“Current Fellows present their experiences in research and information on fellowships”

Royal society

BBSRC, MRC, ESRC

Wellcome trust

Human Frontiers Science Program

I did this PhD with [some Nobel prize] because …

My main achievements: publications, conferences, IP, the best […], change of paradigm, highly cited, etc

I then moved to [some prestigious place] because X, Y, Z , excellence, leader in the field, pioneers, etc – discovering a new area of science

My main achievements were: international network, the first, publications, conferences, IP, etc

I am now ready to lead a research group and develop my own program of research in the rapidly developing area of [some sexy hot topical subject] …

Enthusiasm, determination, impact, ambition to become a leader in the field

PhD, Conformation of polymers on surfaces, Strasbourg, France, 1999-2002

• One paper published by the end of the PhD (3 more were eventually published later)

• One important experiment which was to have a determinant impact on my research career:

Garance, 14/03/2001

End of 2002 – Two-body problem (in fact three-body) – NEED TO FIND A PDRA position in the same place…

PDRA, functionalized gold nanoparticles for biosensing, Liverpool, 2002-2005

• 3 - 4 articles

• Conferences: Gordon Bioanalytical Sensors; ESF

In 2004-2005: we applied for jobs in France, she also applied for a BBSRC Fellowship in Liverpool

Laura, 1/10/2003

Royal society research grant

HFSP short international Fellowship

BBSRC Fellowship, Nanoparticles for imaging in live cells, Liverpool, 2006-2011

http://raphazlab.wordpress.com/about/

Why was my application successful?

“it pushed all the right buttons” + luck

Interdisciplinary: It addressed a real challenge in the field of biology using/developing new tools from chemistry and physics

Profile: a physicist by training, with a PDRA in Biology and Chemistry

A hot topic: “nano” and “bionano”

A balance of high-risk – high impact and lower risk, but still good science

The right place: synergy

=> New ideas, better picture of the state-of-the-art, meet senior scientists who could become referees / collaborators

Conferences

Why was my application successful?

International collaborations – reference letters

Support of the host organization: internal reviews, internal collaborations, mock interview

What is the wider context of the research?Where is the field heading?What is the most important open question in your field?Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?Why is this research important?What difference will it make to the UK?What impact will the research have internationally?What was the eye opener example that took you in this direction? Why is the research timely?What is new about this research?Who is interested in it? Who will benefit?How are you going to evaluate the success of your proposal?Why is an ARF the right thing for you at this stage of your career?What will you do if you don’t get the ARF?What will you do if you don’t get a lectureship?What are potential applications?What will the difficult points be?Who does research closest to the kind you are proposing?Who else in the UK does related research?Who in Europe/the world does related research?Which journals are appropriate?Which conferences will you go to?How would you make chemistry more attractive to teenagers?Describe your research career to date.If you could do this research anywhere in the world outside the UK, where would you go? How can you compete with these labs?What long-term career aims do you have? Do you want to be a professor?What long-term research goals do you have?What particular research skills do you have?What lessons did you learn from your PhD?