- What the F?: Childcare Costs Allowed on Fellowships & Training Grants
The NIH has recognized how the high cost of childcare can create roadblocks for graduate students and postdocs on the way to completing their training. In order to help alleviate some of this burden, the agency announced that as of FY22 full time pre-doc and postdoc trainees supp...
- Sell Your Specific Aims Using the PASTOR Method
I am often struck by the similarities between selling methods and grant writing. Of course, grant writing is selling, but scientists don’t usually think of themselves as salesmen. I recently read a blog post about the PASTOR method, which was conceived by a well-known copywriter ...
- Avoiding Barriers Between Your Work and Your Reviewer
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- Significance – NIH style
The significance section of an R01 is probably the most misunderstood part of the entire NIH grant. Perhaps this should come as no surprise, as this section has been a bit of a moving target over the past several years. Another source of confusion may be that Webster’s defini...
- What the F? Reference Letter vs Letter of Support
Communicating to the reviewers your ability to succeed in science and the support you have around you to make that happen is a crucial component of a fellowship application. Often, your mentors, collaborators, or course instructors convey this via reference letters or letters of ...
- A Smorgasbord of Grant Writing Pointers with a Side of Wit
Edge blogger, Dr. Lucile Wrenshall, MD, PhD, Professor at Wright State University, has produced a prodigious series of blogs with practical and entertaining writing advice. Whether focused on your own writing, mentoring, or teaching scientific writing, it’s a treasure trove. Co...
- Your Grant as Story – the Rogue Character
Humans are wired for story. Your grant, whether you realize it or not, has a cast of characters including a hero, villain, supporting characters, plots and subplots. If you think about your grant in these terms when you write, the ideas will flow better and your proposal will be ...
- Tips for Scoring a VA Career Development Award
For those with a connection to the Veterans Health Administration, the VA CDA 2 can be a great way to propel your career. These awards are bigger than an NIH K, but come with unique requirements. Dr. Eric Tkaczyk recently received one of these grants, and he shares his tips for s...
- More Things I Wish I’d Known Before I Wrote My K
[caption id="attachment_8333" align="aligncenter" width="1100"] Many colorful letters. Useful for concepts[/caption]
Three more K awardees share the advice they wish they’d received before preparing career development awards. Writing your K? Listen up. (And read advice from prio...
- What the F? Deciding When to Submit an NRSA Fellowship
In a previous “What the F?” post, I discussed the NRSA fellowship and why you should consider writing one. The next step in the fellowship application process is to decide when to apply. The usual answer is “as soon as possible”. The NIH wants to support your training, so it ...
