A. Information and Resources

The academy lives by information and by the recording of it. You will have to become knowledgeable of the written policies, be aware of unwritten rules, and keep detailed records of your own work with these policies and rules in mind. Finally, you must secure the resources to enable you to do your work.

1. Know the written policies

Obtain a copy of your institution's or university's written policies on promotion and tenure and discuss the interpretation of these policies with senior colleagues whom you trust. Their opinions regarding which criteria are the most important can be valuable. Have these discussions early and often after you arrive at your institution (Gibbons, 1986).

2. Learn the unwritten rules

There are many ways to learn unwritten rules. To obtain different perspectives, you must obtain information from a number of different sources. Attending faculty meetings allows you to observe who leads discussions, who presents alternatives that are supported by the majority of the faculty, and to whom the Chairperson turns for opinions on particular types of issues. Your presence in the faculty meetings also makes you visible to colleagues with whom you may not interact during the daily course of your work.

Each department has ways of socializing in the context of the daily routine, sometimes in the mailroom, at the coffee shop, or over lunch. Nonfaculty senior staff in your department are sometimes part of this socializing and could be helpful in providing information and support. Be sure that you participate in social activities and use these opportunities to find out what is of concern to your colleagues. In some departments, opportunities for socializing may be limited in number, or individuals may create an unwelcoming feeling among those who are not part of the inside group.

3. Keep track of achievements and accomplishments

Most faculty members keep track of achievements in their c.v., which they update at least once per year. However, it is easy to overlook or forget about presentations, research, and mentoring activities that, by themselves, may not seem of great importance, but can add up to a significant contribution to your department, university, or field of expertise. To document your achievements as fully as possible, keep notes, a log, or a diary of all academic and professional activities and folders with copies of your publications and syllabi, as well as newspaper and magazine credits, awards, commendations, acknowledgments, and so forth. You can use these as reminders when you update your c.v. Written documentation of performance in teaching, research, and service is clearly important to managing an academic career (Masagatani& Grant, 1986).

It is recommended that the c.v. be written with a word processing program so that the file can be updated frequently. In that way, it is possible to include achievements as they occur and it is less likely that important material will be omitted. In addition, it is a good idea to keep private backup copies of the c.v., both in electronic and printed formats, away from the academic setting.

A key strategy to maximize your success in the promotion and tenure process is to have your work serve double or triple duty across the academic areas of teaching, research, and service. For instance, your course preparation could help you develop the literature review for grant development or publication and vice versa. Serving on committees could produce publications and collaborations for innovative teaching, with acquisition of educational grants that you can list on your vita or use to respond to performance evaluations. Becoming a thesis or dissertation chair for students whose work most closely relates to your own research interests will also facilitate productivity. Remember, the demands on ethnic minority and female faculty are multiple. Having whatever you do serve dual or triple purposes lessens your stress and maximizes the time you can spend on things that count to your advantage.

4. Be attentive to resource allocation

Access to laboratory space, equipment, and graduate research assistants is instrumental in productivity and chances for success. These are scarce commodities in many departments and thus can be a source of competition. Another often-overlooked resource is the kind of courses assigned to faculty members. Pay attention to how courses, seminars, and practica are assigned or rotated among faculty. Do not be content with the idea that resources, including space, staff, and courses, will be allocated to you if you patiently wait. In academia, as in other competitive environments, it is often "the squeaky wheel that gets greased." If you are not treated equitably with regard to these resources, discuss this with your chairperson.

5. Strive for extramural funding

Many institutions expect faculty members to compete for external funding to support research and special activities, such as conferences. This does not mean that you must secure grant funds to qualify for promotion or tenure. However, it may be important to demonstrate your commitment to that goal. You can accomplish this by discussing with department colleagues and your chairperson possible sources of funding and your plans for submitting proposals for outside grants and seed money available from your institution.

You increase your chances for success in obtaining external funding if you and/or your work are visible. Publishing is one way to make yourself visible; attending conferences and meeting funders is also helpful. Make appointments to meet the grant program officers in your area of expertise and visit the headquarters of the funding agencies. If possible, have someone introduce you to these individuals. Be aware of procedural differences between federal governmental agencies, internal institutional sources, and foundations. Many faculty members see foundation support as providing the seed money that will allow them to compete for larger federal grants. (See note below)

Most effective and ultimately successful proposals do not get funded in the first go round, so do not be discouraged. Use the feedback you receive to strengthen the proposal and resubmit it. Although more men than women apply for external funds, women are as likely as men to obtain grants (Sigelman& Scioli, 1986). If your institution offers a grant writing seminar, attending one may be helpful (also see Steinberg& Kennedy, 1991).

An uninformed or poorly prepared assistant professor seeking grant support may experience deleterious career consequences. Pursuing external funds, especially for someone without a track record, requires much work and often multiple submissions. It is not unusual for first-time investigators to spend 2 years or more pursuing their first funding. Once the investigator gets funded, it may take 6 to 9 months to receive the award. This amount of time is significant when considered in the context of the overall amount of time the actual research will take, and the time to publish the results. You should consider the impact such a timeframe may have on your tenure or promotion aspirations.

Many research institutions offer internal funds for the purpose of initiating research and securing outside grant funds. The institutional office of research will often have information regarding these funds. If there is no such office, this information may be available through the department or college. Many institutions also provide incentive programs where internal seed money is made available with the understanding that the researcher will develop an outside proposal within a specified period of time. These funds can be used to conduct pilot research, which is often helpful in securing larger outside grant monies.

Following are some suggestions that can make the process of obtaining external funding more successful:

a.	Target foundations and internal insitutional monies as your first source of grant funding. Foundation funding can be easier to obtain, and the response time is quicker. Note that some foundations require matching funds, and that many foundations pay very little or no overhead.

b. Rather than designing your own research project, consider:

(1)

Secondary analysis of an existing database. This may not produce as large a grant, but the timetable would be considerably shorter for resultant products from your funded project.

(2)

Collaborating with an investigator on an existing grant. Specialized funds are sometimes available for supplements (e.g., minority supplements). If you collaborate with a senior investigator, the advantages can be immense: (a) funds for the data collection, processing, and sometimes analysis exist in a grant award; and (b) his/her reputation will enhance your chances of getting your part of the grant funded.

However, it is not always easy to find collaborators willing to share their resources. If you identify someone willing to work with you, make sure you spend enough time communicating about your working styles, expectations, and so forth. You will need to have a specific agreement regarding the publication of data from the senior investigator's project, including such details as whether he or she expects to be the first author listed in the credits (this is still true in some circles), even if you do all the work! Also, you will need an agreement about pursuit of external funds and who would be credited as the principal investigator for any spinoff study.

c. Explore funding on a smaller scale. State and local foundation and government sources of funding may be quicker to obtain and may require less detailed documentation. Specialized grant searches may be obtained from your university's grants office. Communication with the grants office about your research interests will alert them to possible grant announcements in your area and possible campus collaborators for research grant initiatives.

University seed money grants, state and local foundations, and federal sources of research money, faculty development grants, Minority Access to Research/Careers (MARC), and research supplements for minority investigators seeking research support (i.e., packet of NIH Minority programs and other programs of special interest and World Wide Web sources for latest program announcements) are other sources of funding. Many minority programs to enhance research careers of minority populations are seeking applicants that span the entire biomedical/behavioral science career ladder, from high school to visiting scientists and faculty fellowships levels. Federal funding sources often have specialized mechanisms available for investigators to get started on independent research on a smaller scale, such as Small Grant Awards, FIRST Awards, specialized awards for clinicians turning to research, and the like. However, the process for accessing these funding mechanisms can be just as competitive and slow as the traditional process. You should consult with senior colleagues and research development people at your university, as well as program officers at the funding source.

d. Recognize that your grant research application can lead to publication. When you do submit a grant application, be sure to think about how your research and writing to prepare for the grant application may be turned into publications and presentations. For example, in a relatively undeveloped area, the literature review for your grant could become the basis for a published article. Pilot work undertaken in preparation for the grant application could also be documented for publication, as long as particular requirements are met, such as sample size. This is especially true if you are experimenting with a new technique, working with a hard to reach population, etc.

Overall, the best advice in seeking out and applying for external funding is to plan carefully throughout the process. Think about what you want to do, where you will seek funding, the amount of effort you will need to invest, how large a study you want to undertake, etc. In addition, be creative in seeking out funding sources, research opportunities with existing data and/or other investigators, and ways to turn your grant-related products into publications or other scholarly activity.