Thursday, December 13, 2007

hoops and red tape

Yikes, I severely underestimated the bureaucratic mess involved in submitting a $5000 grant to work with vertebrate animals. Thankfully these grants don't require official institutional approval at this stage or I'd be SOL since the deadlines are too soon to get it. I have to submit some form for each grant I apply for, and the number from that form has to be used on the forms I submit to the animal care committee. My animal care protocol must be pending to submit a grant and must be approved before I can receive or use a grant.

I think it is important that we have procedures and approval for animal use in research, but these protocols are mostly designed for people working with lab rats and mice. From what I gather the review panels are a bit baffled by field work proposals. I did speak to a very helpful woman from that office who gave me some pointers and told me to look at Herb's old proposals that are similar and use them as a template for my proposal.

I had no idea I would be spending so much time today filling out forms. The beginning of my break (when I finish everything- grants, homework, take home final, forms...) is steadily being pushed closer and closer to Christmas...

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