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Grant Resources

Securing funding during graduate school is incredibly valuable for your future whether you aspire to be an academic scientist or you transition into science administration position. It is important to go through the grant writing process even if you applications do not initially result in funding. For most predoctoral applications the key is your training plan.

Faculty reviewer panels for National Research Service Awards (NRSA) grants and American Heart Association grants have all emphasized that the reviewers are instructed to look for training potential and do not critically review the minutia of individual proposed experiments. Innovation in these training plans such as including the professional development opportunities through TIBBS could also set your application apart from others applying. These reviewers have also emphasized that you and/or your mentor need to establish a relationship with the funding agencies study section officer or contact person named on the website. Determining what category your application goes into could mean the difference between funded and unfunded.

General Tips for Fellowship Grant writing:

  1. Start early
  2. Identify the correct funding agency for your field of expertise
  3. Contact the funding agency and discuss your project aims either via email or over the phone
  4. Create a timeline from start to completion including deadlines for submitting materials to the Office of Sponsored Research at UNC-CH and gathering reference letters.
  5. Make sure your research relevance to the funding agency is ABUNDANTLY clear.
  6. Meet with you mentor early in the process to discuss your fellowship training plan.
  7. Many reviewers support applications where they can see the mentor will provide outstanding support.
  8. Attend grant writing seminars or work with a grant writing coach
  9. Review: A Video on Peer Review at NIH
  10. Review the grant instructions thoroughly (several times)
  11. Send your grant to a faculty member or postdoc for feedback (be sure to allow enough time for this valuable resource to provide comments before the grant is due)

Resources Specific to the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (GRFP)
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