Snakes and Ladders:some rules of the funding game

Ann Blandford & Michael Harrison

Why us?

• We have some experience of funding– Both successes– …and failures– Writing reviews and participating in funding panels

• We didn’t say ‘no’ fast enough when asked to do this!

• We don’t claim a monopoly on understanding– Please share your insights and experiences too!

The EPSRC process 101

• You have a great idea, and submit a proposal for funding.

• You wait…. Other people review it.• You receive the reviews and respond to them.• The proposal gets considered at a panel.• If funded, you do the work.• You write a final report. It gets reviewed. • You respond to the reviews. You get a final

grading.

What does the reviewer do?

• Read the proposal.• Write a report (aka fill in a form).• While reading, when is a judgment first

formed?– How is it formed?– How is it subsequently revised?– What role does the form play in this

judgment process?

Activity 1:forming first judgment on proposals

• Read four opening paragraphs.– NB: a reviewer typically reads the text on

the form first, so that matters even more!

• Identify their strengths and limitations in terms of persuasiveness.

• Rank the four proposals on the basis of their opening paragraphs alone.

Activity 2:write an opening sentence

• Compose title and opening sentence for a proposal focusing on experience design for exhibits in a museum or art gallery.– Agree an angle of study (design or evaluation?

Within-museum or remote from it? A particular theoretical perspective? Etc.).

– Sketch out objectives and methods, but focus on title and opening sentence.

• Rank all the other titles & opening sentences in terms of how keen you would be to fund the work if you had a spare £500K.

What does the reviewer have to comment on?

• Significance and potential of the research.• Degree of novelty or risk.• People and training.• Collaboration.• Ability to deliver the proposed research.• Planning and management.• Resources requested.• Potential contributions to knowledge transfer.• Conclusions and recommendation.

See www.epsrc.ac.uk/Forms/

Activity 3:keeping the reviewer on your side

• You’ve got the reviewer on your side.

• How do you keep him / her there?

• List the things you can do to help the reviewer write a supportive review.

• What mistakes have you seen other proposers make, or can you imagine people making, in proposal writing?

Summary

• If you’re a reviewer, try to be on the side of the proposer.– If everyone looks for the faults in proposals, the

Treasury view of research will be negative and the funding pot will shrink.

– The glass can be described as 95% full or 5% empty. Which better reflects the truth?

• As a proposer, try to see the reviewer’s perspective and help them write a fantastic review!

Thank you

And good luck with your next proposal