The Biosketch - it's all about you!

As we are in the holiday season, you are likely trying to focus on your spirit of giving.  So, I thought I would offer you some indulgence by talking about you and your biosketch. You are welcome!

Earlier this year, Dr. Amy Brooks-Kayal, our Chief and Ponzio Chair in Pediatric Neurology at Children’s Hospital, and Professor at AMC, spoke to us about the importance of the NIH biosketch. As a long-time grant reviewer and study section head, she thinks many PI’s overlook it.

Dr. Brooks-Kayal reminded us that when reviewers receive a pdf of a grant proposal, one of the first things they see, after the project summary and budget, is the PI’s biosketch. She suggested, “People don’t always pay as much attention to the biosketches as they should. Those are one of the first things your reviewers read so you want to make sure those are as strong as possible. If for some reason it’s not as strong as it should be, try to help your reviewers understand why in [the biosketch personal statement].”

She expanded on the fact that some PI’s have a lapse in their productivity due to a career shift, for example, and that the PI should be forthright about why they have had a lapse by using the personal statement portion of the Biosketch to explain. She also suggested having a mentor acknowledge the reasons for any lapse in productivity in their letters of support, but to remember that reviewers do not generally read those letters till the very end of their grant review.

 

Along with this idea of including justification in your biosketch, Dr. Morgan Giddings, Ph.D., suggests that PI’s tell a story with their biosketch in her blog, and really define the big problem you are trying to solve in your research – what is your long-term vision (not just this project)?

I must note that Dr. Giddings suggests that PI’s not include justification for a productivity lapse unless it can strengthen your application, so weigh the pros and cons and consider how your reviewers will receive your justification before putting it in there.

Unfortunately, not all agencies allow for a personal statement in the PI biosketch. For instance, the NSF does not have a clear mechanism for this sort of information right now, and it is relatively new for NIH as well. Our Senior Grants Administrator, Stefan Reiss, suggested that NSF applicants may be able to weave in some personal statement information into the Synergistic Activities section of their biosketch, but added that it is always a good idea to check with your Program Officer if you have specific questions about where to place information in your grant when it is not clear.

For our PI’s out there, please weigh in with your tips or rules of thumb for biosketches!

Also, to learn more about a new tool that the NIH is developing to streamline biosketches, see Dr. Sally Rockey’s blog.

Resources:
Dr. Gidding's blog on biosketches: http://morganonscience.com/grantwriting/crafting-your-nih-biosketch-personal-narrative/

Dr. Rockey's NIH blog on biosketch tool updates:
http://nexus.od.nih.gov/all/2013/11/20/test-drive-sciencv/?utm_source=nexus&utm_medium=email&utm_content=nihupdate&utm_campaign=nov13