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I didn’t apply to @nhmrc in the last round, but have been saddened to hear some of the feedback hardworking applicants received. I’ve applied for #grants over 3 continents, have been reflecting on the Oz grant experience. A review of Australian grant reviews, if you like. 1/n
Reviews here trend harsher than I saw in UK/EU/US. You can reject a grant without grinding it beneath your shoe. Applicants work for years, are successful for years, to get to a point of applying for mid, senior fellowships. Our reviews should show respect for that. 2/n
Any application is a chunk of someone’s life and future, and as the Peter Parker Principle says: With great power comes great responsibility! We’ve ALL reviewed projects we are bored by, candidates we find completely unimpressive. 3/n
But please do not write that in the report, you sausage! 1st, you might be wrong (shock), your judgement on a project/candidate invariably reflects your own likes, experience, priorities. It is opinion not fact. 2nd there are constructive, professional ways to reject. 4/n
Better rejections highlight the good as well as bad - this is only fair to the candidate - and provide constructive advice for future success. Eg… “Candidate should work on ABC for success at this next level” etc. 5/n
I call these “positive rejections” – done right they are a valuable form of anonymous mentorship. But I see too many reviews from people who are, I suspect, patting themselves on the back for being “straightforward” and thinking it a strength… 6/n
…without realising they’re also being lazy, cruel and unprofessional. IMO reviewers aren't doing their job if they write reviews that destroy people. There’s a hardworking human on the end of it who deserves better, even if you don't think this project is fundable 7/n
If you suspect this might apply to rejections you've written, why not seek advice/mentorship on how to improve - run your next rejection past someone trusted before submitting. Ask if it reveals paths to move forward as part of rejection, or just closes them off. 8/n
This isn’t about being unable to take criticism. I’ve had many rejections I remember fondly (!!), because they were honest, kind and useful. They helped. You can reject people in a way that disappoints but inspires them. It is done far too rarely here. We can change that 9/n
Thanks for reading. And sincere thanks to anyone who reviews grants and papers, for your time and effort. 10/end.
