The project I proposed during GradFund’s Summer Mentoring Program in 2009 is not exactly the dissertation I’ll be defending this summer, but it— and the work I continued to do with GradFund over the next six years— shaped that dissertation and the course of my graduate career. Even as one of the few incoming grad […]
Keeping Your Reviewer in Mind: Merging the Worlds of the Unfamiliar with the Familiar
As graduate students, we like to stay in our cozy, academic silos. Why? Because there, we are free to use our jargon with ease, our colleagues will likely be familiar with our theoretical frameworks, and our research methods are generally accepted. But what happens when we must venture out into the world of funding agencies, where […]
GradFund: What to Expect When You Meet with Us
So you have the idea to meet with GradFund. Mayhap your advisor suggested meeting with us to “discuss your options.” You could have come across one of our various emails. It’s possible that your program requires you to participate in one of our summer mentorship programs. Or maybe you just heard from a friend or […]
Laying the Groundwork: Describing Your Preliminary Results
Hello, GradFund Readers! Whether you are a second-year PhD student preparing an NSF GRFP or an ABD (all but dissertation) PhD candidate applying for a Louis Bevier Dissertation Completion fellowship, effectively describing your preliminary research can make or break your chances of success. Today, we are going to discuss getting the most out of the […]
Reaching Out: Professional Writing and Email
Hello GradFund readers! This post will discuss the etiquette involved in professional communication. If you are anything like me, you obsess over every little detail within the simplest communications. Email drafts sit in my inbox for days, weeks, or even months and make it through several rounds of revision before being sent. What? Nobody else? […]
NSF vs. NIH: Foundational Science vs. Clinical Translation
Hello GradFund Readers! Today, we will be discussing two funders that many of you may be familiar with: The NIH and the NSF. Many research projects may fit multiple funders. This is especially true of research that may have clinical applications. Often, we fall into a sort of middle ground called translational research. Basically, researchers […]
Commitment to Community: It’s a Frame of Mind
Many fellowship and grant funders want to see a commitment to community. In fact, many different permutations of this concept exist within the graduate funding world. The AAUW wants to see a commitment to the issues facing women and girls. The Ford Foundation wants to see a commitment to diverse communities. Even the NSF and […]
Formatting: Style and Function
So… You wrote a great proposal. You’re feeling pretty good about it. Wait. What just happened? It turns out your margins were too narrow, causing it to fall out of the first round of screening. Those pesky formatting guidelines… Formatting guidelines are a big part of the port and polish on your proposal. Every funder […]
Methodologies: It’s all in the details… or not?
Hello GradFund patrons! Many funding opportunities require some sort of research proposal that includes appropriate methodologies. However, most applications impose strict page, word, or even character limits. These limits serve two purposes. First, they keep applications short enough for a reviewer to read multiple applications in one sitting. Second, they encourage clear, concise writing. This […]
ACLS/Mellon Completion Fellowship: Wrapping It Up
Hello again, GradFund Conversations readers! Today we will be spotlighting another great opportunity: the Andrew W. Mellon Completion Fellowship administered by the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), also known as the ACLS/Mellon Completion Fellowship. As the name would suggest, this fellowship is aimed at students in the social sciences and humanities who are in the […]