Questions tagged [funding]
This tag refers to questions related to source and utilization of academic funding from government or non-governmental sources.
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Grant fraud, should I bust my PhD advisor?
tl;dr: Should I report this large grant fraud, and what consequences could it have for me?
For obvious reasons, I will try to maintain some anonymity here.
So I defended my thesis. Which was funded ...
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Why do universities fund Ph.D. students in the sciences?
I was recently accepted into an applied math Ph.D. here in the U.S., and being the 1st in my family to graduate from university, I had a hard time explaining to them why my university will be spending ...
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Donating money to scientific research after my death
I'm lucky - I probably won't have to provide for any loved ones after I die (they can take care of themselves). That means I can use my assets on whatever I want, and most likely, that will be science....
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Why do researchers need universities?
This is a follow-up question to How are junior professors evaluated for promotion? and probably an even more naive question. If I'm understanding the answer correct, professors need funding to do ...
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Is it ethical to buy noise canceling headphones with research funds?
Noise canceling headphones are quite expensive (up to 300 USD) compared to normal headphones, but can boost productivity by creating a sound isolation in noisy environments. Would it be ethically ...
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Advisor drops MSci student suddenly in final semester
Today I had a fellow student (who is working on a master's degree) come to me and inform me that our mutual advisor (call her Professor WW) had just dropped her as a student for "personal reasons." I ...
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Why does research cost so much money?
I have been dragged into an argument with someone who can't understand why millions are being raised to fund ALS research (that's the "ice bucket challenge", love it or hate it). He doesn't get why ...
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Could Brexit negatively affect PhD students in the UK who are EU nationals?
This question relates to the potential withdrawal of the UK from the European Union, a.k.a. Brexit.
I am an Italian citizen, and I will start a (funded) PhD in the UK in September.
Right now I don'...
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Should you tell grad students to apply for grants you know they won't get?
I am a humanities professor at a middling university in the United States. My department has a poorly funded Ph.D. program, which attracts second-tier students at best. (The good Ph.D. students go to ...
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Why does research on the busy beaver function get funded?
I saw this video about the busy beaver function and looked at the applications section of the Wikipedia article about the busy beaver function.
I concluded that there is zero practical or even ...
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Professor expects me to attend a conference. I can't afford to go,even with 50% funding
I am a first year Ph.D. student. During my master's (which was in a different university), a professor (call him M) and I worked on a paper on banking regulations. Apart from the single idea, all of ...
user96433
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Bombed an academic interview, should I do anything about it?
I had an interview a few days back for a grant for graduate studies. The interview panel consisted of various judges including some of the most renowned and well known researchers/professors in my ...
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Final report rejected, institution asked to return funding and prosecute my supervisor
When I finished my PhD, I was working on a small grant project worth €6000 with the aim of integrating computational software and public services offered by another institution. In our final report, I ...
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Why is obtaining research grants so important to universities?
I do not understand why universities are putting “pressure” on staff to obtain research grants. Well, in certain fields, research grants might be important for getting instruments or equipment, but in ...
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How do so many people here on Academia.SE, and in general, afford lavish higher education programs?
I graduated last year with a BS in Computer Science. I do not come from a particularly wealthy family, (very low middle class), and was only able to afford my education via school loans/scholarships ...
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I've been admitted to multiple PhD programs, how should I choose between them?
I've been admitted to more than one PhD program, and I'm having a very hard time making a decision.
The programs I'm accepted to have advantages and disadvantages with respect to one another. How do I ...
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Are authors of papers okay with receiving questions from people in industry?
Would authors of a paper be okay with fielding technical questions about the paper (implementation, theory, etc.) from a person in industry?
I see this as a moral grey area because an engineer in ...
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How to avoid and address a lack of gender diversity in grant proposals?
I just got reviews back on a grant proposal.
On the whole the reviews were positive, but one reviewer criticised us because the five PIs are all male.
The proposed project arises naturally out of a ...
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Is it possible to start a PhD at 36 without taking a huge hit financially?
I'm currently working as a Senior Engineer (Mechanical) for a large company. However, I am increasingly finding the work to be dull and lacking in challenge. I don't think I can bear to spend the next ...
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How do academics reconcile simultaneously collaborating and competing with colleagues?
In many fields of academia, a professor must get grants to fund his research (e.g., medicine, biology).
Early in academic career, a scientist can have naive expectations about how things work in ...
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Is there hard evidence that the grant peer review system performs significantly better than random?
Funding agencies in academia use peer review to assess the quality of submitted grant proposals and to decide which proposals should be funded. I have some doubts that this system actually works based ...
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Is it normal to feel like I bought my way into graduate school after being rejected and then accepted when I was awarded an external fellowship?
I initially got rejected by the two schools I applied to (horrible pGRE scores, lackluster GRE scores, and only did research at my undergraduate institute), but then I got an NSF fellowship, and was ...
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Having children while at graduate school
I am finishing my first year of Masters and have always thought of going for a PhD in North America. I and my girlfriend are going to have a baby which is totally unexpected. The due day will be ...
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What part-time jobs are suitable for PhD students?
I know PhD is unsparing in terms of available time, but at times there may be situations that demand some extra income, for example, family situations or some medical emergency.
In such cases, are ...
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What advantages do professors have over equivalent industry and government researchers?
Tenure track professors at USA R1s, ideally in STEM, help me understand: in 2021 what advantages do professors have over equivalent industry and government researchers?
I am tenure track at a top 5 ...
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How to tell reviewers that I can't update my results
I spent a lot of time during my post-doc doing a big-data analysis using cloud credits paid for by a grant. I got the research conducted, written up, and submitted to a journal. The modeling I did ...
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Reviewer wants me to do x - Should I admit I don't have the resources to do so although I think it's a good idea?
A reviewer pointed out that I should do an additional experiment to further validate my analysis. I agree this would be a good idea and would further strengthen the manuscript. However, I think it ...
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PhD advisor lost funding, need advice
I am an international PhD student in an engineering department in US and was fully funded for all two years, but just two weeks before the fall semester (without any warning), my advisor informed me ...
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Is this footnote from one of Perelman's papers meant to be a joke, or is it mandatory to list one's source of funding?
In one of Grigori Perelman's papers, on the first page there's a footnote where he says,
∗St.Petersburg branch of Steklov Mathematical Institute, Fontanka 27,
St.Petersburg 191011, Russia. Email:...
user93132
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Are universities run more and more like businesses? What are the consequences? [closed]
I watched an episode of "Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj" called "Is College Still Worth It?"
In there the point was made, with ample evidence, that universities are increasingly ...
user128124
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Is it appropriate to mention one's religion in an academic CV?
I recently moved to a Nordic country in an academic position. For my first grant application, I collaborated with other researchers at the university. As I was submitting the proposal along with the ...
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My significant other is a member of a research project that I coordinate. How to allocate funding?
I'm responsible for a large research project, with many members and some substantial funding for traveling to conferences. However, I'm now in a relationship with one of its members. How should I ...
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Should arguments based on the proponent's gender be used in a grant proposal?
Recently I have reviewed a project from a female proponent. Among the scientific content there was a section about the under-representation of women in a specific field - saying that, on top of all ...
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How to find grant proposal samples?
Compared to writing a research paper, I found writing a grant proposal to be much more intimidating, because there aren't any finished products that I can compare to. I am wondering if there are any ...
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Why do academics have to get their own grants?
Usually in industry, we are either employed (in which case our company pays us), or founders (in which case we go look for funding). To the extent that we need to spend the company's money, or hire ...
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Are there many countries in which universities pay PhD students a wage comparable to a basic job in industry?
I should soon complete my masters degree in engineering and have decided to apply for a PhD after I finish.
An issue I face is that I cannot afford to not receive a wage that I could for example get ...
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Are professors not allowed to work on what they want to work on without a grant?
In this video on mathematician Maria Chudnovsky, she says "with the MacArthur Fellowship, I'll be able to work exactly on the problems I want to work on."
Are professors not able to work on what they ...
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Re-using text from a grant proposal in a paper (or vice versa)
I have a grant proposal that I'm ready to submit, and I would like to re-use a significant amount of the text (on the order of 5-8 pages) in a paper that I intend to submit to a journal for ...
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Is it ethical to watch recreational videos or listen to music on a portable work computer bought from a research fund?
I am in my first year of a PhD in France. My adviser recently bought a laptop for me using the research funds on which the computational codes for my research work are installed. According to my ...
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How much detail to include in first email to potential PhD supervisor?
First, I must mention that I found these questions helpful:
Prospective PhD contacts potential supervisor but receives no answer after 2-3 emails, what to do?
What to do when emails to a potential ...
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Why is discrimination based on citizenship allowed in PhD funding in the UK?
This question is specifically aiming at the UK PhD admission system.
Having spent roughly 6 years in the UK - 2 years A-Level and 4 years undergraduate, I am now moving forward into applying for PhD ...
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Advisor asking me to use my grant to cover his orders
I am now working as a postdoctoral researcher in Japan. I came to work at this institute when it received a big grant from government more than 2 years ago. My research budget is paid from a small ...
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What is a soft-money research position?
I have read the term "soft-money research position" a few times.
E.g. Path of a postdoc.
Another consideration for interviewees is whether to pursue a
"soft-money" position. A tenure-track ...
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How am I supposed to go to conferences with a reimbursement system as a poor TA?
I don't get paid much as a TA. I wanted to go to conferences but all of them operate on a reimbursement system. Between flights, shuttles, hotels, etc. it can be up to like $1000 not including food. ...
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How do you "grow your own" post doc opportunity?
I am a finishing doctoral student (graduation in ~7-9 months) and I would love to get an year or so of postdoctoral experience. I've come to understand that a postdoc is generally paid by funds ...
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Are professors at a public university in the U.S. considered to be "employed by the U.S. government"?
Also, is a grad student who is being funded by an NSF grant considered to be "employed by the U.S. government"?
I ask because I'm submitting a paper, and I have to state whether or not all authors ...
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Is my advisor asking me to commit fraud?
I am currently a postdoc, leaving my position in ~1 month. I am departing my contract a few months early after receiving an offer for a job in industry, about which my advisor is very upset. It is ...
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Why are there so many PhD positions and so few PostDoc positions?
I don't have hard numbers (if you know a good source, please do share), but it is quite apparent that there are many more Ph.D. student positions advertised than PostDoc positions, at least in my ...
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Will the Ph.D. stipend be enough to support my parents?
I am considering to do a Ph.D. from the USA and I wonder, if the stipend would be sufficient to support my parents.
I estimate that I need to send about 400 USD a month to my parents. Will I be able ...
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The Curious Case of Disappearing Funds
I am a Marie Curie early stage researcher in a H2020 funded project (early training network, for those aware of the terminology), that's spread between several universities in Europe (including where ...
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