Centre for Doctoral Studies

Equipping doctoral research students at King's College London to excel

Tag: tips

15 top tips for writing a funding/grant application

05/05/2022 /

Blog post by Dr Nigel Eady, Director of Research Talent, Centre for Doctoral Studies

I spend quite a lot of time reading applications for funding. Some are for around £100k or more, for example, scholarship funding for a PhD, others may be much smaller, a few hundred pounds to attend a conference.

Funding schemes are nearly always competitive. In some instances, you don’t get funding just because there were too many good applicants. However, you’d be surprised how many people make very basic mistakes that significantly reduce the chance of getting funded.

So here are my top tips to give yourself the best chance possible!

  1. Check remit/eligibility carefully. If you’re not sure what you’re proposing is in the remit of the scheme, then ask! You also want anyone reading your application to see really clearly that you’re a good fit for the scheme or the funder. You certainly don’t want to spend lots of time preparing an application to find out you weren’t eligible anyway!
  2. Contact the administrator for advice. Don’t be afraid to contact the people running the scheme. Their job is to answer your questions! They are judged on the smooth running and impact of the scheme. They want to get good bids and they are better able to do that if they are talking to potential applicants. They like to build relationships with the people they’re funding.
  3. Follow the guidance you’re given. If a question says ‘max 400 words’, don’t write more than 400 words! Word limits are partly there for fairness and consistency, so everyone is given the same opportunity to present their application. You need the people reading and scoring your application on your side, so do everything you can to keep them happy! You don’t want them thinking you’re trying to gain an unfair advantage, and you don’t want them annoyed that there’s lots of extra info to read! Beware – some forms will just cut off anything over the limit!
  4. Remember the panel may not be experts. Please write in plain English – no jargon, acronyms…. Or at least as few as possible! I have a PhD in biochemistry. That means I understand certain research disciplines but it won’t take long for me to get lost (or annoyed!) by jargon that may make sense to you, but not to me.
  5. Don’t forget the panel are probably busy! If your application is hard to read or confusing or very long, it’s not going to help how your reviewers feel about your application. If it’s easy to read and understand then the panel will likely be on your side and more likely to advocate for you to get funded!
  6. Demonstrate commitment to what you want to do. Have you already applied anywhere else for funding? Why not? Funders like to see commitment. It may persuade those reviewing your application that you’re really serious about doing the research, going to the conference or whatever you’re asking for money to do.
  7. Show that other people think you’re worth funding. In an academic setting, it might be as simple as showing you have the support of your supervisor or department or faculty through a short written statement or letter. Even better, is there someone who will commit part of the funding for what you want to do? This is often called ‘matched’ funding. Always be clear what funding you already have and what other funding you’ve applied for. You can’t ‘double fund’, i.e. get funding from two places to do the same thing! Always read the information about the funding scheme carefully and check what’s allowed (and maybe double check with the administrator).
  8. Be honest about the costs. Time spent getting your budget right won’t be wasted. If you ask for too much money, you may immediately be ruled out. If you underestimate, you might end up having to deliver something without enough money! Panel members will often be considering whether a budget is realistic. You should definitely be truthful, not least as that shows the panel that you can be trusted with the funds. Requesting exactly the amount on offer tends to look suspicious, unless you’re showing that it will cost you more than the full amount and you’re just asking for the maximum available. Where possible, include quotations for purchases you’d like to make.
  9. Make sure your budget adds up! You’d be amazed how may budgets are wrong! Get someone else to check your calculations and that what you’ve written makes sense. There’s actually lots to say about budgets – maybe I’ll write a separate post with further thoughts!
  10. Provide a clear timeline. Funders want to know that you will spend their money wisely. In your application, show that you can think like someone managing a project and describe what will happen over the weeks or months after you get the money. You don’t necessarily need a proper GANTT chart, a few clear bullet points may be enough. What will you do if something goes wrong? Is there enough time in your schedule to respond to difficulties? Have you already planned for the most obvious risks?
  11. Ensure supporting info supports your request! The supervisor whose statement in support of your application effectively says nothing more than ‘I confirm this person exists,’ isn’t doing you any favours! The more bespoke and tailored the statement the better! Consider what the panel are looking for. Perhaps you can give your supervisor/PI/referee a few bullet points they might consider including in the statement/letter? Hopefully if you’re one of a number of students from the same research group applying, your supervisor won’t have written the same statement for everyone!
  12. Make your application easy to read. Again, keep your reviewers onside. Online forms sometimes make this difficult (as you may have little ability to format text) but do think about formatting and structure. Long, dense paragraphs of text, ridiculously   are all a bad idea!
  13. Ask for feedback. Get as much feedback as you can, especially if your application isn’t successful. Verbal feedback can be even more helpful. People may say more verbally than they are willing to write down! You might be able to turn a ‘failed’ application into a really successful one, based on the feedback you get.
  14. Seek advice on applying. Do you know someone who’s applied before? Will they read your draft application? Are there examples of good/bad applications available?
  15. Think like a reviewer. Imagine you were reading applications to the funding scheme. What would you want to know? Give your reviewers the assurance they are looking for.

 

If you bear all these points in mind, you’re giving yourself a good chance of getting over the first hurdle and being considered for funding.

All the very best for your funding applications.

Research Reflections from Yanqing Wang, Part-Time PGR Student in the King’s Business School

01/04/2022 /

Hello, I am Yanqing and also known as Callie. I am a part-time PhD student in Banking and Finance Research Group in the King’s Business School. My research interest lies in financial technology, risk management, macroprudential policy and financial stability. I am passionate about applying research-based learning to solving real business problems.

It is my pleasure to be invited to write a blog for the Centre for Doctoral Studies. Inspired by my PhD peer, who kindly shared his reflections on his adventures as a lifelong learner, I thought it would be a good idea to share my part-time PhD journey over the first few months. So far, my journey can be summarised in two words: “balance” and “impact”.

 

How to balance work and life, and how to balance what you want to do versus what you can do?

Personally, I don’t think there is a single agreed recipe to get this right. For me, it usually involves lots of planning ahead and prioritisation, among other things. I have done a lot of learning and knowledge refreshing over the last few months on many training modules. Although it is hard to fully grasp all of the content if it is a new domain to me, I still try to follow it and at least build my awareness of what is feasible and available if needed for my future research project, so that I can revisit it when necessary. In addition, I strongly feel that research is different from learning, although we continue self-learning during research projects. Sometimes I have found that doing research can be a lonely journey, as you won’t always be sure what you will find out; much thinking is involved in defining your questions before considering ways to resolve it (or providing insights into the puzzles).

 

What impact do you want to have?

I first came across this question in the research training module for all new PhDs; it appears to be a straightforward question but it is not easy to answer on the spot. Luckily, I had the opportunity to write a blog for my university on climate change before COP26, looking back on the impact of previous climate change accords and what we should consider in the future. It was a good experience for me to realise that the impact of any research goes far beyond academic citations. It is critical to demonstrate the benefit or changes caused, or contributed to, by the specific study in society, the economy and the environment. From my point of view, the research impact pathway is non-linear. We need to plan for impact, engage with stakeholders and consider active communication. As a PhD candidate, how we create a long-lasting impact for research studies is a key question that I need to continue revisiting.

 

From industry back to academia, what to prepare?

You need to prepare yourself physically and mentally for the challenge in front of you. For example, you need to work with your supervisors to set up reasonable expectations with continuous reality checking (even saying ‘no’ to tasks, as there is no need to satisfy everyone, at least not all in one go). I think we do not need to be perfect and ‘good enough’ is fine (be comfortable, at least don’t panic, when you feel you are lost and unsure where to go next). Given part-time PhDs are also likely to be working full-time or have other life commitments, it is important to set up a boundary and retain a balance between work and life. I hope my insights will debunk some common myths you might have on the PhD journey.

 

Do you need some help?

Doing a part-time PhD is a life-changing experience with many considerations and commitments. My personal experience told me that the application journey is not always easy, so we may all benefit from being able to ask a few questions or sense-checking a few things with people who have just gone through the process.

You are not alone in your part-time PhD journey. There is now a Teams channel set up for KCL PT PGRs. Everyone is welcome to join this group (you can request to join via MS Teams).

Please come and join this growing part-time PhD community. We all need to have a safe place to discuss concerns or ask for advice.

Let’s enjoy our part-time PhD journey.  All the best!

 

 

 

Writing Tips for Postgraduate Research Students from Royal Literary Fund Fellows

08/10/2020 /

Writing clearly and persuasively about your research is a vital skill to master but it does not always come easily. To help you develop your writing skills, King’s hosts two Royal Literary Fund Fellows each year. The Fellows are professional writers who can provide support to postgraduate research students across all disciplines and at all stages of their degrees (see our webpage to book an appointment).

One concern that our Fellows frequently encounter when working with students is a lack of confidence and the belief that writing comes easily to everyone but them. This is a common misconception; RLF Fellow Ros Schwartz confirms that writing is hard – even for professional writers. Fortunately, there are numerous techniques and practices that can help you refocus your writing and self-correct errors.

Here are 10 key tips from our 19/20 Fellows Ros Schwartz and Mirza Waheed, based on their many appointments with PGR students last year:

  1. Try printing out your work instead of always looking at it on a screen. You’d be surprised how much easier it is to pick up errors when you see your work on paper.
  2. Take your work to a new setting (outside your usual research/writing/work space) and give it a read for a fresh perspective.
  3. Leave yourself plenty of time for writing up and refining your work – don’t underestimate how long editing will take.
  4. Read your work aloud as this can help highlight punctuation problems or wordy sentences.
  5. If you can speak fluidly about your research but find it difficult to translate that into text, try dictating and then transcribing your work. There are even apps that can record your voice and transcribe for you.
  6. If you’re over-using words, pick them out and build a glossary of synonyms to help you diversify your language.
  7. Try separate readings of your work to focus on different issues, e.g. one for overall flow, one for punctuation, one for over-use of certain words and phrases using the ‘search’ function.
  8. Don’t be afraid to let your voice shine through, particularly in your early drafts. You can always refine the language as you edit, but your opinions and evaluations are critical in forming a strong thesis.
  9. Read proactively to develop a broader vocabulary; when you come across a word you don’t know, look it up in the dictionary and write a few sentences using it. Doing this regularly will increase your vocabulary and improve your writing style.
  10. Let your work sit for a day or two before reading it so you can revisit your writing with fresh eyes.

“Language isn’t just about words and meaning, it’s also about music. Punctuation is there to create pace and breathing spaces to allow the reader to digest the information.” Ros Schwartz

Useful sites for grammar, referencing, style, proofreading:

Manchester Phrasebank: http://www.phrasebank.manchester.ac.uk/

RLF Dissertation Guide: https://www.rlf.org.uk/resources-home/

Use King’s LibGuide for help with referencing (discuss your department’s preferred referencing style with your supervisor if unsure): https://libguides.kcl.ac.uk/reference

The Chartered Institute of Editors and Proofreaders is a UK-based organisation that maintains a directory of professional editorial services that may be of use: https://www.ciep.uk/

We advise research students seeking support with English as an additional language to explore the King’s Foundations courses and support: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/study/foundations.

 “Many students felt pressured to write like an academic, to sound authoritative and scholarly. I told them they already are scholars and academics, so they need not force their hand and make a piece of writing impenetrable. Write in your own voice.” Mirza Waheed

November is Academic Writing Month!

King’s College London has joined WriteFest 2020 (#AcWriFest20), to support researchers contributing to Academic Writing Month (#AcWriMo).

Inspired by the amazing NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), this month-long celebration of academic writing caters to the specific needs of researchers. It’s hosted by PhD2Published and throughout the month they share dedicated blog posts about academic writing and literally thousands of tips via Twitter and Facebook. The month will consist of a selection of virtual workshops that will offer tools and strategies to help you reach your writing goals.

How can you get involved?

  • Get writing in November with inspiration from all the contributions to #AcWriMo on Twitter
  • Use the #AcWriFest20 hashtag to share your progress with other researchers at King’s College London and across the other Universities.
  • Join the weekly, virtual Writing Retreats that are run by the Centre for Research Staff Development

Check out the full programme of workshops and WriteFest 2020 activities here.

Additional writing support

The Centre for Doctoral Studies offers several fantastic workshops and webinars to develop your writing skills, such as  Clear & Concise Academic Writing, Fundamentals of Good Writing, a Virtual Writing Retreat, Writing for Publication in the Arts & Humanities, Publishing a Scientific Research Paper and more. These are open to all students, check out the Doctoral Training Brochure for more information.

How to stay fit and active as a PhD student: Tips and advice from King’s Sport’s Alyx Murray-Jackman

11/06/2018 / / 0 Comments

Researching and writing a PhD takes a toll on the body as well as the mind. However, many PGR students often find that between labs, library sessions, supervisory meetings, teaching, and social or family life, there is little time left for exercise or other activities.

Nevertheless, taking time out of your research schedule to stay active is important. Not only does good physical health benefit your PhD research in the long-run, by ensuring you stay healthy and fit throughout the period of your course. Good physical health is also fundamental to good mental health.

Take Time Out – July 11th @ Guy’s Campus

The Centre for Doctoral Studies knows that taking time out of your work as a PGR student is easier said than done. That’s why this Summer we are organising a “Take Time Out” event on the 11th of July at Guy’s Campus. This event is designed specifically for PGRs and will include yoga, pilates, mindfulness workshops, and other fun activities, to help you re-focus on your physical and mental wellbeing.

You can book your place at this event here. You can register for as many – or as few – activities as you wish.  Even if you’re not sure about an activity, studies show that just taking a break from work can have longer term benefits for your health – so make sure to come for our PGR social reception that evening!

In the meantime, to help you stay active, within the confines of PGR life, we’ve got some helpful time-saving tips from King’s Sport’s, Alyx Murray-Jackman.

Tips on how to stay active in your own time

  • Take the stairs – often you’ll be quite happy to take the stairs when you’re at home, but as soon as you set foot in the university, taking the lift may become the norm. Think about taking the stairs more often and you’ll be surprised how quickly it becomes a habit.
  • Use the toilets further away – find some toilets in the next building along, or on another floor, and this way you’ll get more walking in during the day, so long as you’re keeping yourself well hydrated!
  • Cycle, run or walk to the lab or library – look at your usual commute into University on Google Maps or City Mapper, and see how long the journey would take you if you were to walk or cycle. For me, walking takes the same amount of time as getting the bus, and cycling is actually faster than getting the train, therefore I have no excuse to get public transport to work as being active saves time, money and is better for me. Maybe it will be the same for you! If you live too far away to get to work like this, then you could try walking to the next bus stop or station along the route and hopping on public transport there.
  • Make sure to leave the house! – if you work at home, make sure you set aside some time to leave your desk and see the outside world. This might only take 5 minutes, a trip to the shop or a walk around the block, but will keep you moving and prevent you from stagnating inside.
  • Set yourself a fitness based challenge for a month – there are lots of apps out there that you can use to challenge yourself to do more activity, such as 30 day ab or plank challenges. These provide an opportunity to do a short burst of activity each day that you can gradually build up over time. This might be challenging yourself to be able to do 20 burpees in a row by the end of the month, or holding a plank for 90 seconds, and you can gradually work up to this over the course of the month, only requiring a few minutes of practice each day.
  • Socialise with fitness classes – next time a friend asks to catch up over dinner or drinks, ask them if they would like to try out a new fitness class with you instead (you can always grab dinner afterwards too…!). It’s a great way to try a new activity and socialise with your friends too. You could try a new class in one of the King’s Sport gyms, could do another activity like bouldering, or could go on a bike ride together.

    Alyx Jackman-Murray from King’s Sport

King’s Sport also have lots of other opportunities to help you stay active:

  • We have some short 10-20 minute yoga videos on our YouTube channel
  • Our BeActive programme, which runs during Term Time only, so will be back up and running in October, is available to all students at King’s, and offers a range of activities all taking place on or close by to our campuses.
  • We’ve got gyms already at Waterloo and Guy’s campuses, and are opening a new one soon at Strand Campus At the moment you can get a 3 month membership for the summer for just £50, so pop into one of the gyms and chat to a receptionist to get signed up. Gym memberships include all studio classes and access to both gyms, so you can work out whenever and wherever is most convenient for you.
  • King’s Move is our online platform that rewards you for all the activity you do, and will hopefully encourage you to do more of the things I’ve listed above so that you get more steps in and collect more points.

Hopefully some of these little hints and tips will help you get started on a journey to being more active in your day to day life. These are just some of the changes that I’ve made in my life that are now habits, and have definitely had a positive impact on my wellbeing. If you’d like any more ideas or want to learn about the connection between physical activity and mental health you can read our Move Your Mind guide.

There is no need to try and implement all these changes into your life at once, so try to stick to one until it becomes a habit, and then move onto the next.

 

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