Love science, keen to travel with it... As a young researcher, why don't you? Check out how you can maximise your chances to bag the £300 Early Career Researcher Prize that will take you to the conference of your dreams.
PhD students and postdocs like you are passionate about their research, but can you ignite the wider public’s interest in your work? We are on a mission to democratise science, so we want to reward young scientists who are good in their field and can explain their research in the most engaging way.
Read below what we consider when choosing a winner and boost your chances to bag the £300 travel money!
It’s not rocket science (sorry, rocket scientists) and they might be familiar from our application page:
Got that covered? Great, you’re already in the running for the prize!
Check out the criteria below to get noticed among the many interesting submissions we receive:
1. Your topic selection. Science is here to serve humanity, but the wider public doesn’t always understand the benefits of your research. So, raise their interest by mentioning the practical applications in your title or the blurb.
You’ve gone the extra mile if your title and blurb
2. Are your pins relevant? OK, you’ve added your research to the pinboard, (and you have every right to be proud of it), but have you included some milestone papers that help tell your science story to the public? Did you choose papers that offer an overview of the field?
You’ve gone the extra mile if your pins
How exactly can I pin items to my pinboard? Have a look at our Pinning Tutorial
3. Summary. Oh, the big one! But fear not! Just take a moment and imagine you are explaining your work to friends or family around the dinner table.
You’ve gone the extra mile if your summary explains
And, if you
Need some more help? Check out our Summary Writing Guide
4. Selecting the winner
The Sparrho Jury creates a shortlist and awards a score of 1 to 5 to all these criteria. We add them up and bingo, we have a winner!
Small tip: don’t forget to add an eye-catching image!
Anxious? You don’t need to be! Remember, you can be a good science communicator even if you’re not a native English speaker! Get some inspiration and from some of our past winners here.
Wishing you the best of luck and looking forward to your exciting submission. Go on, apply here!
Endre Szvetnik is Senior Editor at Sparrho. Endre works with Sparrho Heroes to curate, translate and disseminate scientific research to the wider public.