University:
University of Michigan
Course:
WRITING 100 | The Practice of Writing
Academic year:

2019
Views:

230

Pages:

27
Author:

Alia Fischer

Research Statements in STEM Workshop Objectives ● Understand the function and form of research statements ● Critique examples ● Consider strategies for writing more effectively What are Research Statements? a.k.a: “research summary”, “statement of research plan,” “statement of research interests and plans,” etc. Part of application packet for academic positions Communicate what you have done, how your research contributes to your field, and in what direction you think your work will progress Research statements have a specific audience, function, and form Audience - Mainly members of a search committee + departmental faculty Function - Present your area of research - Demonstrate the importance of your work - Convince audience of your research ability - Propose your future research plan Text: Short (2-3 pages), formatted in a way that enhances readability; Can have a longer version with more specifics Thinking like the Search Committee: What do they want to know? What are your research interests and academic specialities? What would you contribute as a faculty member and colleague? What is your potential to develop your own research program? How would you complement the mission of the department, school, and/or university? Institutional Considerations ● Content and focus of your statement will differ depending on the institution ○ Research I university ○ Primarily Undergraduate Research Institutes ● Adjust scope of research endeavor, role of students, and importance of service to align with institution Form of Research Statements Form #1: Research statement as a description of your research and how it contributes to your field or discipline Form #2: Research statement as a research proposal Do you know what type of research statement is expected in your field? If in doubt, ask (your NextProf mentor, your PhD advisor, or the chair of the search committee) Form #1: Situating your Research 1. Explain the relevance of your work (the “so what” question) 2. Identify the research problems or gaps in your field (i.e., situate your work - how does it fit in?) 3. Give context for your work esp. previous research 4. Demonstrate your research accomplishments 5. Identify your future research directions (next 3-5 years) 6. Note how you might engage students in your work (as needed) 7. Use Figures and Sources (as needed) How might you organize Form #1? Consider a Chronological Order ● Executive Summary/Overview (first paragraph) ○ Address: why is research important, what is approach, what are long-term goals, ● Graduate Research (by project) ● Postdoctoral Research (by project) ● Future Research (by project) From Peter Fiske 1997 Form #2: Research Statement as Proposal 1. Identify the gap or problem that your research will address a. Gap: what remains unknown about your topic b. Problem: issue for which you are developing a solution (more common in engineering, computer science) 2. Propose research questions, research aims, or problem statements 3. Explain how you will answer these questions How might you organize Form #2? Background and Significance of your Research ○ What is known, what is not known Project Plan ○ Objectives/Questions/Hypotheses ○ Aims/Questions/Hypotheses ○ General Methods Importance/Impact of Proposed Work Connection with University/College Beyond form, Research Statements require you to explain the Relevance of your Work Give context for why your work is important Identify problems in your field that your work will address (what motivates it?) Present some of the key questions or objectives for your work Demonstrate your research ability, by highlighting your skills as well as key contributions and collaborations Examples - Research Statement Dr. Hernán López-Fernández, Associate Professor, EEB - University of Michigan Where does the researcher identify the role and importance of the work he plans to do? How does he identify his research questions? Dr. Hernán López-Fernández, Associate Professor, EEB - University of Michigan What does the applicant establish in this section? How is this accomplished? What do you find convincing? Dr. Jena Johnson, Assistant Professor EES - University of Michigan Read first two pages Where does the researcher identify the role and importance of the work she plans to do? How does she identify her research questions? What details does she include to convince you of her ability to do this work? What is one thing that might improve this part of the research statement? Dr. Jena Johnson, Assistant Professor EES - University of Michigan Paragraph 1: Identifies big issue in the field, presents question (@ power position) Paragraph 2: Presents details for how she will tackle the big issues identified in paragraph 1 Paragraph 3: Demonstrates analytical tools she has to generate data to answer problems Paragraph 4: Reviews previous research, PhD Notes: use of first person (“I argue”, “I apply”, “I intend”); analytical techniques; MI specific section Form #2: Research Statement as Research Proposal Example: Modified Research Statement BioMedical UCSF What are the different sections of this statement? Where is the research gap identified? What questions does the researcher seek to answer? Why might you use Figures or Graphs? First paragraph - hardest + most important “Power positions” - beginning of piece and end of piece; start of sentence If having a hard time starting, then move to other sections of your piece Revisit your introduction again and again and determine if or how it frames your research statement and research approach Creating Strong Sentences ● Sentence length: shorter ones are often easier to read ● Pay attention to the subject of a sentence: these establish what the sentence (+ even paragraph) is about ● Subject-verb separation: avoid too much distance between the subject and the verb of the main clause ● Connections - look for ways to connect sentences, i.e., how are they related, how do they build on each other? Example - Dr. Hernán López-Fernández Writing clearly and concisely ● Too many words distract from those that really matter ● Eliminate filler words (actually, quite, essentially, much, very, several, really, etc.) ● Use active verbs ● Pay attention to word choice, use a thesaurus ● Remove unnecessary words and phrases (there are many papers stating…. It was observed that…. It has been found that….) Getting Feedback about your Statement You will need at least one outside perspective about your statement (you are too close to it!) Use NextProf Mentors to get advice about content and how well material “engages” them Ask adviser (or someone equivalent) for feedback on content such as presentation of research problems, driving questions, contribution, etc. Ask peers for feedback on readability, prose, etc. Proofread carefully Print out a hard copy (essential) Read each sentence out loud Check for typos, grammatical errors, long sentences Have a peer or colleague also read the final draft Pulling it all together: Final Checklist Content - Is the research described important? Is it new? Will it produce important contributions to its field? - Is the research program “just right” in scope? Not too narrow? Not too broad? - Are there enough details about the research plan to be convincing? - Is there a balance of individual work plus potential for collaboration? Form - 2-3 pages in length, a useful figure as needed, references as needed - Clear and logical in layout, includes sections focused on themes - Is there flow within and between paragraphs? Are sentences easy to read? - Did you get feedback on the content and form? Helpful Resources University of Pennsylvania Career Services Carleton College Career Preparation University of Washington Academic Careers Research Statements UCSF Office of Career Development Gopen, G.D., and J.A. Swan. 1990. The Science of Scientific Writing. American Scientist. http://stat.wharton.upenn.edu/~buja/sci.pdf Hofmann, A.H. 2014. Scientific Writing and Communication. 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press. Schimel, J. 2012. Writing Science: How to write papers that get cited and proposals that get funded. Oxford University Press. Vick, J.M., J.A. Furlong, and R. Lurie. 2016. The academic job search handbook. University of Pennsylvania Press.

Research Statements in STEM

Related Documents

Recommended Documents

Description

Related Documents

Free up your schedule!

Take 5 seconds to unlock