BMS360 Assignment 1 instruction
Synopsis of a Research Grant Proposal
Applying for research funding is an important part of biomedical research as nothing is these days is done for free! Modern biomedical research can be an expensive undertaking and often involves writing grant applications for funding to conduct research, for conference travel and for fellowships and bursaries. Funding bodies can include major international organisations like the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the USA, national competitive granting schemes like the Australian Research Council (ARC) and the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC) and local funding bodies like the Cancer Council and Asthma Society.
Often the key to success in these schemes is to be able to write a short description of your research that is concise and can be read by someone who is not necessarily an expert in the field (i.e. a synopsis). First impressions are important and often the decision to consider the grant further is made on the basis of the synopsis. The trick is to be able to convey why you want to do the research and how it can benefit mankind and make this so convincing that they have no choice but to give you the money!
In many ways, a synopsis is a slightly bigger version of an abstract you might write for a research study, however with one big difference: this time you are describing work that you want to do, rather than work that has been done!
Assignment Format
The synopsis must be kept short (2 A4 pages maximum not including references; use 12
point Times New Roman or Arial font, single spaced) and must cover the following headings (note: you should use these headings!):
1. Title
Provide a very brief descriptive title for the project that clearly explains the purpose of the project. Try to keep it as non-technical as possible and avoid the use of abbreviations.
2. Introduction
In this section, describe the background to the research project you want to do and why it is necessary to do it. (N.B. make sure it is a human disease based project – not a veterinary project!). This section should clearly indicate why you need to do the research and summarise the recent literature in this area i.e. describe the disease you are studying and what is known or not known about a certain disease process, or why a new drug needs to be developed etc. Keep this section clear and to the point – it must indicate what is new about your project that has not been done before, and link in with the Aims of the project. Make sure you provide sufficient references through is section to provide a good background to what has been done previously in this area.
3. Aims
Clearly state the specific Aims of the project (no more than 3 maximum). These should link to the Introduction and should be clearly stated. Don’t make them too broad or unachievable (e.g. “Aim 1: To cure colorectal cancer” is clearly not achievable in a small research project). The trick is to make them achievable in the context of this project, which means making them specific.
4. Approach
In this section briefly describe the methodology you will use and enough detail to demonstrate you know how they work. You need to clearly indicate here how you will recruit patients and how many* (if a human study) or what animal model you will use, what techniques will be used (use scientific detail as required) and how you will interpret the results.
5. Significance
This is the “sales pitch”!! Provide a brief summary of the project, and explain the benefits of your project if you achieve your Aims e.g. you might develop a better drug with less side effects, a better understanding of the side effects of a drug following a clinical trial, a better understanding of the disease process to allow new drugs to be developed.
