SHUA23001U The ABC of grant application writing and how to pitch your research

Volume 2023/2024
Education

MSc in Human Biology - elective course 
MSc in Public Health Science - elective course 
MSc in Health Informatics - elective course 
MSc in Health Science - elective course
MSc in Global Health - elective course
 

Also available for PhD-students at The Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences


 

Content

The course consists of an inspiring set of lecture on becoming acquainted with procedures of grant application writing in a strategic way combined with practical exercises for hands-on experience. In this interactive course, each student will go through his/her own personal experience from beginning to end of a grant application procedure.

The students will be introduced to the funding landscape in Denmark and learn about each of the steps and considerations when applying for a grant. They will learn how to identify potential sources of funding and in this process, they will embark on strategic considerations for their careers. They will discover how to make application strategies and actively work with refining ‘the great idea’. Getting to know the evaluation committee, students will understand important points for preparation of a presentation tailored to a particular audience. At this part of the course, students will join a half-day workshop with a communication specialist on how to communicate and present with power and personality. At the end of the course, each student will have gained practical experience writing a grant application as well as practical experience of how to give a pitch presentation about their project.

This 2 weeks course is a rehearsal for a real grant application process, which students may go through in the near future of their careers. The course will end up with a well-structured project proposal and a pitch experience for each student, which is useful across disciplines.

 
Learning Outcome

After completing the course the student is expected to:

Knowledge

  • be familiar with the structures of each part of a grant application (project description, CV and budget)
  • have gained insight into the funding landscape in Denmark
  • have gained insight into the processes of grant submission and how applications are evaluated
  • have started to improve his/her English writing style

 

Skills

  • communicate and advertise a scientific project (preferably their master thesis subject) in the form of a written project description
  • communicate and advertise a scientific project (preferably their master thesis subject) in the form of an oral presentation to people with a scientific background within basic or applied medical sciences
  • practical experience in how to structure an abstract
  • initial practical experience in scientific writing
  • critically assess his/her own and other´s project description and constructively discuss ways for improvement

 

Competencies

  • be able to write, structure, assess and improve an independent grant application

Scientific literature covering the area of the Master's Thesis, power point presentations online (Absalon)

None
MSc student at a Natural Sciences or Medical and Health Sciences
The students must be able to read and write English on a relevant scientific level.
Lectures, exercises, project work to create the written project description
  • Category
  • Hours
  • Lectures
  • 15
  • Preparation
  • 73,5
  • Exercises
  • 19
  • Project work
  • 30
  • Total
  • 137,5
Continuous feedback during the course of the semester
Credit
5 ECTS
Type of assessment
Course participation
Written assignment
Type of assessment details
Participation in at least 80% of the teaching (all categories, lectures, project work and exercises)
Mandatory participation on the final day of oral student´s presentations.
In order to pass the student must submit a written grant application and present it in a reasonable to good quality on the last day the course.
Aid
All aids allowed
Marking scale
passed/not passed
Censorship form
No external censorship
Internal examiner
Exam period

Wednesday, week 37: Hand in written application for assessment
Friday, week 37: Oral presentation on last day of course

Criteria for exam assesment

To achieve a course certificate, the student must be able to:

Skills

  • communicate and advertise a scientific project (preferably their master's thesis subject) in the form of a written project description.
  • communicate and advertise a scientific project (preferably their master's thesis subject) in the form of an oral presentation to people with a scientific background within basic or applied medical sciences.