During July we held the third in our Question Time series of discussion events for doctoral and early career researchers. Aimed at those with little or no experience, it provided an introduction to applying for funding to support research and researchers’ careers.
See the links at the end of this article for further information and useful resources
Nicola Woodroofe opened the session, and emphasised the value of gaining small amounts funding such as travel grants – these are the first steps in terms of building a track record on your CV, going for the first postdoc position or applying for your first grant. It shows you have bought into the process of applying for funding, and have been successful.
Abbey Thorpe (doctoral researcher in BMRC) then gave some advice based on her experience of successfully applying for 2 travel grants which enabled her to attend overseas conferences:
- Finding opportunities: apply for membership of societies – as many as possible, and early on as many require at least 1 year’s membership before you can apply for funding. Don’t just look at the large, well known societies – smaller charitable organisations often have funding available. Also, check if the conference itself has travel grants available.
- Timing: apply for travel/ conference funding in good time – organisations often have only 2 rounds of funding per year.
- Seek support: talk to your supervisors and heads of research about relevant societies and opportunities. Discuss your application with your supervisor, as they will be able to provide advice on content (and many application forms will require your supervisor’s signature).
- Share information: pass on to colleagues any opportunities you become aware of.
The application process varies according to the organisation, but as a minimum most will ask you to provide the aims of your research, abstracts for your poster or presentation, and a breakdown of costs. Some funders will give priority to oral presentations over posters.
Some will ask for a description of what you will get out of the conference. You need to make it relevant to the society’s aims – highlight the relevant aspects, and list the other professional development skills you will gain such as networking, new collaborations, and attending workshops.
It is likely that any grant will only cover part of the costs, so you have to ensure that your faculty will pay the balance. You will need to state other sources of funding on the application.
After the conference, you will probably be asked to provide a short report that the society can use for publicity. This also looks great on your cv, and shows to potential employers that you’ve been able to attract funding through a competitive process.
Sarah Johnson-Mitchell from the Research Support Team (RST) then gave an overview of the service that the RST provides to research staff at SHU. The RST supports academic staff with research funding applications from finding initial opportunities through to submission, and contracting of awarded bids. The team has particular expertise in European funding, Research Councils, charities, health funding and other regulated funders. The team have produced a number of funding guides for staff, which may also be of interest to doctoral researchers (see link at end).
Questions:
I’m finishing my PhD in the next 3 months. I’m then not a student, but not a member of staff either. How do you apply for research funding when you’re not affiliated to a University?
It’s important to maintain a good relationship with your director of studies – they will have continuous access to information and can support you with applications.
Most research funders will require you to be affiliated to an organisation in order to apply. At the postdoctoral level, the general expectation is you would be a named researcher on an application submitted with a more experienced PI – and as the PI would be SHU staff, the Research Support Team in RIO would support it.
I’m looking for postdoctoral positions. How would I apply for a small grant to continue my PhD research? Assuming that an application for a small grant is more likely to be successful at my current stage, how could I go about getting match funding to make up the shortfall to enable full-time research?
The first step is to find suitable opportunities. A lot of funders operate a top-down approach, in that they say what themes they want to fund.
Sometimes the funding doesn’t cover the full cost, and the Research Centre will make up the balance locally. You may also be able to secure additional funding from organisations who will derive strategic benefit from the research.
Look out for small pilot grants – around £40k – which would enable a 6-month research project to be carried out, generating data which can be built into a full grant application.
What makes a successful grant application?
A very important step is to find, and match, the funder’s criteria. Make sure the application fits within the funder’s scheme.
Even for internal funding, people will be looking for ‘additionality’ – i.e. what difference the funding will make (outputs, networks, collaborations, etc.)
But it is important to make sure your plans are achievable – don’t be too ambitious and not be able to deliver.
Will “headline” research and studies that generate impactful statements typically take precedence for funding over methodological research and/or research with the primary aim of making future research in its field better?
It is always important to convey the impact of the work, even in small grant applications. A methodological study will still have impact, and you need to get this across to reviewers.
The panel will not necessarily be experts in your area – there will be a range of people reviewing it. Everyone needs to be able to understand your abstract, so it’s important to explain what you do in an accessible way.
You need to consider the funder’s objectives – charities and smaller foundations still foster the need for academic research as well as applied. Some charities may have specific aims that are not necessarily focussed on your subject area, but which could still support your research, e.g. gender-related.
I’m nearing completion of my PhD, is there funding for creating articles based on my thesis?
Generally, there is little funding available for students in this area. Some subject areas may have organisations which facilitate writing retreats – e.g. NARTY for Business Schools.
Universities are generally supportive of academics writing up publications, especially as they can contribute to the REF. The strength of an individual’s publication record is often taken into consideration when recruiting new lecturers, and you can ask at interview whether you will get time to write up research outputs.
Does a postdoctoral position have to be on the same area as the PhD?
No, you can draw a line under it to some extent. Sometimes you want to carry on in the area, but you have to go where the funding is. Ensure you can articulate your skills, techniques, methodologies etc. and how these apply to your next postdoc position.
Research heads are looking for someone who is independent (with some input), has strong research skills from their PhD, and who will generate written outputs and income – which is why it’s good for your cv to show that you have applied successfully for travel grants etc.
Many thanks to all those who attended and contributed, and to our panel:
- Mrs Sarah Johnson-Mitchell – member of SHU’s Research Support Team, with particular expertise in European funding
- Dr Nicola Palmer – Head of Doctoral Training (SHU Doctoral School) and Head of Research Programmes in SBS
- Ms Abbey Thorpe – a 3rd year PhD student in Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre (BMRC) with experience of successfully applying for travel grants
- Professor Nicola Woodroofe – Head of BMRC, active researcher and doctoral supervisor, and member of the Dpahne Jackson Trust grant review panel
Some useful information and resources
Research Professional – a comprehensive database of funding opportunities, as well as research and funding news. SHU has an institutional subscription; staff and PGRs can gain access by registering with their University email address. https://www.researchprofessional.com
Learned Societies – offer a range of funding, including for travel and public engagement. You may have to become a member of the society in order to apply.
The British Academy has a Directory of Subject Associations and Learned Societies in the Humanities and Social Sciences http://www.britac.ac.uk/links/uksahss.cfm.
Wikipedia contains lists of societies by country, although this is not exhaustive https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_learned_societies
Charities and trusts (local and national) – may offer grants which support their charitable aims.
The Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding is a database of postgraduate funding from alternative sources, especially charities. You can register for an account using your University email address. https://www.postgraduate-funding.com/
Conference organisers – many conferences will offer travel grants to presenters, and it is worth enquiring whether funding is available
SHU’s Research Support Team have produced a number of funding guides, including specific guides aimed at early career researchers and female researchers, and a good practice guide to applications. The guides are available on the staff intranet, and doctoral students can request copies by emailing doctoralschool@shu.ac.uk
For further information and guidance, you may also like to look at the ‘Funding your research’ module in the Professional Skills for Research Leaders online course. https://shardprogramme.wordpress.com/shard/skills/