II How to write a research proposal Ayo

II How to write a research proposal 鄭先祐(Ayo) 國立臺南大學 環境生態研究所 Japalura@hotmail. com

II How to write a research proposal 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Format Criteria for evaluation Feedback Proposal content The submission process The review process What to do while waiting for a decision 2

Introduction o o o Tip 1: the heart of proposal is tripartite: Explain what you want to do, how you will do it, and why it is important. A disorganized or poorly written proposal reflects a disorganized or poorly conceptualized study. Therefore, organization, content, and clear writing are essential to the success of a proposal. n Appendix A: How to write clearly 3

o o o Successful scientific proposals convey good salespersonship: you are selling a future product, your research idea and protocol, to a critical audience that must select from among many such products. You must know who your audience is. Persuasive writing does not compensate for scientific competence, but many good ideas and research designs are undermined by explanations that are either too vague (模糊) or too specific to the audience evaluating them. 4

1. Format o o o Funding agencies and university graduate programs may differ in their format and content requirements for scientific proposals. All federal and many private grants will require approved animal-care protocols. Read the instructions carefully, n Can or must be submitted online, the number of hard copies n Page or word limits n Funding criteria and amounts available n Deadlines n Supporting documents 5

o o Unlike scientific journals, which expect to be the sole evaluators of a submitted manuscript, most funding agencies encourage multiple submissions to various sources. They ask you to state whatever sources you have applied to in the event of any overlap in budgeted items. Heart of the proposal, where you explain hypotheses to be tested and methods to be used. 清楚完整，但不宜過長。 6

2. Criteria for evaluation o Four items in evaluation (NSF) : 1. 2. 3. 4. Research performance competence ( 執行能力) Intrinsic merit (內在價值)of the research Utility (實用) or relevance of the research Effect of research on the infrastructure (基礎建設) of science 7

(1) The intellectual merit o o o How important to advancing knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields? How well qualified(能力) to conduct (credibility and capability) To what extent, explore creative and original concepts? (原創性) How well conceived (構想) and organized (建 構)? Sufficient access to resources? n 語文、實驗設備與相關資源 8

(2) What are the broader impacts o o o How well does the activity advance discovery and understanding while promoting teaching, training, and learning? How well, broaden the participation of underrepresented groups? Enhance the infrastructure for research and education? Broadly to enhance scientific and technological understanding? The benefits to society? 9

3. Feedback o o o Established scientists with high funding success routinely solicit (懇求) feedback on drafts of their proposals from colleagues. It is unrealistic to expect a beginning scientist to be able to write a competitive proposal without extensive guidance and feedback before submission. 研究者，必要 shaping the proposal (finetune) n n Regular meetings should be established between you and your advisor, who should read your proposal and provide feedback, and read revisions until the proposal is ready for submission. 10 The rule is revise, revise!

Extensive revising o o Is a process that will help you to finetune your idea and allow you to be more explicit and unambiguous (明確且不含糊) in your thinking as well as your writing. Working on your grant proposal with your advisor also immerses you in the discourse of science. 11

o NSF’s rate: n n n o o Excellent, the highest funding priority Very good, should be supported Good, worthy to support Fair, interesting but problematic Poor, serious deficiencies Many very good and even excellent proposals fail to achieve funding status. Rejections or unsuccessful proposals are not uncommon, even among highly respected, productive, and established scientists. 12

4. Proposal content 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) Significance of a title Identifying objectives Integrating your research with existing knowledge Hypotheses and predictions Methods 6) 7) 8) 9) 10) 11) 12) Significance Literature cited Summary Budget and budget justification Other funding Appendixes Table of contents 13

1) Significance of a title o o The title of your proposal should state precisely what your study is about. 常犯的毛病： n n Cover more than the research will actually achieve. However, a title should not be defined so narrowly that it fails to capture the broader scientific context. 14

2) Identifying objectives o o o Objectives should be concise statements that provide enough detail to communicate the scientific focus of the study. You do not set yourself an objective that your research cannot address Objectives, like titles, may require fine-tuning as you develop the body of your proposal. 15

3) Integrating your research with existing knowledge o o o The background is a section in which you review what is already known and what the outstanding questions in your study area are. This section cannot be written until you have a thorough command of the literature in your field and have identified existing questions or gaps in this literature. 原閱讀的文獻，往往比較寬廣，有些可能不適合計 畫書的主題。計畫草擬過程，往往仍需要再補充相 關文獻。 16

4) Hypotheses and predictions o o There are usually at least two alternative hypotheses that could be made for any research question raised. 各個hypotheses都要有相當高的「可能性」。 Each of your objectives should have a set of predictions derived from existing knowledge and reviewed in the background section. Null hypothesis (Ho) and alternative hypotheses 17

5) Methods o o How you will obtain the data necessary to evaluate your hypotheses Using established methods will facilitate comparisons between your study and other related research. Standardized methods, or experimental techniques should be described and referenced fully. Your study site or laboratory facilities, the duration of the study, the unit of sampling, and the number of study subjects you will sampling. (統計，取樣) 18

6) Significance o o o The significance section provides an opportunity to flag additional contributions that your study make. No more than two paragraphs The broader implications of your study to science at large. Integration of research and education and in promoting diversity among scientists. To provide training opportunities for local residents or students. 19

7) Literature cited o o An alphabetical listing of the references you cited in your proposal. Careful crosschecking between citations and references is as important in a proposal as it is in a manuscript. 20

8) Summary o o o The summary of a scientific proposal is the equivalent of the abstract of a research report, but there is a subtle difference. Proposal summaries become part of public archives and are sometimes scrutinized by legislators or other non-scientists. A proposal summary encapsulates what you intend to accomplish, over what duration, and where. 21

9) Budget and budget justification o o The main categories in a budget include salaries for research personnel, research-related travel, permanent equipment, materials and supplies, and indirect costs. Indirect costs (commonly referred to as overhead) are fixed by each university to cover the administrative costs of your research. 22

10) Other funding o Provide information about any other sources of funding you have already secured or have requested from other sources. 23

11) Appendixes o o Documentation to support your proposal, including copies of research or collecting permits, collaborations, access to laboratory facilities, and samples of your data-coding system or check sheets, can be included in the appendixes. Appendixes may be removed before your proposal is sent off for review, so it is important that you include all essential information in the body of your proposal. 24

12) Table of contents o It is usually the third page of your proposal, following the cover page and the summary. 25

5. The submission process o o Be sure to allow sufficient time to obtain the approvals, which can take up to several days. You will also want to keep a hard copy for yourself and provide one for your advisor. Express mail services provide greater security that your proposal will reach its destination by the deadline. Be sure to verify the address and phone number of the agency. 26

o o Never assume that your submission has been received at its intended destination until you have received confirmation. It is important to allow time for any mishaps(不幸事故) in the submission process. 27

6. The review process o o o You may suggest the name of possible reviewers or individuals who may have conflicts of interest regarding your work when you submit your proposal. The program officer, however, will make the ultimate decision about who will review your proposal. If a funding decision is positive, the program officer will contact you to discuss possible or recommended revisions to the budget. 28

7. while waiting for a decision o o 準備 作 Arranging purchase of supplies 若需要出國，做好出國的準備 Practice the methods and fine-tune them as much as possible. 29