Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology

In 2022, CSDE is once again hosting its annual Grant Writing Summer Program (GWSP) to assist scholars in preparing applications to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Applying to the GWSP is open to CSDE affiliates (UW and external) as well as to local post-docs writing K awards with one or more CSDE affiliates on their mentoring team. If accepted, the program is free for applicants in these groups.

Other researchers in the Seattle area are also eligible to apply and may be accepted if space is available.  The program fee is $7,500 for these applicants.

Current graduate students are not eligible to apply.

Questions?  See our FAQs below, or contact Steve Goodreau (goodreau@uw.edu), CSDE Development Core Director.

Apply Here!

FAQs

If I Have Questions, Who Should I Contact?

  • If you have any questions, please contact Steve Goodreau prior to applying (goodreau@uw.edu).

What is the Program Structure?

  • There is a workshop leader and an experienced mentor for each participant
  • There are 6-8 working-group meetings between mid-June and the end of August. These will be in person in Raitt Hall (pending COVID-19 developments, of course).  Although there will be a hybrid option for travelers to use occasionally, participants are expected to attend most sessions in person.
  • Sessions include:
    • Introductions to different NIH grant mechanisms from career awards to any type of R award
    • The application and funding process
    • Budgeting
    • Supporting materials (facilities, letters of support)
    • Peer review systems
    • Workshopping different components of the written application (significance, innovation, approach, investigator, specific aims)
  • Sessions will serve as deadlines for component parts of the application
  • All participants are matched with one or more senior mentors who will read and comment on each section of the application.
  • CSDE staff participate throughout the process, helping with both the scientific and administrative aspects of the grant development of each project.

How Successful Have We Been?

  • In 2020, among the 6 participants, 4 people have submitted proposals so far, and 2 have been funded so far.
  • In 2019, among the 6 participants, 5 submitted NIH proposals. These proposals included several different mechanisms (e.g. K99/R00, R01 and R21). Three were funded.
  • In 2018, our pilot year, among 7 participants, 3 submitted grants and 2 of those were funded.

What Does the Workshop Provide?

  • Mentorship
  • Constructive criticism
  • Camaraderie
  • Structure program and timeline to yield a finished product
  • Scientific consultations about methods and approach and grant-development support
  • Improved grant application quality and greater chance of funding success

Who Can Apply?

  • Any CSDE affiliate is eligible to apply, including those at any campus of UW and our external affiliates.
  • Post-docs are eligible to apply only if they are planning a training program involving a CSDE affiliate on their mentoring team.
  • Other researchers in the local area are allowed to apply, but will be expected to pay a $7,500 fee to attend if accepted.
  • Applicants from collaborative teams, anticipating a multiple PI arrangement, are encouraged. Only two members per team are allowed to participate in the program.
  • Current graduate students are not allowed to apply.

What is Expected of Participants?

  • Applicants prepare a draft, one-page Specific Aims statement and include it in their application material. Guidance on writing Specific Aims is available here.
  • Applicants prepare an NIH biosketch.
  • Applicants request a letter of support from their supervisor.
  • If enrolled, participants must attend each meeting, produce written products by the time of each meeting, and actively participate in discussions about proposal development.
  • Participants must share drafts of different sections of their proposal at or before designated deadlines.
  • Participants must be willing to receive and incorporate feedback from seasoned grant writers and senior mentors.
  • Participants must be committed to working on their proposal development between meetings throughout the summer. CSDE staff and senior mentors will be available and on-call for commenting throughout the summer.
  • Participants are expected to submit their application to NIH within a year of the program.
  • Participants are strongly encouraged to submit their final proposals to NIH through CSDE. Participants who are required to run their grants elsewhere are eligible to apply, but please inform us in your application.

What Kind of Supporting Commitment is Required?

  • Letter of support from a chair, supervisor or unit head indicating support for the applicant’s participation in the program. This explicit support ensures shared understanding that the applicant will be in a position to submit a grant of this type in the future.
  • We encourage applicants to obtain a promise of matching support from their chair/supervisor. This might include some summer salary, research funding, or undergraduate or graduate student RA time. This support will go directly from the unit to the participant, without CSDE’s involvement. The presence of this match may be considered in our review, although we encourage everyone considering an application to move forward with or without one.
  • CSDE contributes roughly $7,500 per participant to run the program and units may consider this as an approximate guide in developing their match.

Guidance in Preparing Your Application

Selection Criteria

  • Priority is given to CSDE affiliates, especially new faculty or early-stage investigators (those seeking their first major external grant).
  • Other criteria include quality of proposed research questions and their significance to population science, the career stage of the applicant, the likelihood that the proposed work will lead to a fully drafted application, the feasibility of the proposed work, the applicant’s ability to conduct the work, and the indication that a chair or supervisor is providing matching support for the participant.

Contact us

We encourage prospective applicants to contact us with questions about eligibility, expectations, or other concerns.  Steve Goodreau is directing this summer’s program and can be reached at: goodreau@uw.edu .