Epilogue
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 August 2013
Summary
You may have looked through this book, studied some figures and tables, read the text in part, or even as a whole. I know many of you are now thinking:
This is going to be a major challenge, chances of getting funded may be as low as 10 or 15%. Am I really up for it? Maybe I should use my time for something more promising, where I’m more likely to succeed.
You are absolutely right to ask yourself this question. Many candidate writers of career grant proposals have had serious doubts and concerns before they started writing. Here are three quotes collected from a questionnaire that applicants completed the day after submitting their proposals:
Even if you don’t obtain the career grant, just writing the proposal helps you in many senses. Especially to think about your new potential lines of research and to experience the exciting feeling [that goes] with writing this type of grant application.
Maybe my best advice is to just go for it. I often hear that people get discouraged by comments from others, when they ask them to read their early drafts of the proposal. I did not let any of these comments affect my mood and motivation.
Apply! You will learn a huge amount and will be proud of what you have achieved. I developed so much more passion for the subject!
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- Funding your Career in ScienceFrom Research Idea to Personal Grant, pp. 192 - 194Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2013