The early-career research funding awards 'cheat sheet' is here!

Wouldn’t it be nice if there were a handy summary of the major US early-career funding opportunity awards? I couldn’t find one, so I created it. There’s a lot I could get into regarding these early-career awards. For now, I’m going to focus on some cautionary notes.

Before I get into those, because they may be a bit of a downer, know that I do support PIs applying for (and winning) these awards. These awards represent valuable opportunities, can bring in a lot of support, and can open many doors.

With that said, here we go:

💥Don’t make the assumption that an early-career award is easier to win than a ‘regular’ award because fewer people are eligible to apply. Or that anyone involved in the process will ‘take it easy’ on newer PIs.

💥Don’t underestimate the amount of work that is needed for some pieces like the chair letter. These need to be very strong, not thrown together at the last minute.

💥Because these awards are so prestigious, these proposals cannot have typos or seem rushed. It’s a major national honor to win one of these, and reviewers want to see a certain level of seriousness in the application.

💥Don’t get so hyper-focused on an early-career award opportunity that you fail to ask program officers about other opportunities that may be within reach.

💥Check, and recheck, eligibility requirements and dates. They are always changing. I’ve made the cheat sheet a living document and will keep it updated as best as possible.

Check out the cheat sheet here. Also, see below for a link to a video where I talk about the kinds of questions you should be asking yourself when you consider starting work towards these or any other types of opportunities.

Spending too many hours on proposals?

This week I published a video that presents a framework to help you manage the workload related to research funding. The idea is to spend fewer hours writing proposals and win more funding. Check it out!

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!)

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