Application guidance

Resources to help you prepare a strong application

Mathematics. Image courtesy of Shutterstock

Application guidance

Resources to help you prepare a strong application

All funding agencies will have their own criteria for deciding on the allocation of their resources. It is worthwhile taking time to familiarise yourself with these and ensuring that your proposal clearly addresses your targeted source of support.

Funders' websites will contain the call information and guidance – this is designed to help you through the application process and all information should be carefully read and clearly taken into account as you proceed with developing the application.

The following University of Plymouth resources may also be helpful in your application.

Successful Application Library

Our online library contains examples of successful research funding applications from academics at the University of Plymouth and is only available to staff and students at this University (login required).

We have examples from UKRI funded projects, The Leverhulme Trust, NIHR and others.

These examples are for internal reference only and should not be shared with anyone who is not a member of staff or student at the University of Plymouth.

If you would like to submit your own successful application for inclusion, or if you have any questions about the library, then please contact researchadvice@plymouth.ac.uk.

You may also find it useful to review funded applications on the UKRI database.

Guidance resources

In addition to the Successful Application Library, information about previous award holders at University of Plymouth can be found by contacting colleagues in your school and via the Research and Knowledge Exchange Funding Managers at researchadvice@plymouth.ac.uk
For advice and guidance on research data management please see Research Data Management.
Enquiries about research impact and policy engagement can be sent to the Research Impact Policy team.
The Sustainable Earth Institute has built relationships with a collection of local creative industries through its Creative Associates programme. Consider working with such partners when preparing your application and considering impact.
If your project concerns research in health, public health, or social care, you might also find it helpful to consult the NIHR Research Support Service.
The Faculty of Science and Engineering, Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business and the Faculty of Health have all published guidance on the percentage of investigator time that is requested in the full economic costing of proposals (internal staff and students only).

Guidance resources (available for internal staff and students only)

We provide a concise set of resources to support you through every stage of preparing a research funding application. This collection includes practical checklists, guidance on writing strong proposals, advice on project management and risk assessment, and detailed support for key UKRI requirements such as Impact, Vision and Approach, narrative CVs, and Justification of Resources. You’ll also find fellowship guidance, tips for responding to reviewers, and tools like the SoECAT flowchart. All documents are available in one place for easy access.

Research Funding Courses

We provide a range of training to help you find funding sources and write successful applications. For further information on the programme and how to book please visit our training page.