The funding is there for you 🫵 

Sometimes we fail to see the forest for the trees. That is, we get bogged down with what’s right in front of us and neglect to consider the big picture. This week I’ll pull the lens back a bit to consider extramural funding, broadly. My aim is that, by sharing this perspective, you will have more confidence going after funds.

According to NSF, extramural performers are organizations outside the federal sector that perform research and development with federal funds under contract, grant, or cooperative agreement. 

Government agencies manage extramural funds, which have been designated for obligation outside the federal government. Of these funds, most of those designated for basic research go to institutions of higher education. This is the big picture.

When considering research funding, it’s helpful to shift from thinking ‘I would be lucky to have some of those funds allocated to me’ to ‘these funds have been designated for me’ because the latter is more true.

Having confidence that your research is just as worthy of support as that of another PI and that you expect your research to be supported works much better than a mindset that the funds are meant for someone else.

Of course, there are reasons why it can be easier for some PIs to win funds than others: Teaching load, level of institutional support, and quality of mentorship are some of the many factors that affect funding success.

While that may be true, it’s still important that you develop the mindset that funding is meant for you. That’s not entitlement. The clients I work with are some of the least entitled people I’ve met, so we are a ways off from these attitudes developing.

What follows from a these-funds-are-meant-for-me mindset is your approach to reaching funders. If a funder point of contact has their email address and/or phone number published, that means that it’s part of their job duties to answer inquires from the public. If there is a phone number, you can call them.

We all have job duties. What would happen if you didn’t respond to student emails? Students would complain, the situation would be elevated, and you’d have to respond. A point of contact is not doing you a favor by replying to you; that is their job! An important part of their job is communicating fairly and impartially about the status of the extramural funds they manage.

We understand that program officers are overloaded with emails and that many workplaces are understaffed. That’s why you want to avoid expressing irritation to people in these roles. But you can reach out again, and if you still don’t get a reply, you can identify a person in a related role to contact. You should do this politely and with patience but with persistence as well. You have just as much a right to information about these funds as anyone else!

Are you making the most of the help available to you?

I help PIs with all stages of the funding process, but there very well may be resources at your institution or elsewhere that you can take advantage of, especially if you plan ahead. Check out this video that walks you through some ways to think about getting support wherever you can.

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!