Types of Projects Supported

Consistent with its mission, SciCom’s top priority is the development and preparation of grant applications for extramural funding, most often to the National Institutes of Health but also to private and other governmental funding agencies. The applications range from individual investigator-initiated grants (e.g., NIH R and K series) to multi-investigator program project and center grants (e.g., NIH P, M, and U series). Editorial assistance is also available for manuscripts for publication in peer-reviewed journals or books.

SciCom provides investigators with

  • Editorial services
  • Project-management services
  • Assistance with budgets and required forms

 

Editorial Services

SciCom’s goal is to help investigators produce grant applications with a competitive edge by effectively and persuasively communicating the proposed research.

Services range from simple grammatical assistance (e.g., for a scientist whose native language is not English) to substantive editing with suggestions for revision and reorganization of text.

Working with SciCom editors, especially for new and early-stage investigators, also can be a mentoring experience that improves the investigator’s skills in using language, formatting, and visuals to effectively communicate a message to the target audience.

 

SciCom Editors

  • Help ensure that proposals (or manuscripts) adhere to application (or journal) guidelines and are responsive to the goals and review criteria of the funding agency and/or award mechanism
  • Electronically format text and figures
  • Edit text for style, grammar, and content
  • Work collaboratively with investigators to produce compelling applications that highlight the strengths of their ideas and proposed research by
    • Editing substantively for clarity, persuasiveness, and logical flow, particularly in scientific rationale and experimental design
    • Clarifying and refining the presentation and bases of hypotheses and specific aims, often with suggestions for graphics to enhance understanding of complex processes and procedures
    • Evaluating document organization and suggesting revisions to improve clarity and logical flow

 

Project-Management Services

Few aspiring program directors/principal investigators have the time and experience needed to undertake the writing and manage the assembly of large multi-investigator projects, such as an NIH program project (P01) or center grant (P20, P30, U01). To assist with these demands, SciCom offers the following project-management services:

  • Attend and contribute to meetings for early-stage project planning and project development
  • Create electronic templates for projects, cores, and other primary components, according to the specific guidelines for each component to ensure consistency throughout the application
  • Establish and monitor adherence to a schedule for submission of projects and other primary components for a series of edits that is compatible with institutional deadlines for application assembly and submission
  • Organize regular meetings, whether face-to-face or by teleconference, to establish lines of communication and coordination among a center or program project’s principals
  • Advise, on the basis of the editors’ knowledge of the guidelines and familiarity with the content of projects and other primary components, on the development and coordination of a global theme throughout the application’s components, and on the interactions and integration of projects and cores

 

Assistance with Budgets and Required Forms

Navigating the required documentation and institutional systems for preparing and submitting a grant application is time-consuming, so SciCom offers support with these tasks. Our services include the following:

  • Advise on and assist with managing forms and supporting documentation
  • Collect information for forms and create the documents
  • Assist investigators with budget development, preparation, and justification
  • Work with the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, colleges, and departments on internal documentation and sign-offs

 

Priorities for Scheduling Projects

All SciCom projects are prioritized on the following basis:

  • Type of project: grant proposals take priority over manuscripts for peer-reviewed publication
  • Type of grant: large center or program project grants have priority over individual investigators’ applications
  • Multiple projects from one scientist: investigators requesting assistance for more than one application within a short time frame (2 to 4 weeks) should assume that a maximum of one of the projects will be supported (subject to other SciCom priorities)

If SciCom is unable to meet the needs of multiple high-priority projects, requests for assistance will be evaluated and prioritized by institutional leaders on the basis of scientific merit, institutional priority, and potential for funding or publication.

 

How to Obtain Services

To receive assistance, contact SciCom to discuss needed services and deadlines. Please note that several months’ notice may be required for scheduling large, multidisciplinary projects, especially for standard NIH deadlines.

 

Contact Information:

To request services, e-mail or call

Kerry L. Evans, Ph.D., ELS
Interim Associate Director
klevans@uams.edu

Phone Number: 501-686-6004

Office Location:

Walker Annex, Second Floor, Suite 2-011
Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute

Mailing Address:

4301 West Markham, #752
Little Rock, AR 72205