When planning a study, researchers often seek relevant grants to fully or partially cover the costs of conducting experiments, hiring assistants, publishing work results, etc. Searching for an agency or programme that provides funding can cause difficulties. Scientometric database platforms can simplify this process. Further, the research grants and the search for them in Scopus and Web of Science are discussed.
Research grants: the essence and types
A grant is funds allocated to a researcher for conducting scientific activities. There are different types of financing.
By volume:
- covers expenses in full;
- compensates for part of the research.
By access type:
- open – everyone is allowed to participate, provided that the necessary requirements are met;
- closed – researchers who meet special conditions can take part.
By periodicity:
- one-time – the grant competition is open for specific tasks only once;
- cyclical – funding is available periodically;
- regular – characterised by the lack of clear deadlines for submitting funding applications.
Where to look for grants?
Scopus features
As part of the Scopus scientometric database, the authors of the studies display information about grant support in their publication. This helps funding agencies to track the distribution of funds provided by them. In addition, displaying information about grant support creates a kind of «advertising» for sponsoring organisations. With the help of this data, researchers can track current sponsor programmes and participate in them.
Step-by-step instructions for finding grants in Scopus
- Log in to the full version of the Scopus platform (this option is provided, for example, with a national subscription).
- Go to «Аdvanced document search».
- If you are interested in finding a wide list of grant agencies for your subject area, designate it using the «Subject Areas» filter.
- Enter the required code and start the search.
- In the search results, pay attention to the «Funding Sponsor» filter and press «View all».
- Thus, a list will be displayed where all the sponsoring organisations in a particular area are indicated.
Results can be limited at the search stage: enter keywords or specify other parameters. Moreover, among the sponsors presented, it is possible to choose one or more and see the full list of Scopus studies to which these agencies provided funding.
A preliminary list of works of a specific sponsor from the selected area is available by clicking on the arrow next to the funding agency (title, author, year of publication, journal).
Web of Science features
The Web of Science scientometric database, like Scopus, displays information about the source of funding for the researcher. In this matter, the platforms have a lot in common.
Step-by-step instructions for finding grants in Web of Science
- Log in to the database and go to the «Advanced Search» menu.
- Search for the Web of Science category of interest. Pay attention to the special designations indicated in the column on the right. For example, the Web of Science categories are abbreviated as «wc».
- If you doubt the category name's correctness, click on the tab next to the designation of areas. A help pop-up for the names of subject areas and disciplines will appear.
- After displaying the search results, pay attention to the «Funding Agencies» filter.
- Click on «See All» to view the sponsoring organisations.
This method of searching for grants is very similar to the one provided by the Scopus database. Furthermore, Web of Science provides specific functionality for analysing search queries. For this, the following is used:
- Search for the necessary parameters in Web of Science and pay attention to «Analyse Results».
- Results analysing module according to the necessary criteria will appear. For example, you can select a filter by funding organisation and get acquainted with convenient infographic and analytics considering the sponsorship amount of each agency.
- Please note that such analytics are available for download.
If you have any questions or need help with the formatting of a study for publication in Scopus and Web of Science, we will be happy to advise you. The Scientific Publications company focuses on an individual approach to each client, considering the necessary scientific goals, including obtaining grants or compiling reports on their application. Leave a request on the website and start working with us today!
