Deciding to go for a grant

When it comes to going for a grant, since we are the research development office, we tend to say, "Yes, you should!" Our zeal comes from seeing many researchers who were great candidates for grants decide not to go for them.

However, even we can concede that deciding to go for a grant isn't always a simple decision. Grant proposals are laborious. ORDE recommends a six month process for developing a grant proposal. And, I'll add, that a seasoned PI at our Anschutz Medical Campus recently praised our timeline and even suggested that early career investigators should be planning their grant proposal a year before it's due! So, see? It's not just us!

Grant proposals are complex and take a lot of work and care, and that's why you want to be wise about the grants you choose to go for, because it is heartbreaking to put in all that work and never get the grant even after resubmission(s) (which are to be expected).

So, below are things to consider as you decide whether or not to go for a grant:

Are you and your project a good fit for the grant?
It's true, even if you and a grant are a match made in heaven, it still takes a lot of tailoring and aligning to make sure that your proposal is the perfect response to an RFP or PA. If, as you're going through the program announcement, you start to get a sense that the agency is looking for something besides you and your research, this may not be the best fit. However, before throwing in the towel, reach out to the Program Officer to verify (see more below).

Do you have enough time to develop the proposal well?
Sometimes you stumble on to a program announcement that does seem perfect, but then "Oh no, the deadline is in three weeks!" When this happens, probably the best thing to do is check to see when their next deadline is, because three weeks isn't enough time to write a strong proposal. Make sure you always take time to map out a realistic timeline for developing a grant and if a quick deadline won't allow that, you may want to forego this one.

Will this project and grant move you toward your research goals?
Grants are a tradeoff; you have to give the agency everything they're looking for in your funded research, but you want to get some of what you want to do in there as well. Just make sure you are getting something in there that is what you really want to do and will move you a bit further along in your research trajectory. A funded project is often a years-long endeavor, so make sure it isn't tangential to your goals.

What does the Program Officer say?
As I mentioned above, the best person to help you decide whether you should apply or not is the Program Officer. Once you have a project overview or concept paper, email your Program Officer and ask for a brief conversation about your project. They will give you good advice as to whether you're a good fit. If they're not enthused, you may want to look for another funder. For example, one PI described contacting a PO at the NSF and when he asked the PO if he thought he should apply, they said, "I guess." That PI went in search of another funder.

I offer these tips cautiously, because most times if a program announcement looks like a fit for your research, you should submit a proposal. Don't get scared away because it's not an ideal scenario, because it may never be.

Resources:
ORDE Grant Development Timeline
ORDE Proposal Development Checklist