You need a basic CV as you progress through your career as a scientist: to apply for fellowships and grants, graduate school, internships, etc. Read through this thorough description of a basic science CV by Richard Reis in The Chronicle of Higher Education and see several resources on How to Craft a Winning Résumé on the Science Careers (AAAS) web site. Once you have all your basic info down, you should take particular care to 1) proofread your CV for typos, 2) make sure it is formatted simply so that it is easy to find critical information (e.g., year(s) of your degree(s)), 3) avoid excessive wordiness (less is more - don't use complete sentences to describe your skills, instead use bullets), and 4) keep it to a maximum of 1 or 2 pages unless you already have a PhD and can justify a longer CV (i.e., have you used an 11 pt. font, played with the page margins and spacing? Have you already removed all items related to your high school record? hobbies? and anything else that isn't DIRECTLY related to your career as a scientist?). In early versions of your CV, err on the side of INCLUDING small awards or presentations (a scholarship from the local gem and mineral society, a poster competition in your College of Science, etc.). Include other languages you speak, specialized lab techniques you have experience with, specialized software you use (no, we don't want to see that you've mastered MS Word).
Things that SHOULD NOT be included in your CV: a photo of yourself, your birth date or age, your marital status, an exhaustive list of your college courses, your hobbies (unless you happen to have an Olympic medal or some other very notable "hobby" that will make your CV stand out but perhaps work that into your Honors and Awards section).
Finally, look at CVs of other academics for formatting ideas and ideas for what to include in your CV. I happen to like the way my CV is formatted (I don't overuse bullets, but instead use more bold type, italics, underlining, and creative spacing to make the information easy to find. You should include the dollar amounts of any awards/scholarships in your CV). Then have someone (an advisor or graduate student) look at your draft CV before you send it off. Send your CV as a .pdf file and not an MS Word file to avoid software problems.
Showing posts with label grant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label grant. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Monday, June 29, 2009
On grants
I recalled a post by Female Science Professor that deals with the issue of grants and research funding that I dug up and partially re-post below. I'm doing this because I see no need to re-invent the wheel (and because even though I've recommended her blog, I'll bet that very few students have navigated over to that site nor spent much time there), but I would add one more point to what she's written - grants are written to conduct very specific research: The budgets are detailed and MUST be spent in the way spelled out in the grant (mas o menos) unless specific permission is granted by the program officer at (in my case) the National Science Foundation. The grant itself is a contract between the Principal Investigator (me) and the funding agency - it's my job to see that research gets done in the way that I've laid it out in the grant proposal.
"Over the years I have found that even moderately well informed and apparently sane graduate students have trouble understanding some basic issues involving grants and research. These issues include:
- Grants have start and end dates. They do not go on forever. This might be confusing in part because PIs can get no-cost extensions for a year (or two), so grants may have a longer life than their original start and end dates might suggest.
- Grants have budgets. They do not contain an infinite amount of money. Even when some students are told exactly how much is available for a certain activity, they seem to think that somehow there will be more and/or they are surprised and upset when the money runs out.
- The total $ amount of a grant is not equivalent to the amount the PI has available for the research. A substantial amount of the money in a grant goes to the university, not to the PI.
- Grant funds for grad students may be much more than just salary. Some institutions also require that the PI pay tuition and benefits. Grad students may not be highly paid, but they may be a significant component of a grant budget.
- Proposal budgets for most proposals can't be too high. PIs develop a sense for what the funding agency/program would consider to be reasonable vs. too high. For this reason, PIs have to do some delicate balancing between grad stipends (+ related costs) and research activity expenses.
- Students supported on a grant may start their graduate studies before or during a particular grant's lifetime. It may not seem fair to the student, but this timing relative to a grant's lifetime may affect the advisor's stress level about doing the research on a particular time scale, and that stress level may be transmitted to the student.
- The time between proposal submission and notification of the proposal's fate may be long.
- Some university accounting systems are so bizarre and complicated that it can be difficult for a PI to know exactly how much money is left in a grant. For example, it can be difficult to determine what is encumbered and what is not, and whether all outstanding invoices have been paid. There have been times when the actual amount remaining in one of my grants has been off by tens of thousands of $$ from what the accounting tables indicated. This is particularly stressful near the end of a grant. Budget stress level may fluctuate depending on when PIs look at accounting statements. A graduate student might perceive this as erratic behavior in an advisor.
- In some cases, departments/institutions make new policies that cost PIs money in existing grants even if this money was not originally budgeted. For example, my department occasionally mandates that graduate students receive raises that are effective immediately, even for existing grants. I supported the raises, but the money has to come from somewhere in finite budgets. This means less money for research activities.
Most of us could do a much better job of explaining the proposal/grant system to our students, but I think that it is inevitable that when issues of money, time, and stress are involved, as they are during a typical graduate program in Science, there are going to be difficult situations. I also think that grant management is one of those things that you have to experience yourself before you can really understand what is involved.
Maybe some computer science person will create a video game - SimGrant. Advisors can give it to students and postdocs to play and see how they do with the various decisions involved in writing transformative proposals, keeping various members of a research group funded, and dealing with kafkaesque accounting situations. I think this would be great, but the only problem is that the game couldn't use a proposal submission system like grants.gov or else no one would play, and those forced to play would end up shooting their computers."
"Over the years I have found that even moderately well informed and apparently sane graduate students have trouble understanding some basic issues involving grants and research. These issues include:
- Grants have start and end dates. They do not go on forever. This might be confusing in part because PIs can get no-cost extensions for a year (or two), so grants may have a longer life than their original start and end dates might suggest.
- Grants have budgets. They do not contain an infinite amount of money. Even when some students are told exactly how much is available for a certain activity, they seem to think that somehow there will be more and/or they are surprised and upset when the money runs out.
- The total $ amount of a grant is not equivalent to the amount the PI has available for the research. A substantial amount of the money in a grant goes to the university, not to the PI.
- Grant funds for grad students may be much more than just salary. Some institutions also require that the PI pay tuition and benefits. Grad students may not be highly paid, but they may be a significant component of a grant budget.
- Proposal budgets for most proposals can't be too high. PIs develop a sense for what the funding agency/program would consider to be reasonable vs. too high. For this reason, PIs have to do some delicate balancing between grad stipends (+ related costs) and research activity expenses.
- Students supported on a grant may start their graduate studies before or during a particular grant's lifetime. It may not seem fair to the student, but this timing relative to a grant's lifetime may affect the advisor's stress level about doing the research on a particular time scale, and that stress level may be transmitted to the student.
- The time between proposal submission and notification of the proposal's fate may be long.
- Some university accounting systems are so bizarre and complicated that it can be difficult for a PI to know exactly how much money is left in a grant. For example, it can be difficult to determine what is encumbered and what is not, and whether all outstanding invoices have been paid. There have been times when the actual amount remaining in one of my grants has been off by tens of thousands of $$ from what the accounting tables indicated. This is particularly stressful near the end of a grant. Budget stress level may fluctuate depending on when PIs look at accounting statements. A graduate student might perceive this as erratic behavior in an advisor.
- In some cases, departments/institutions make new policies that cost PIs money in existing grants even if this money was not originally budgeted. For example, my department occasionally mandates that graduate students receive raises that are effective immediately, even for existing grants. I supported the raises, but the money has to come from somewhere in finite budgets. This means less money for research activities.
Most of us could do a much better job of explaining the proposal/grant system to our students, but I think that it is inevitable that when issues of money, time, and stress are involved, as they are during a typical graduate program in Science, there are going to be difficult situations. I also think that grant management is one of those things that you have to experience yourself before you can really understand what is involved.
Maybe some computer science person will create a video game - SimGrant. Advisors can give it to students and postdocs to play and see how they do with the various decisions involved in writing transformative proposals, keeping various members of a research group funded, and dealing with kafkaesque accounting situations. I think this would be great, but the only problem is that the game couldn't use a proposal submission system like grants.gov or else no one would play, and those forced to play would end up shooting their computers."
Friday, March 13, 2009
Research grants, Fellowships, and Scholarships
I've compiled a list of research grants, fellowships, and scholarships for both graduate students and undergraduates in the Department of Earth & Climate Sciences at SF State (with a focus on students in my research group). If you see something you want to apply for, put the deadline on your calendar now so that you can start your application, request letters of recommendation, and order transcripts well in advance of the deadline. Deadlines generally hover around the same time of year if not the same date each year:
Graduate Student Research & Travel Grant Opportunities and Fellowships
Undergraduate Student Research & Travel Grant Opportunities, and Scholarships
Good luck!
Graduate Student Research & Travel Grant Opportunities and Fellowships
- AAPG Foundation Grants-in-Aid program, $500-$3,000 - deadline January 15
- AAAS Pacific Division Student Research Award, up to $750 - deadline May 1
- AAAS Pacific Division Student Travel Grants, up to $150 - deadline 5pm on May 1
- AEG Foundation Funds, variable - deadline February 1
- AIPG William J. Siok Graduate Scholarship Program, $1,000 - deadline February 1
- AGeS2 Program, GSA, for geochronology student research - deadline 3pm on February 1 annually
- AGU travel grants (specific international meetings only) - variable
- College of Science and Engineering, SF State - deadlines vary
- Department of Geosciences research grants, up to $800 - deadlines in the 5th week of Fall semester and the 10th week of Spring semester (usually announced by e-mail)
- EDMAP, US Geological Survey, up to $17,500 - deadline in November
- GSA Graduate Student Research Grants (~50% success rate!), with an average award of ~2,000 - deadline February 1
- GSA Travel Grants to Cordilleran Section meetings - deadline in late Winter/early Spring
- MSA Grant for Student Research in Mineralogy & Petrology, up to $5,000 - deadline March 1
- MSA Grant for Research in Crystallography, up to $5,000 - deadline March 1
- National Defense Science & Engineering Graduate Fellowship program, must be U.S. Citizen, generous stipend + tuition - deadline November 2
- National Geographic Society Early Career Grants, $5,000-$10,000 - deadline October 21
- NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program, generous stipend + tuition - deadline October 22 annually
- SEG scholarships, $500-$10,000 - deadline March 1
- Society of Economic Geologists Graduate Student Fellowship Program, $2,500-$15,000 - deadline February 1
- Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research program, up to $1,000 - deadlines March 15 & October 1
- Zeiss-GSA Research Grant, $10,000 - deadline February 3
Undergraduate Student Research & Travel Grant Opportunities, and Scholarships
- AEG Foundation Funds, variable - deadline February 1
- AIPG National Undergraduate Scholarships, $1,000-$3,000 - February 1
- Association of Independent Professional Earth Scientists National Undergraduate Scholarship, $1,000-$3,000 - deadline February 1
- College of Science and Engineering, SF State - deadlines vary
- Department of Defense SMART Scholarship Program, generous stipend + tuition - deadline 5pm on December 1
- Department of Geosciences research grants, up to $400 - deadlines vary (announced by email)
- The Desk and Derrick Educational Trust scholarships, U.S. & Canadian citizens only (Min. 3.2 GPA) - deadline April 1
- EDMAP, US Geological Survey, up to $10,000 - deadline in November
- Expanding Representation in Geosciences, GSA, diversity program, $1,500 - deadline May 15
- The Gladys Carol Scholarship Program, $2,500 (renewable, Min. 3.75 GPA) - deadline March 31
- The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation (apply in Sophomore year), tuition + $7,500 - Fall deadline
- GSA Travel Grants to Cordilleran Section meetings - deadline in late Winter/early Spring
- Microscopy Society of America, Undergraduate Research Scholarship Program, up to $3,000 - deadline 11:59pm on December 1
- MSA Grant for Student Research in Mineralogy & Petrology, up to $5,000 - deadline March 1
- MSA Grant for Research in Crystallography, up to $5,000 - deadline March 1
- National Geographic Society Early Career Grants, $5,000-$10,000 - deadline October 21
- On To The Future, GSA, diversity travel grant to attend the Annual Meeting of the GSA
- SEG scholarships, $500-$10,000 - deadline March 1
- Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research program, up to $1,000 - deadlines March 15 & October 1
- AAPG L. Austin Weeks Undergraduate Grants - deadline March 31
- AGI Scholarship Programs, Harriet Evelyn Wallace Scholarship for Female Graduate Geoscience Students, $5,000 (can apply twice) - deadline February 7
- AWG awards (scholarships, travel awards, field-based or paleontology research) - award amounts and deadlines are variable
- Collabera STEM Scholarship (women only), $2,500 - deadline May 29
- Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship (U.S. Citizens only, URM award) - deadline December 17
Field Camp Scholarships (in addition to above scholarships)
- AEG Foundation Beardsley-Kuper Field Camp Scholarship Fund - deadline February 1
- AISES Exxon Mobil scholarships (indigenous students only), $3,000 - deadline May 31
- AWG Maria Crawford Field Camp scholarship, $750 - deadline February 14
- GSA Field Camp Awards, $2,000-$10,000 - deadline March 27
- NAGT scholarships for field study, $750 - deadline February 14
- SEG Field Camp program, $1,000-$20,000 - deadline February 1
- Scholarships for the Indiana University Judson Mead Geologic Field Station, $40-$180 per credit hour (~80% of students receive a scholarship)
- TravelingGeologist Fieldwork Scholarship (800CAD [or equivalent foreign currency]) - deadline March 31
Friday, February 27, 2009
Scientific writing
As a research group, you are in different stages of your academic careers that require writing specific kinds of documents. I've found a few sets of (mostly) succinct guidelines to help both graduate students and undergraduates: a statement of purpose for admission to graduate school, a thesis proposal, a grant application, and theses. You should also know how to write an abstract.
Scientific writing also requires you to write briefly and to the point. Use an active, not passive, voice. Cite references appropriately and be consistent in how you format the text. I have several books on scientific writing style in my office including the classic Strunk and White. Strunk and White also address words and expressions that are commonly misused (e.g., affect vs. effect; and you can always search Google if you're not sure...).
It is very important to first get the words on paper (or the computer screen), without worrying if it's crap. Then sleep on it. Return to the text with a fresh perspective, improve what you wrote, and move on to write the next section.
Next, read through the text again and assess whether it is organized correctly and try to make the text more succinct: Look for redundancy and remove it, perhaps by combining sentences or deleting sentences outright. Avoid short, choppy sentences in favor of more complex sentences that combine ideas/phrases. Are the sections of the paper or individual paragraphs in the right place in the paper? Move introductory or background information to the front of the paper. Make sure your data/results are separate from your interpretations.
Have you answered the question every reader will ask - why is this work important? Have you related your results to the bigger picture?
You're not done yet. When you have a first draft, proofread it and run spell- and grammar-checkers. Then run it past a set of fresh eyes: both you and your fellow students will benefit by reading each others' work.
Add page numbers, put your name somewhere in the file name of your document (so that I don't have 15 "thesis.doc" files on my computer), then it's ready to send to me.
Scientific writing also requires you to write briefly and to the point. Use an active, not passive, voice. Cite references appropriately and be consistent in how you format the text. I have several books on scientific writing style in my office including the classic Strunk and White. Strunk and White also address words and expressions that are commonly misused (e.g., affect vs. effect; and you can always search Google if you're not sure...).
It is very important to first get the words on paper (or the computer screen), without worrying if it's crap. Then sleep on it. Return to the text with a fresh perspective, improve what you wrote, and move on to write the next section.
Next, read through the text again and assess whether it is organized correctly and try to make the text more succinct: Look for redundancy and remove it, perhaps by combining sentences or deleting sentences outright. Avoid short, choppy sentences in favor of more complex sentences that combine ideas/phrases. Are the sections of the paper or individual paragraphs in the right place in the paper? Move introductory or background information to the front of the paper. Make sure your data/results are separate from your interpretations.
Have you answered the question every reader will ask - why is this work important? Have you related your results to the bigger picture?
You're not done yet. When you have a first draft, proofread it and run spell- and grammar-checkers. Then run it past a set of fresh eyes: both you and your fellow students will benefit by reading each others' work.
Add page numbers, put your name somewhere in the file name of your document (so that I don't have 15 "thesis.doc" files on my computer), then it's ready to send to me.
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