Let's talk about giving and receiving #feedback

A 🧵about my experience as a peer-reviewer as well as an applicant for the #NHMRC IG scheme

1/
As a reviewer, this is the first year of the #NHMRC IG scheme that we were allowed to give feedback

Why feedback is important? Because for the ~85% who missed out, feedback gives them at least a learning opportunity (or at least it should)

2/
As reviewers, we know if score someone a 5 or less, the chances they will secure a highly competitive grant is significantly reduced

The minimum we can do is to provide them with outstanding feedback

As @BreneBrown says "clear is kind, unclear is unkind"

3/
I follow these rules for clear and kind #feedback:

1- Feedback needs to be specific and actionable - the applicant needs to know what went wrong & where to improve

2- Feedback needs to be kind - it is a person on the other side of the screen reading it

4/
In her 'Engaged Feedback' checklist, @BreneBrown says: "I’m ready to acknowledge what you do well instead of picking apart your mistakes"

This fulfils my second point, it gives people some support that they are on the right path

daretolead.brenebrown.com/wp-content/upl…

5/
Yes, it is possible to give hard but constructive feedback in a nice way

It just takes TIME

Time most of us don't have when reviewing grants

So if you accept a role as a peer-reviewer it is your DUTY to allocate appropriate time for that

Otherwise, please say no

6/
I wrote so much feedback about the applications I reviewed, the text was over the 100-1000 characters allowed and I had to re-write it

I was devastated trying to make a decision between the positive & the critical feedback I wanted applicants to receive

It is a fine balance

7/
And I acknowledge that for those on the receiving end it was probably still difficult to read

Most of us spent months working on our applications

The feeling of personal rejection is real, I know

I wish there was more $ into the system to support more people

8/
Now let me tell you my experience as an unsuccessful applicant...

All I received from Reviewer #1 was that they thought I should have applied to a different level (one sentence, 116 characters!)

Other reviewers were more generous but still not much I could use to improve

9/
#NHMRC does not moderate comments & relies on the expert peer-reviewers to comply with the guidelines so that the process is fair to all

The issue goes back to reviewers being time-poor, guidelines being unclear, & training being unavailable
This makes peer-review unreliable
10/
So what we as a community could do to improve #feedback?

1- If you don't have time to give proper feedback please say NO to peer-reviewing grants
2- Take time & train to give proper feedback
3- #NHMRC please give clearer guidelines & bring panels back to keep all accountable
11/
.@DrShaneRRR thoughts on feedback:

"Feedback (...) is a skill area where we are never taught any type of structure. We assume people can just do it — (...), we assume people know what to ask for & that those they ask will be well skilled to provide."

medium.com/@DrShaneRRR/th…
12/
.@DrShaneRRR: "We do not learn how to [give feedback] & so it’s very uncommon for a person to be able to perform what is a high skill task without any training"

Without compulsory training & accountability (eg panels, moderated comments), feedback should not be given

/13
Also let's talk about what feedback is not... and that is to make the peer-reviewer comfortable, to justify their score. Feedback should be there to improve the applicant's work & improve science

medium.com/@DrShaneRRR/th…

14/

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More from @FZMarques

2 Sep 20
As I’m scoring fellowships I have some suggestions for those writing one, now or in the future:

1- Make it easy for the reader to find the info we need. Use headings, separate types of presentations (oral/poster/presenter/invited) and papers (first author or not)
2-Give the info that was asked in a succinct manner. No need to write hundreds of words just because you are allowed to.

If they ask you to list your top 5 papers/awards/presentations but you have 3 don’t make up stuff that is not relevant

We can see through that 🤨
3- Under publications, don’t add things that are not publications to increase numbers (eg conference abstract - in my opinion that’s not a paper). For me, this immediately raises a red flag 🚩 and makes me wonder what else might be hidden in the application
Read 8 tweets
24 Jun 20
Truly grateful to announce I have been promoted to Associate Professor at @MonashBiol 😊

I would like to thank my team & former team members, my collaborators, mentors, colleagues for the support and feedback @BBM_Wong and @RobertB_R, & my boss @OBryanMoira for the push to apply
Inspired by @jane_bourke_phd I would like to share how I got here because I look up to many & constantly think I am not doing 'well' enough. What I learned over the years is that on paper things look much more glamorous than they are (I call it the Instagram of academia) 1/
I came from a developing country (#Brazil) where research is not valued and there is little $ available. But I had amazing lecturers and teachers, and amazing opportunities to do research since I was an undergrad. This resulted in 5 papers prior to my PhD & helped me a lot 2/
Read 17 tweets

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