Writing research grant proposal

Writing Research Grant Proposal
G R Sinha, PhD
IEEE Senior Member, ACM Distinguished Speaker, IEEE Distinguished Speaker
Professor, Myanmar Institute of Information Technology Mandalay
Recipient of ISTE National Award, TCS Award, IEI Award, Expert Engineer Award, Young Engineer Award, Young Scientist Award
Email: drgrsinha@ieee.org, ganeshsinha@acm.com, gr_sinha@miit.edu.mm

 Research and Research Proposal
 How to Write Potential Research Grant Proposal
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Agenda
Writing Research Grant Proposal G R Sinha

 Research refers to a search for knowledge; is a scientific and systematic search for pertinent
information on a specific topic.
 Descriptive research--surveys and fact-finding enquiries. The researcher has no control over the
variables; can only report what has happened or what is happening.
 Analytical research, the researcher has to use facts or information already available, and analyze
these to make a critical evaluation of the material.
 Applied research aims at finding a solution for an immediate problem facing a society or an
industrial/business organization.
 Empirical research is data-based research, experimental type of research and is thus characterized by
the experimenter’s control over the variables under study and deliberate manipulation of one of
them to study its effects.
Research
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Research Cycle

 Believe that someone wants to give you the money.
 Consider the long-term goals of your institution.
 Start with the end in mind
 Identify yourself and your strengths.
 Create a comprehensive plan - not just a proposal of what you wish to achieve.
Before we apply for grant

 Research prospective funding bodies and target funding source that has interest in
your organisation and programme.
Need to do Home work

 What are current trends?
 What are the current limitations and restrictions?
 What subject areas were awarded funding recently?
 Who are the decision-makers/assessors?
 What review processes do they follow?
Few Questions

 Funding bodies look for good researchers.
 Think of them as potential investors in you and your ideas.
 You must ‘sell’ your idea: Be enthusiastic about the work!
 Why should they give a grant? See it from the funder’s point of view.
 Remember that you are NOT begging.
 You have ideas, they have money.
Points to Remember

 What the objectives of the project?
 What will be the outcomes?
 Does the proposal address a well-formulated problem?
 Is it a research problem or just a routine application of a known technique?
 Is it an important problem, whose solution will have useful effects?
 Is special funding necessary to solve the problem or to solve it quickly enough?
Major Criteria

 It is like a blue print of a building plan before the construction starts.
 Writing a research proposal is both science and art.
 A good research proposal is based on scientific facts and on the art of clear communication .
Research Proposal
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 Origin
 Objective
 Justification
 Introduction
 Background /Review of literature
 Methodology
 Time frame and work schedule
 Personnel needed / available
 Facilities needed / available
 Budget
 Outcome
 Limitations
 ……
Components of Research Proposal
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Objectives
 Very important and pivotal part and everything else in the study is centered around it.
 The objective stated should be specific, achievable and measurable.
 Too many objectives to be avoided.
 Even just one clearly stated relevant objective for a study would be good enough.
 If there is more than one objective then the same can be presented in the appropriate
order of importance.
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 It should help the reader to acquaint with the topic.
 Introduction should be short about one or two pages .
 The problem should be stated in such a way that it’s importance and relevance is
realized by any one who reads it.
• Deficiencies in the studies and Problem statement
Introduction
Problem Statement
 Declaration of originality (mentioning a knowledge void )
 Indication of the central focus of the study (purpose statement)
 Study significance or benefits to be derived from an investigation of the problem
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 This section reflects extensive review of literature.
 What is already known about the topic is written including the lacunae
 Just quoting the literature verbatim will not serve the purpose .
 It is important to make it coherent, relevant and easily readable knowledge
 It helps the investigator to gain good knowledge in that field of inquiry
 It also helps the investigator to have insight on different methodologies that could be
applied.
Background: Related Research
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 Identify a research topic
 Identify keywords/descriptors that are useful in locating relevant information material
 Select relevant primary and secondary sources
 Develop themes/concepts that synthesize the literature
 Relate the themes/concepts to one another through an outline of the literature review
 Use the literature review to develop or refine the research objectives, questions, and
hypothesis
Steps of Related Research
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 Research methodology is a way to systematically solve the research problem.
• It is essential to discuss procedures clearly with considerable amount of details: Study design; Study
population/ Sampling specifications; Sample size needed ; Instrumentation; Specific procedures etc.
Research Methodology
Study Design
 A study design is a specific plan or protocol for conducting the study, which allows the investigator
to translate the conceptual hypothesis into an operational one.
 The study design should be appropriate for achieving the objective of the study .
 Determination of sample size is a bargain between precision and the price.
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 The proposal should include the sequence of tasks to be performed, the anticipated length of time
required for its completion and the personnel required .
 It can be presented in tabular or graphic form (Gantt chart)
 Flow charts and other diagrams are often useful for highlighting the sequencing and interrelationship
of different activities in the study.
Time Frame and Work Schedule
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 Proposal should also include the important facilities required / available for the study namely
computers, laboratories, special equipment etc.
 It should also include who are the principal investigator and co- investigators, their qualifications,
research experience etc.
 The proposal may also include the Major roles to be taken up by different investigators .
Facilities/Investigators
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 Budget translates project activities into monetary terms.
 Major items:- Salary for staff, Travel, Purchase of equipment, Printing, Consultancy charges,
Institutional overheads etc.
Budget
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 Why this study is significant?
 What will it contribute to the existing research literature?
 What implications your findings may have?
 Who will benefit from it?
Significance of Study
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 Finding a mentor/sponsor; Choosing a project ; Developing research questions; Writing the proposal
 Meet with the mentor to discuss their previous work & their research projects.
 Ask about time availability and collaborators.
 Review some background papers together.
Few Important Things for Discussion
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 Are the research objectives feasible? (Time? Sample size? Technical expertise?)
 Are the questions novel? Interesting? Useful?
 Is the scope of the study well focused?
 Is it ethical to ask these research questions?
Research Questions
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 Find a mentor/collaborator EARLY.
 Choose a project EARLY.
 Develop 3 interesting research questions.
 Write & submit the proposal EARLY!!!
Write Research Proposal
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 Seek regular feedback from readers as soon as possible during the development of the
proposal, allowing time to receive responses.
 Bear in mind that strong grant proposals take a long time to develop, so plan well ahead
to ensure meeting the deadline.
Revising the Proposal

 Do not feel embarrassed about asking for money.
 If you never ask for the money, it will never be offered.
 If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.
 Learn from feedback regarding a rejected proposal.
 Be positive!
Advice

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 Indo- Sri Lanka Joint Research Programme, https://dst.gov.in/callforproposals/call-proposal-indo-
sri-lanka-joint-research-programme
 India - Sri Lanka Foundation, https://hcicolombo.gov.in/india_srifoundation_new
 Competitive Research Grants, http://www.nsf.ac.lk/index.php/researchers-a-academics/research-a-
development-equipment/533.html
 Collaborative Research Programme (CRP) – ICGEB Research Grants,
https://www.icgeb.org/activities/grants/
 IFS (International Foundation for Science) Grants, http://www.ifs.se/
 Many more……………….
Where should we approach

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Thanks with Inspiring Equation
E= mc2
E=Excellence, m = Motivation,
C =Commitment
c = 0.5 (Half hearted) E = ¼
c = 2 (Doubly enthused) E =4

Writing research grant proposal

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