Category Archives: ESRC

ESRC – sweeping changes to the standard grants scheme

Posted on March 5, 2015 by Adam

The ESRC have just announced a huge change to their standard grants scheme, and I think it’s fair to say that it’s going to prove somewhat controversial. At the moment, it’s possible to apply to the ESRC Standard Grant Scheme … Continue reading →

Posted in Career Young Researchers, ESRC, Frustrations, Funding, Funding Policy, Research Costs, University culture | 6 Comments

Grant Writing Mistakes part 94: The “Star Wars”

Posted on November 13, 2014 by Adam

Have you seen Star Wars?  Even if you haven’t, you might be aware of the iconic opening scene, and in particular the scrolling text that begins “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away….” (Incidentally, this means that … Continue reading →

Posted in Application advice, British Academy, Career Young Researchers, ESRC, Frustrations, Funding, University culture | Comments Off on Grant Writing Mistakes part 94: The “Star Wars”

ESRC success rates 2013/2014

Posted on October 21, 2014 by Adam

The ESRC Annual Report for 2013-14 has been out for quite a while now, and a quick summary and analysis from me is long overdue. Although I was tempted to skip straight through all of the good news stories about … Continue reading →

Posted in Application advice, ESRC, Frustrations, Funding, Funding Policy, Research Costs, University culture | 1 Comment

Adam Golberg announces new post about Ministers inserting themselves into research grant announcements

Posted on April 2, 2014 by Adam

Here’s something I’ve been wondering recently.  Is it just me, or have major research council funding announcements started to be made by government ministers, rather than by the, er, research councils? Here’s a couple of examples that caught my eye … Continue reading →

Posted in British Academy, ESRC, Funding, Funding Policy, Research Impact, University culture | 4 Comments

Six writing habits I reckon you ought to avoid in grant applications…..

Posted on February 20, 2014 by Adam

There are lots of mistakes to avoid in writing grant applications, and I’ve written a bit about some of them in some previous posts (see “advice on grant applications” link above).  This one is more about writing habits.  I read … Continue reading →

Posted in Application advice, Career Young Researchers, ESRC, Frustrations, Funding, University culture | 4 Comments

ESRC success rates by discipline for 2012-13

Posted on November 15, 2013 by Adam

Update: 2013/14 figures here. With all of the fanfare of a cat-burglar slipping in through a first floor window in back office of a diamond museum, the ESRC has published its Vital Statistics for 2012-13, including the success rates by … Continue reading →

Posted in ESRC, Frustrations, Funding, Funding Policy, University culture | 1 Comment

Meanwhile, over at the ESRC…

Posted on September 3, 2013 by Adam

There have been a few noteworthy developments at the ESRC over the summer months which I think are probably worth drawing together into a single blog post for those (like me) who’ve made the tactical error of choosing to have … Continue reading →

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Is there a danger that research funding calls are getting too narrow?

Posted on July 4, 2013 by Adam

The ESRC have recently added a little more detail to a previous announcement about a pending call for European-Chinese joint research projects on Green Economy and Population Change.  Specifically, they’re after projects which address the following themes: Green Economy The … Continue reading →

Posted in ESRC, Frustrations, Funding, Funding Policy, Research Costs, Research Impact | 2 Comments

ESRC “demand management” measures working….. and why rises and falls in institutions’ levels of research funding are not news

Posted on November 18, 2012 by Adam

There was an interesting snippet of information in an article in this week’s Times Higher about the latest research council success rates.  [A] spokeswoman for the ESRC said that since the research council had begun requiring institutions from June 2011 … Continue reading →

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ESRC success rates by discipline: what on earth is going on?

Posted on October 25, 2012 by Adam

Update – read this post for the 2012/13 stats for success rates by discipline The ESRC have recently published a set of ‘vital statistics‘ which are “a detailed breakdown of research funding for the 2011/12 financial year” (see page 22).  … Continue reading →

Posted in ESRC, Frustrations, Funding, Funding Policy, Public Sector, Research Costs, Research Impact, University culture | 8 Comments