tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post9063870758657792613..comments2024-03-18T08:28:01.624+00:00Comments on BishopBlog: Ten things than can sink a grant proposal: Advice for a young psychologistdeevybeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15118040887173718391noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-47643219668767845682013-05-15T03:00:23.356+01:002013-05-15T03:00:23.356+01:00What about reviewers who actually probably aren...What about reviewers who actually probably aren't qualified to review your grant proposal, especially for a federal agency. I recently got an IES (U.S. Dept. of Ed) grant proposal rejected. One reviewer said there were "very large number of statistical tests" and I would not be able to reconcile those results. Actually, if s/he bothered to read the four hypotheses I clearly stated (and in boldface type), there were exactly four tests. Another reviewer asserted that missing data in my study would be a particular type and to impute (replace) it using a particular method. How exactly would s/he know before the study is conducted how much and what the nature of the missing data (e.g., missing at random, not random) would be? And this reviewer also asked for a statistical test that was completely inappropriate for my study given the sample size, power analysis, and hypotheses.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-39019167974042685862013-03-26T05:45:38.687+00:002013-03-26T05:45:38.687+00:00It's ridiculous to suggest all the people who ...It's ridiculous to suggest all the people who can write great grants and get funded are just hot air. Grant agencies aren't handing out money to fancy words with no vision behind them.<br /><br />Part of science is communicating your work effectively. You don't need big money to do that.<br /><br />Patricia Gongalhttp://www.theenglishedition.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-25204622077244234222013-03-25T11:12:44.075+00:002013-03-25T11:12:44.075+00:00Anonymous, bitter but some truth in what you say.I...Anonymous, bitter but some truth in what you say.I also think that having a good school and university on your CV helps. Not sure grant bodies asses the ideas as much as they do the person. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-33400834665834467622013-03-22T14:01:05.630+00:002013-03-22T14:01:05.630+00:00There's also a big difference between a resear...There's also a big difference between a researcher and a grant proposal scientist. The difference between them, is that the first one actually does something but lacks the money to present it to the world. The second one, well, unfortunately the world of science is full of them.<br />Just a bunch of guys who memorised a couple of fancy words, but lack the scientific vision and the ability to do something with the knowledge they acquire.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-37309611293354692022013-03-22T09:39:24.601+00:002013-03-22T09:39:24.601+00:00There's a big difference between a researcher ...There's a big difference between a researcher being personally excited about their work and effectively expressing that in the writing. <br /><br />I think it's absolutely spot-on that the quality of the writing are number 1 and 2 on your list: many researchers are so immersed in their work, it's hard to see what's not obvious to the rest of the world (or even those outside your sub-field). This is critical for grants. Patricia Gongalhttp://www.theenglishedition.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-84882158297088635242013-03-19T13:00:12.377+00:002013-03-19T13:00:12.377+00:00Very interesting post. I agree with most of your p...Very interesting post. I agree with most of your points, however I have difficulties with this:<br /><br />"...But if you find your proposal boring, then there's close to zero chance anyone will want to fund it. You should never submit a grant proposal unless you are genuinely excited by the work that you are proposing."<br /><br />In my experience (and I have heard this repeatedly from colleagues) there is virtually no correlation between the researcher finding the project interesting/boring, and the chances of it being funded. In fact, I have often heard views like "my good proposals are always turned down, and the projects which end up being funded are not that interesting".<br /><br />M.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com