How to get an ERC Starting grant? According to Said
Said R. K. Rodriguez 19/11/2020 My trajectory
Originally from Monterrey, Mexico My trajectory
BSc Engineering Physics Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University My trajectory
MSc Photonics Year 1: KTH, Stockholm My trajectory
Erasmus Mundus MSc Photonics, Year 2: Ghent University, Belgium My trajectory
PhD in Applied Physics (Cum Laude) AMOLF / Philips / TU Eindhoven Netherlands My trajectory
Marie Curie Individual Fellowship Center for Nanosciences and Nanotechnology Marcoussis (Paris area), France My trajectory
Scientific Group leader, AMOLF Amsterdam My ERC Starting grant (2018-2019) Strongly CORrelated Polaritons In Optoelectronic Nanostructures
ü Succeeded on 1st try, panel PE3 Recommendations for writing an ERC StG Think BIG! Recommendations for writing an ERC StG Think BIG! My “Everest(s)” Ø Room-temperature light-induced superconductivity Ø Analog optical computer for solving the world’s hardest optimization problems Recommendations for writing an ERC StG Be realistic (feasibility)
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Image of Earth from Voyager 1, Carl Sagan’s pale blue dot, Recommendations for writing an ERC StG Be realistic (feasibility) but do NOT let go of the excitement!
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Image of Earth from Voyager 1, Carl Sagan’s pale blue dot, Recommendations for writing an ERC StG
Breakthrough Feasible Preparing to write an ERC StG Ø Start early (4-6 months before submission deadline). Ø Read several ERC StG proposals and the corresponding Referee+Panel reports. Learn from the success and mistakes of others. Ø Share your ideas with 1 or 2 expert colleagues.
Ø You should be able to convey your main idea and excitement in 1 or 2 sentences to a non- specialist. Ø Think of how your proposal will fit in the panel, and adjust the proposal (if possible) to improve the fit Writing an ERC StG Ø Formulate and highlight the key questions that your research will address Ø Your proposal should answer: • If this is such a great idea, why nobody has done it before? • Why You? (competitive advantage) • Why now? • Why this host institution? • Risks? → Output along the way to the ‘holy grail’ Ø When writing, think of the broad composition of the panel (especially for part B1). Ø Ask for feedback from colleagues within your (the panel’s) broad research field Before The Interview
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail” Benjamin Franklin
Ø PREPARE and PRACTICE your talk *I wrote every single word of my talk, and practiced it no less than 50 times. Ø Everything matters: slides, tone, speed, logical thread, complexity level, etc. Ø Organize multiple grill sessions with senior colleagues Ø Identify the weaknesses of your proposal, share them with your colleagues grilling you, and prepare your answer/response to that criticism. Ø Take all criticism seriously, but do NOT let it lower your enthusiasm and confidence Ø If you can, hire a professional (non-scientific) coach During The Interview
Ø Smile and be friendly Ø Respect the timing Ø Honor every question Ø Answer directly to the point Ø Be confident, but do NOT bluff. If you are doing frontier research, you likely do not have all the answer. However, you thought of the most relevant questions. Ø If you obtained exciting & relevant results during the evaluation process, include those as backup slides. They could be useful. Thank you for your attention
Questions ?