Strategies and Resources for
Funding in the Natural Sciences
Gary W. Small
Department of Chemistry &
Optical Science and Technology Center
(gary-small@uiowa.edu)
CLAS New Faculty Orientation, 8/21/13
Issues to Consider
 Current funding climate
 Strategies and resources
Internal proposals
 External proposals

 The proposal process
 Some final thoughts
Current Funding Climate
Estimated FY 2013 R&D: Appropriations and
Sequester Outcomes
percent change from FY 2012
TOTAL
DHS
NIST
VA
DOE Atomics
NSF
Other HHS
DOE Energy Programs
US Geological Survey
DOD S&T
DOE Science
NIH
EPA
Agriculture
NASA
Transportation
Other DOD
-6.5%
60.8%
5.5%
-2.5%
-3.8%
-4.0%
-4.2%
-4.5%
-4.5%
-4.6%
-5.0%
-5.2%
-6.4%
-6.6%
-6.6%
-6.8%
-9.5%
-20%
0%
20%
40%
60%
DOD "S&T" = DOD R&D in "6.1" through "6.3" categories
Source: AAAS estimates based on agency R&D data and budget documents, appropriations
documents, and OMB sequester analyses.
© 2013 AAAS
http://www.aaas.org/spp/rd/presentations/aaasrd20130807.ppt
80%
Current Funding Climate
R&D in the FY 2014 Budget
percent change from FY 2012 (INFLATION ADJUSTED)
DHS
DOE Energy
NOAA
NIST
DOE Defense
Other HHS
NSF
USDA
DOE Science
NASA
DOT
NIH
VA
EPA
DOD S&T
DOD Other
TOTAL
-50%
181.7%
44.6%
23.7%
21.0%
10.8%
10.0%
5.4%
4.2%
2.3%
-1.4%
-1.9%
-2.4%
-3.0%
-5.4%
-8.6%
-11.1%
-2.9%
0%
50%
100%
150%
DOD "S&T" = DOD R&D in "6.1" through "6.3" categories
Source: OMB R&D data, agency budget justifications, and other agency documents.
© 2013 AAAS
http://www.aaas.org/spp/rd/presentations/aaasrd20130807.ppt
200%
Current Funding Climate
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
19
97
19
98
19
99
20
00
20
01
20
02
20
03
20
04
20
05
20
06
20
07
20
08
20
09
20
10
20
11
20
12
Success Rate (%)
Success Rates for NIH Type R01 Grants
Fiscal Year
NIGMS-new
NIGMS-cont
NCI-new
NCI-cont
NIDDK-new
NIDDK-cont
Source: http://report.nih.gov/success_rates
Strategies and Resources
(Internal Proposals)
 Submit as soon as proposal is viable


http://dsp.research.uiowa.edu/ui-internal-funding
http://research.uiowa.edu/ovpr/university-funding-sources
 Provides funding for preliminary results
 Provides informative feedback
 Provides mechanism to crystallize ideas
Clear explanation of significance
 Clear description of experimental design
 Challenge of explaining to an audience of nonspecialists (avoiding jargon)

Strategies and Resources
(External Proposals)
 Submit as soon as proposal is viable
 Until funding is established, don’t let a deadline pass
without submitting
 Learn what has been funded recently


http://projectreporter.nih.gov/reporter.cfm
http://nsf.gov/awardsearch/index.jsp
 Note special Requests for Applications (RFA’s)

http://www07.grants.gov/applicants/find_grant_opportunities.jsp
 Look for special opportunities for young investigators


http://www.spo.berkeley.edu/Fund/newfaculty.html
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/new_investigators/index.htm
The Proposal Process
Idea or
Hypothesis
Failure
Preliminary
Results
Papers
Proposal
Success
Project
Papers
Acknowledgement: Mark Arnold, Department of Chemistry
Writing the Proposal
 Follow instructions
 Leave room to describe proposed research

Include a detailed experimental plan
 Include preliminary results
 Identify potential problems and suggest possible
solutions
 Include a timeline
 Include reprints of your relevant publications (if
allowed)
 Don’t make it too expensive to fund
 Don’t make it difficult to evaluate

Know evaluation criteria and process
Some Final Thoughts
 Persistence is critical



Learn to limit your anger over rejection
Reviewers are usually trying to help
Address criticisms in any resubmission
 Work on building your visibility





Meet program officers at agencies
Conference participation
Meet your competitors
Discover your supporters and detractors
Invite key players in your field to Iowa for a seminar
 Develop your research niche

At tenure time, need to have an identifiable research
program
Some Final Thoughts
 Consider a mix of collaborative and individual
work



Collaborative projects can be an important component
of a research program
Allows bigger problems to be tackled
Important to be able to demonstrate your own
contribution
 Don’t ignore the mission-oriented agencies such
as DOE, DOD, NASA

Important to develop contacts at Government labs
 Take advantage of the proximity of your
colleagues

Have successful colleagues read your proposals
Some Final Thoughts
 Advice is plentiful

Consider it but in the end you have to take the path that
works for you