Applying for Fellowships Dr Toby Cubitt & Dr Ed Brambley DAMTP, University of Cambridge Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 1
Outline Introduction [10 mins] Available types of funding [5 mins] The application and selection process for fellowships [5 mins]: Writing a fellowship application [30 mins] Supporting references [5 mins] Submission of work for assessment [5 mins] Tea Break Fellowship interviews (interactive) [50 mins] Summary, conclusion, and questions [10 mins] Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 2
Introduction [10 mins] Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 3
Available types of funding[5 mins] PostDocs (also called Research Fellowships at other unis) Cambridge/Oxford Junior Research Fellowships (JRFs) Leverhulme Early-Career fellowships EPSRC Junior Research Fellowships Marie Curie Intra-European/Outgoing/Incoming Fellowships: Royal Society University Research Fellowships (URFs) EPSRC Early-Career Fellowships ERC starting grants (something to aspire to later!) Others: Other UK research councils (NERC, STFC,... ) Many EU countries have similar fellowship schemes: (CNRS fellowships in France, Humbolt fellowships in Germany, Juan de la Cierva / Ramon y Cajal fellowships in Spain,... ) Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 4
The application and selection process for fellowships [5 mins] A typical/generic fellowship application and selection process: 1. Application Usual stuff: cover letter, CV, list of publications, two/three references,... Description of current research (technical, understandable to a nonspecialist, or both) Description of proposed future research (technical, understandable to a nonspecialist, or both) Impact 2. Remove obviously unacceptable candidates (100) 3. Ask for references, then longlist (20) 4. Ask for major piece of work (e.g. thesis draft) and externally assess (5) 5. Interview (1) Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 5
Writing a fellowship application [30 mins] Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 6
Before you start writing! Who is your target audience? external expert reviewers assessment panel (rarely all or any! specialists in your specific field) general public (e.g. lay summary section) What are they looking for? different emphasis for different Fellowships (e.g. Royal Society more focused on you and your research; EPSRC want more evidence of impact, contribution to UK, outreach, etc.) rarely research excellence alone wider impact of your research ability to communicate importance of research Who are you competing against? Rarely just others in your field Other applicants in your general area Often applicants across all sciences Don t pay only lip service to non-research sections! even if you don t think it s important, they re looking for any criteria that will help them whittle down to a handful of accepted applications Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 7
The research proposal Why is your research area important? evidence: international interest, academic groups at major universities, wide range of funding (academic, industrial, government), high-profile conferences, dedicated journals, widely-recognised significant papers... Why is the proposal timely? major recent progress major new questions needing answering Why are you the best person to carry it out? previous success unique skills you ll bring to it Clear statement of proposed research taking target audience into account What s innovative about it? new methods and approaches new problems new interdisciplinary collaborations What impact will it have? open up new areas solve open problems lead to research program... Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 8
Curriculum Vitae CV Trivia: Curriculum Vitae loosely translated as the course of my life (Wikipedia). Unlike a job interview, the CV is much less important for fellowship applications. Most advice for a standard CV also holds (see Careers Service advice). Take your normal CV and tailor it to the fellowship application: Cut out as much as possible (esp. if it s already on your application form). Use the CV to emphasize impressive things that aren t on your application form. Length: Too long, and the impressive bits might not be noticed. Too short, and it looks like you ve not done much. A rough guide for UK CVs: 1 page of A4 (excluding publications). (US CVs are very different.) Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 9
Supporting references[5 mins] Typically asked for two or three referees: One reference probably has to be current supervisor. International referees look good. All references should be glowing: you will need to have genuinely impressed them. It helps if getting the fellowship would also help them: e.g. ongoing collaborations. Getting good references needs working at before applying: Get to know the other researchers in your field, not just their work. Get known at conferences. Ask questions, talk to others outside presentations. Don t just present and disappear. Collaborate with other researchers, ideally internationally. Apply for travel grants to visit for a week or two. Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 10
Submission of work for assessment [5 mins] This is the part where your technical expertise is assessed. Typically, a significant amount of work is requested (a draft thesis, several (3 5) papers) This isn t a thesis: make sure you emphasize the many different ways your work will continue to progress, in a technically sensible way. Externally assessed by an expert. Again, the assessment should be glowing. It helps if you happen to know the person who ends up assessing your work. Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 11
Tea[0 mins] Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 12
Fellowship interviews(interactive)[5 mins] In two groups of 10, you will form two interview committees to interview us: Prepare [10 mins] Nominate a chair of your interview committee Read our (artificially short) application forms Decide what you are looking for in a candidate (see sheet for suggestions) Decide how to structure your interview (see sheets for suggestions) The interviews [2 10 mins] Decide who your committee would choose [5 mins] Come back and we ll discuss how an actual interview would go [10 mins] Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 13
A typical generic interview: How an actualinterview would go [10 mins] About 30 minutes long An interview panel (10 to 20 people) of nonspecialists, chaired by a chairperson Might include 1 or 2 specialists in your field Asked to briefly (5 mins) present yourself and research interests to a general audience Asked to update the committee on what you ve done since applying Asked questions by a specialist Asked questions by a nonspecialist Asked if you have any questions (you should have): Are there specific opportunities or funding available to successful applicants? Balance between research and administration/outreach/education? Who owns intellectual property/patents? Any restrictions on publishing (delays, forced to be open access, etc)? I was expecting to be asked... (use this to show off something they haven t yet asked about). Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 14
Summary, conclusion and questions Types of funding The application and selection process for fellowships: Application: CV Publications Current research Proposed research Impact Supporting references Submission of work for assessment Interviews Applying for Fellowships, DAMTP, 8th May 2013 p. 15