Concerned your research idea is ‘unfundable’?

As a PI, you are trying to do something that’s never been done before! That’s what research is all about. However, topics that are labeled too far out there generally don’t get supported. Here are the two main reasons you may find yourself in this situation — keep in mind both can be true:

1. The proposed research is considered too high risk.

2. The proposed research doesn’t fit nicely within a discipline and/or funding program.

If you’ve wanted to pursue certain topics and have run into problems for these reasons, don’t give up. Most likely, those topics are your best ideas. We use a heart ❤️ in the Wise Investigator logo for two reasons: One, everything we do as a business is built around care — care for our clients and for the broader research community. Two, following intuition, which comes from the heart, leads to transformational new knowledge and understanding. Unfortunately, intuition is not a substitute for preliminary data.

Rather than give up on your best ideas, consider taking them a bit more slowly, more strategically. Here are some ideas for how you can do that:

• Look for proof-of-concept opportunities. One example is Army Research Office’s Short-Term Innovative Research (STIR) award. When you speak to funders, ask them about these type of opportunities. You can also ask what the minimum dollar amount is for a particular funding vehicle. Just because an average award size is >$300k, that doesn’t necessarily mean that a much smaller award cannot be made.

• Consider smaller funders. Smaller organizations will be less siloed. Program officers may be responsible for more than one discipline, and it may be less likely that a program officer expanding their portfolio into a new area means stepping on toes (i.e., moving into another’s ‘territory’) like it can at a larger organization.

• Consider mission-driven organizations, where the aim is to solve problems, including by supporting basic research. If you can show that you can make progress towards solving a problem, you are not too likely to receive pushback on your disciplinary affiliation.

• Look for opportunities where there is one primary decision maker versus those where decisions are made by consensus (i.e., panels or committees). A consensus-based process is biased against risk. If you can sell one individual on your idea and they can advocate for it or even make a decision without much input from others, you can get a higher-risk idea supported. Keep in mind that, generally, the more money you ask for, the more consensus the decision will require.

• Consider adding a co-PI. It’s common for a PI to want to do interdisciplinary work and feel confident performing the work as the sole PI. But most PIs come from just one discipline, and even if they don’t, they can be viewed this way. Adding a co-PI from ‘the other’ discipline can go a long way towards building confidence that the work will be performed by qualified individuals, that the results will be disseminated across disciplines, and it lowers the likelihood for problems related to territoriality.

Keep in mind that if you receive even a small amount of support, you’ve gotten something beyond money: social proof. Being able to show a funder that someone else has put money on your award can alleviate the anxiety a decision maker may feel about putting a larger amount of funds on the idea.

Have you considered foundation funding?

Foundation funding can be a good option for interdisciplinary and/or high-risk research. I recorded an overview video based on a panel discussion on this topic at the 2024 AAAS meeting. Check it out to learn how the foundation funding process compares to that of federal funders and what steps you can take to get started.

When you are ready, here’s how we can help

Need to get your research funded, this year? Check out our 10-week program to get you there.

Want a done-for-you website that highlights your research impact? Let us do that for you. (We even write all the content for you!)

Ready to book a call to discuss our training, websites, or to have Dr. Barzyk provide training at your institution? Let’s chat!