers is an effective way of getting your name and work known, mingling with other scholars in between conference sessions can be equally effective.

However, don’t just gravitate toward those you already know or who are similar to you, but capitalize on the opportunity to expand your network and your perspective.

Follow-Ups: This may be the Golden Rule of networking: Always

follow up. Whether you meet professional contacts at a conference or connect via a colleague, send a follow-up email letting them know that you really meant it when you said you wanted to stay in touch. Bonus points: If you find something that links to their interests and research, pass it along and say “I saw this and thought of you.”

* Remember, it’s important to not only create these important connections,

but to maintain them. You don’t have to be on every social media platform or attend every top conference. Choose a method of interaction that feels authentic to you, and that you can maintain without feeling frazzled.

The goal is to enjoy the process of learning about (and from) others while building the scientific career of your dreams.

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6. Join a Group or Align with a Pillar There are a growing number of funding opportunities for projects that are multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, or transdisciplinary in nature. To achieve efficiency, reduce duplication, and speed up results, funders are shifting their focus from individuals to research teams. Thus, new faculty should consider joining institutional research interest groups or FAU’s Pillars (below), to help you find like-minded colleagues, identify mentors, and provide a framework for collaborative research proposals.

These groups are often surrogates for collaborations and partnerships across university colleges, departments, and disciplines, as well as multiinstitutional initiatives at the regional or national level.

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FAU Research Pillars: Institute for Human Health and Disease Intervention (I-Health) I-Health’s mission is to achieve comprehensive health across the lifespan through patient-centered research, education, and novel intervention programs. I-Health leads efforts to develop interdisciplinary research by combining expertise across many FAU centers and colleges as well as forging strategic health care and research partnerships in the region.

FAU Brain Institute (I-Brain) I-Brain’s mission is to stimulate advanced neuroscience research, promote superior neuroscience education, facilitate the translation of research discoveries for the benefit of society, and enhance public understanding of the many dimensions of brain research and its benefits. FAU’s Brain Institute reflects the U.S. Brain Initiative, a top national research priority.

Sensing and Smart Systems (I-SENSE) I-SENSE’s mission is to catalyze exploration and discovery at the confluence of sensing, smart systems, and critical application areas. The Institute seeks to harness advancements in computing, communication, and sensing to make it possible to embed tiny wireless sensors in homes, yards, shoes and other everyday items.

FAU Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute (HBOI) FAU HBOI’s mission is to translate marine science in order to provide solutions that improve economies and quality of life for coastal communities, through research and outreach programs.

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7. Create a Mentoring Circle A key factor in developing a vision of your future career trajectory will be the advice of your mentor(s). These may be well-funded faculty in your department, colleagues from other departments, former dissertation advisors, staff in your research development office, or colleagues from other institutions.

If you do not have a mentor in your department, ask the chair to assign you one. It is also usually considered acceptable to seek out your own mentor. Many early career academics also assemble a mentorship team, in which each member provudes guidance on different career facets (like a teaching mentor, a research mentor, a work-life mentor). Consider approaching people at other institutions as well as your own.

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8. Cultivate Your Advisors At FAU, you are supported by a diverse team of personnel who have a vested interest in helping you to succeed. Many key resources are available to support your research, so plan time to meet pertinent staff who can help you meet your goals.

Research Leadership: Each college, pillar, and/or research unit

at FAU has a research leader (like an associate dean of research). This faculty member advises DoR and serves as a liaison to his or her faculty about research resources.

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FAU Library Resources: • Scholarly Communications The FAU Libraries’ Scholarly Communication Program provides support to the FAU community by addressing the wide range of issues related to creating, evaluating, disseminating and preserving the outputs of research and scholarship.

• Data Management Resources The FAU Libraries Data Management webpage is intended to be an education resource for FAU faculty and students on data management plans including data management resources and tools.

• Web of Science WebExplore is the world’s leading citation database with multidisciplinary coverage of more than 10,000 high-impact journals in the sciences, social sciences and arts and humanities.

Division of Research The FAU Division of Research is a hub of administrative and programmatic services to support you in carrying out your research. We get it. It can be confusing to figure out who does what, where they’re located, and how to get access to these services. If you are new to FAU, or just haven’t figured out which office to contact, we’re here to help.

Research Development (proposaldevelopment@fau.edu) can help point you in the right direction.

Need a biostatistician, support for human studies, access to imaging resources, or access to a unique set of instrumentation? We’ll point you to the right Core Facility and contact person. Likewise, if you need to submit a grant proposal, get approval for your human or animal study, file an invention disclosure or patent, or learn to market your research like a rock star, we can tell you who to see.

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9. Engage in Peer Review Just as you need to network within your research community, you also need to get to know and understand your funding community. It is critically important that you study the mission, culture and procedures of agencies and foundations likely to fund your research. The common term used to describe how grant agencies review and select research proposals for funding is “peer review.” Once you’ve mastered the peer review process, you unlock the door to your funding future.

Call or Visit a Program Officer (PO) Review processes vary by agency. Some are highly transparent while some are closely guarded with decisions made by program officials.

Some program officials are gatekeepers with very little influence on the funding decision. Others are actively involved in the decision process.

What does this mean for you?

Get to know your PO before you submit a grant proposal. Whenever you are in doubt about your eligibility as an investigator or your 28

project’s suitability for funding by a sponsor, do not hesitate to contact them. Remember, program officials are there to help you. You can generally find your PO’s contact information on an agency’s website, but networking at scientific conferences is productive, too. Many POs attend conferences relevant to the research they support and this is an excellent opportunity to meet them casually to discuss your research.

Serve as a Peer Reviewer Having a seat at the table is an invaluable opportunity in your research career. As a peer reviewer, you have an insider’s view to “what reviewers look for” when reviewing and ranking dozens (or hundreds) of research proposals. This unique perspective allows you to target your proposal with specific language and formatting to catch the eye of the reviewer.

You also get a unique opportunity to shape the future of your scientific field by deciding who gets funded. Equally as important, you now have access to a unique club where your name is more likely to be recognized when it’s your turn to be reviewed.

Here are some ways to sign up as a peer reviewer: NIH Early Career Reviewer Program NIH Reviewer Program (General) National Science Foundation National Endowment for the Humanities: Note: If you have applied

for an NEH grant before, or served on an NEH panel, you are already in the NEH electronic grants management system (eGMS) and do not need to register.

Target the Appropriate Study Section When it comes to scientific review, make sure you target the right study section or review panel. After you’ve taken months or longer to craft a carefully worded, rigorous proposal, take the extra step to make sure it gets in the right reviewers’ hands. Nothing is more frustrating than getting the outcome of your proposal review, and reading comments that are off target because the reviewers simply don’t get your science.

Although many agencies will screen your proposal to identify the most appropriate review section, you also have the opportunity to guide the direction of your review by requesting a review panel with the most appropriate scientific expertise to understand (and appreciate) your work.

Similarly, know your reviewers. Many federal sponsors have a duty to be transparent, and will post their reviewers’ names on their website 29

Tip: You should be able to recognize some names of people you have cited during your doctoral studies or early career. This will help you pinpoint if you’re targeting the right study section within your granting agency.

Knowing your reviewers’ background and expertise will also help you highlight or enhance certain aspects of your proposal to capture their attention. Does one of the reviewers cite a particular researcher frequently? What does he/she find fascinating about this particular investigator (writing style, body of work, etc.) that you can learn from?

Adding this extra layer of research to your grant writing preparation can set you apart from others.

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10. Persist and Resubmit As an academic researcher, you are likely used to being tops in everything. You may have been top of your graduating class from preschool through college, or may have won dozens of scholarships based on your writing. Grant writing is different.

There is only so much money to go around, and way more people seeking that small pool of money. So, don’t expect to get funded on your first submission. Re-submission is not failure, it’s actually normal.

Also, those who submit more frequently, get funded. So make sure you post this mantra on your computer screen, and read it often: Persist!

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How to come back after a rejection letter: • Carefully read the reviewers’ summary statement.

It will summarize the strengths and weaknesses of your proposal, and give you nuances of what happened during the peer review discussion. Remember, reviewer feedback may be vague or contradictory. Consult an experienced colleague or mentor to help you translate the feedback into useable advice.

• Analyze reviewer feedback with a critical eye.

Are the weaknesses minor and easily fixable? Did you get a fairly good score, but didn’t quite make the cut? Then consider resubmitting the proposal quickly. This will increase your odds of targeting the same reviewers who were receptive to your proposal.

• Don’t recycle the same flawed proposal.

In some peer review sessions (such as NIH) proposals are triaged. Those with higher scores get discussed for possible funding, while those with lower scores are “not discussed.” If your proposal is “not discussed,” don’t rush to resubmit right away. Take a step back and immerse yourself in your field for a while. Get a fresh infusion of new ideas. Get feedback from trusted advisors. This will allow you to reinvent and revise your proposal in a way far more compelling than you originally planned!

Learning the art of grant writing is an investment that will pay off. While writing grants is only one aspect of your life as a successful scholar, it is crucial if you want to forge your path and grow as a researcher. We hope that this book helps you become more confident and comfortable at launching and growing your research career, and that you feel equipped to begin crafting the academic career of your dreams, one grant proposal at a time.

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NOTES

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RESEARCH DEVELO PMENT Email: proposaldevelopment@fau.edu Web: http://fau.edu/research

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