Think tanks can be held as a strategic planning sessions at any stage of research development. They can be held to brainstorm about the directions of a proposal or how to respond to an RFP. They can be held in stages so that more that one think tank is held, leading to a proposal. It is recommended that think tanks be held after drafting the introduction and specific aims prior to mock reviews. Think tanks also can be held to review summary sheets, review data and develop plans for publications and presentations. Each session two to three faculty members, generally who are active researchers, will act as a creative team to brainstorm directions or review background and aims or discuss dissemination.
Mock reviews are designed to put a grant proposal through a process that represents the actual review process at a funding agency, most particularly the NIH. The purpose is to identify areas for strengthening the aims, background, and methods, and packaging the proposal to be successful/competitive at the outside review. The author(s) should not think of it as a defense of a proposal but rather an intellectual interchange to strengthen it scientifically. Two to three faculty members, who have experience participating on NIH review panels, become the reviewers for the grant proposal. Typically, these review sessions take two hours. Space is made available for doctoral students to observe the process and learn from scientific critique.
The Office of Research and Scholarships maintains relationships with professionals that can assist with editing, transcription and translation for your proposal or award. Please contact the Melody Delfosse for more information.
The Office of Research and Scholarship provides proposal submission support to Principal Investigators (PI).
The PI should an initial consultation about six months prior to the proposal due date with the Grants Specialist, Darlene Chatmon, who will coordinate the proposal submission. The Grants Specialist will work with the PI to: