Marie Curie Applications: Tips & Tricks
General context
Due to a lack of participants, this session has been cancelled. If interested, please join the session in Leuven.
Most scientists find their own funding by applying for grants. Obtaining such a grant is not simple: the success rate is low and writing a proposal takes a lot of time and effort. Obtaining a competitive grant in life sciences requires you to formulate a bold biological question, to write down your ideas in a structured and clear manner, to build a strong research plan, and cope with deadlines. This is where this course comes in.
This course focuses on finishing PhD students and post-doctoral researchers who plan to submit a funding application within the next 12 months. Participants will gain many insights into all the above aspects of grant writing.
The key mission of this course is two-fold. First, emphasis will be put on writing a strong abstract. This includes individual guidance and feedback on abstracts written by the participants. Second, we will learn how to compile an excellent CV. In addition to these key components, all other aspects of a grant application will be discussed: objectives, state-of-the-art work packages, and methodology, along with the evaluation criteria that are used to assess them. Finally, the applicants put on reviewers’ glasses and learn to find the strengths and weaknesses via unique hands-on exercises with real VIB grant applications.
So, starting with limited experience in grant writing, at the end of the course participants will understand the basic principles for writing (international) competitive individual grant proposals based on criteria for excellence.
This interactive training explains the basic principles for competitive grant writing. You will get access to several real-life examples and learn how to develop and improve your own proposal.
During the course, you will get feedback on your CV and a short abstract, which we will ask you to submit during the registration process.
During the morning session, we will focus on the general principles of grant writing such as the abstract, CV, language and questions to address in a grant proposal.
In the afternoon, the participants will gain insight into MSCA individual fellowships based on real VIB examples and their evaluation summaries.
Hence, participants that will apply for an MSCA IF are strongly encouraged to attend the whole course while participants that wish to apply for national funding can skip the afternoon.
PhD students and postdocs planning to submit a research proposal in the coming near future.
- This training is free for VIB participants and other participants from academia and research institutes that are planning to apply for a MSCA within a VIB lab. Please contact training@vib.be to help you with your registration.
- The fee for other participants from academia and research institutes is 50 euro (incl. VAT)
- The course is not open for industry.
- Note that upon no show without valid justification you will be blacklisted for the VIB training program for 1 year. Click here for more information.
The exercises made the respective topics very clear. I could easily apply the tips learned during the presentation to solve the exercises.
Participant edition spring 2021
Talking to the trainer helped me to gain a broader perspective on my project . An outsider's guidance it is often the key to highlight the weaker points of your proposal and CV.
Participant edition spring 2021
Trainers
Lieve Ongena
Elien Vandermarliere
Practical info
15 June 2023
Ghent - VIB/UGent FSVM II
Technologiepark 75
9052 Zwijnaarde
Belgium
15 June 2023
Ghent - VIB/UGent FSVM II
From Ghent Sint-Pieters station, you can take bus 49, 50 or 70 to Technologiepark. Please check Routeplanner De Lijn for schedules.
15 June 2023
Ghent - VIB/UGent FSVM II
There is only one entrance to Technologiepark. At the entrance, please take a ticket and have it validated at the reception desk of the FSVM building. Parking will only be allowed in regular parking spots (for instance in front of the building) and in the new parking tower. Parking alongside the roads or in other places where there is no regular parking is prohibited and after initial warnings, fines will be issued (€ 50).
15 June 2023
Ghent - VIB/UGent FSVM II
Room L2