Suggestions on writing strong funding applications often emphasize the significance of starting out early. This, in general, is great advice. By making a head start on your applications, you will not only have time to develop your project, but also to get feedback from multiple readers to make your application stronger. But what happens when […]
Integrating External Funding Applications into Your Graduate Career
When a student starts a program of graduate study, they usually have a general sense of what their life will look like for the following couple of years. In most cases, this happens through a timeline, generally set by the program, that is broken down by semester or year: courses to complete, qualifying exams to pass, […]
Revise and Resubmit: Demonstrating Intellectual Growth in Funding Applications
Making a second attempt at a funding competition can seem daunting, especially if you have recently learned that your application was unsuccessful. In my first post on revising and submitting an unsuccessful grant or fellowship application, I addressed the steps applicants should take after receiving a rejection letter and before starting a second attempt. In […]
Applying for External Funding as a Master’s Student
One of the most common feelings that master’s students express is frustration with not having enough grant opportunities to support their graduate education. Indeed, there are less external funding opportunities for master’s students than there are for those pursuing a Ph.D., and that number may be reduced depending on your discipline. However, there are over […]
STEM Proposals: Is the Science Sufficient?
As engineers, physicists, chemists, mathematicians, or computer scientists, we have a propensity to get caught up in our work. Because Science! When our work is rejected or criticized, we ask questions about how we can improve it. I write from experience as I type this: sometimes the critique is about the scientist as much as it […]
Introduction to GradFund Workshop: Diversity in Grant Writing
Photo credit: WOC in Tech When we see or hear the word “diversity,” many images, questions, and assumptions come to mind. One common assumption is that diversity means equal treatment of individuals or groups in spite of what makes them or their experiences different from normative or mainstream experiences. We may also assume that only […]
Telling Stories of Adversity Effectively in Funding Applications
Addressing issues of adversity–any condition that may have impacted a student’s academic trajectory–is one of the major stumbling blocks that applicants for grants and fellowships encounter when starting to draft their applications. Adversity can take on many forms, ranging from specific conditions (e.g., learning disabilities, mental health issues) to socioeconomic status (e.g., non-traditional, first-generation, veteran), […]
Writing Strategies to Help You Start and Finish Your Funding Applications – Part Three
Series Note: The following post is the third, and final, installment in the Writing Strategies to Help You Start and Finish Your Funding Applications series. Click here to read Part One and click here to read Part Two. The first post in this series focused on tips to warm up to the idea of writing. The […]
Writing Strategies to Help You Start and Finish Your Funding Applications – Part Two
Series Note: The following post is the second installment in the Writing Strategies to Help You Start and Finish Your Funding Applications series. Click here to read Part One. The first post in this series focused on tips to warm up to the idea of writing. Now that you’ve acclimatized yourself to that idea and […]
Writing Strategies to Help You Start and Finish Your Funding Applications – Part One
Every person has a distinct challenge when it comes to defining their relationship with writing. To me, it’s the beginning (i.e., starting to write) that causes the most resistance and anxiety. When I have to start writing a document, everything but writing gains a sense of urgency. The sudden desire to clean my apartment, organize […]