Funding science

As a new academic year dawns, international competition, government policies and inflationary pressures could be pushing some universities to the brink of bankruptcy.

Despite meeting a clinical and societal need for snakebite antivenom development, VenomAb folded after four years, propelling co-founder Andreas Laustsen-Kiel to a role that combines entrepreneurship and academia.

Many researchers describe public outreach as a labour of love, often carried out in their spare time. But some funders reward these activities.

NIH funding is the goal for many US health researchers, but you can be successful in academia without it, says Brandon Brown.

Lab money management is an important, yet overlooked, professional skill for researchers.

Although researchers often face uncertainty when grants expire with no replacement in sight, there are creative ways to ease the dry spell.

Specialists share how to make the experience more enjoyable and foster a sense of belonging.

The fact that artificial intelligence can do much of the work makes a mockery of the process. It’s time to make it easier for scientists to ask for research funding.

Mireille Consalvey draws on years of experience to present a 13-step checklist for success.

A shift from individual to institutional performance in the next Research Excellence Framework exercise is welcome, but ignores the realities of academia.

What recent film riveted you? What if your next grant proposal engaged reviewers as effectively as that film grabbed you?

Approaches to capturing the benefits of research on society are improving — but huge challenges remain.

Giving good feedback on failed grant proposals is difficult — and even when given well, it’s often misunderstood by the recipients.

Group leaders must find ways to efficiently cut costs without sacrificing research quality.

Scientists deploy networking, collaboration and long-term thinking to win private donor dollars.

Doctoral candidates and a university association say that the current stipend is far below the nation’s living wage and that a proposed increase is insufficient.

Pan-European agreement aims for broader measures of researchers’ contributions to science.

Examining funded proposals enables grant writers to produce more compelling proposals, say Orit Rapaport, Justin Crest and Crystal Botham.

PhD students call for further reforms after country’s largest research funder responds to campaigns with 10% increase.

Four international scientists explain how a grant debacle stemming from Brexit has affected their research and career plans.

Betty Lai has found a way to work out which grants to apply for — and which ones just aren’t worth it.

UKRI’s proposed stipend increase for 2022–23 falls far short of rise in UK cost of living.

Many UK universities pop the champagne when they get the results of a national research-performance review. But burnt-out academics see no cause for celebration, say Richard Watermeyer and Gemma Derrick.

Ecologist Eulogio Chacón Moreno sought fellowships abroad amid a worsening economic crisis in his home country.

Two organizations that support at-risk academics offered funding, fellowship and language support at a critical time.

Legal wins and federal budget proposals could address years of underfunding.

Addressing weaknesses and limitations in your science will reassure potential funders, say grant-writing coaches Jennifer L. Wilson and Crystal M. Botham.

Large increases to the budget of the US National Institutes of Health can spur wide investment, but also increase competition among junior researchers.

Agency hopes to eliminate bias when choosing between applications of similar quality.

I don’t expect to get every grant I apply for, but the least agencies could do is give me a little feedback, says Juan Manuel Parrilla Gutierrez.

Written grant proposals are inefficient to prepare and review, and scoring is notoriously unreliable. It’s time to consider audio-visual alternatives.

Referees for the US National Institutes of Health report engaging less during virtual panel meetings — but most think review quality doesn’t suffer.

Ethan Wilk, who begins an undergraduate programme this autumn, explains how a detailed outline of his proposed expenses and timeline helped him to win a competitive award to study endangered trout.

Junior researchers need to engage with policymakers, institutions, funders and media outlets to argue against planned budget cut-backs, warn Brian Cahill and Marco Masia.

Should academic science reconsider the definition of success, asks Yvonne Couch.

Failed funding applications are inevitable, but perseverance can pay dividends.

Colin Evans adopted four principles to secure funding after his first postdoctoral fellowship application was unsuccessful.

Experienced scientists reveal how to avoid application pitfalls to submit successful proposals.

If you want an astronaut to run your experiment alongside their many other responsibilities, keeping it simple is the key.

Agreement between funding agencies, universities and other stakeholders builds on an earlier document to address new concerns and challenges in science.

Joe Luchsinger shares his advice on advocating for science investment.

Gifts from pioneering philanthropists have equipped the US state for a frontline battle against some of the world’s deadliest diseases.

Analysis of internal documents shows that promotions and tenure largely depend on metrics such as the number of publications and citations.

Six early-career researchers offer advice on how to secure a permanent contract in academia, and then make the most of it.

Scientists in areas that lack basic provisions — including dependable electricity, water supplies and funding — do research that has a high societal impact. Five people describe the challenges they face.

The US National Science Foundation is expanding an internship programme for graduate students.

Getting hold of the right equipment can be costly, so here’s a primer for cash-strapped principal investigators.

Recycling leftover chemicals and equipment slashes energy bills and boosts research budgets.

European Research Council president Maria Leptin speaks about her career experience and how to handle disappointment in science.

Julie Gould investigates the importance of advance planning when you're preparing a funding application.

Elizabeth Pier tells Julie Gould about her research into agreement levels among reviewers evaluating the same NIH grant applications.

Expert advice on how to get the details of a grant submission right, and planning for "curveball questions" if you are asked to deliver an oral presentation.

How governments decide when to boost basic research funding, and when to scale back support.

Many grant funding decisions are random, with luck playing a large part. How can the system be improved, particularly when funds are tight?