Grant funding is critical to building a sustained research career. Yet in this climate of academic performativity little is known about how individual academics make their contribution to knowledge fundable. This in-depth longitudinal case study explores an approach evolved by an experienced Canadian scientist whose work is recognized for both…

With current constraints of public funding of research the question of principal investigator (PI) success has gained prominence. Yet understanding grant success remains problematic. While often associated with peer acceptance of the proposal text, research fundability in large part is informed by PI participation in the social systems of research…

While achieving research independence by becoming a principal investigator (PI) is a key aspiration for many postdocs, little is known of the trajectory from PhD graduation to first PI grant. This interview-based study examined how 16 PIs in science, technology engineering, mathematics or medicine, in the UK and continental Europe, prepared for…