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ECR Dragons' Den

Research meets the 'Dragons' - what's your pitch?

The Sussex ECR Dragons' Den is an opportunity for early career researchers, either as individuals or groups, to bid for research funding and to gain experience in bid-writing and pitching to a non-specialist audience.

This year's final will take place on Thursday 13 June as part of the one-day ECR Symposium at the Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts (ACCA).

Funds of up to £2,000 are available to resource projects and activities which, in line with the Sussex Research with Impact Strategy, support the development of knowledge that challenges conventional wisdom, extending the boundaries of research drawing on technological and intellectual advances.

We will prioritise bids that support the development of external funding applications, either by an individual or by an interdisciplinary group of researchers that identify new and exciting research ideas.

Participants must present in person, not virtually, and must attend the training and peer practice sessions as well as the semi-final and final itself.

How does it work?

For a chance to present at the Dragons' Den, eligible researchers must submit a research project application and proposal for assessment by our ‘Dragons’.

Fifteen successful applicants will receive training in writing, communicating and pitching, before presenting to the shortlisting panel in the week of 27 May. From this, six finalists will go forward to pitch to the Dragons at the live event on Thursday 13 June.

Finalists will have five minutes to pitch their research ideas a panel of senior academics and experts. After each pitch, the Dragons will have ten minutes to ask questions about the research and proposed activities. They will deliberate after all finalists have presented, before announcing the winners, and the audience will vote online for their People’s Choice Champion.

When submitting an application you must confirm that you have discussed your proposed research with your PI or recruiting manager and received their support.

Objectives

By participating in the Dragons' Den, you will have the opportunity to:

• gain valuable training and experience in bid-writing and communicating your ideas
• raise your professional profile across the University
• undertake CPD to put towards your ADR and promotion application
• expand your network with other researchers and engage in a supportive environment
• receive mentoring or guidance from our Dragons

Prizes

1st Prize: £2,000

2nd Prize: £1,000

People's Choice Champion, voted by the audience: £1,000

All finalists may be offered guidance or mentoring by one or more Dragons, regardless of the winning pitches.

Need inspiration?

Here's how last year's presenters benefited from taking part.

''The process going through has been really fun. We've made friends with the other presenters and been able to hone on what we want our project to be like, and the training is really helpful. The learning we got will be applied in lots of different situations...''

''I've really enjoyed it. I didn't think I was going to,,, it sounded like a bit horrifying with Dragons Den and but I especially enjoyed meeting other researchers from across the University and hearing about their research and spending two days with them doing the training...''

''It's been surprisingly fun. I didn't think it was going to be fun when I first started, I thought it was going to be really hard and really necessary. Something I wanted to do to get some better skills in trying to focus my research down and present it well, that actually I found the process really enjoyable and it's been really nice getting to know the other people who have been participating in the competition.''

Let's hear what previous participants say about the Dragons' Den

Key Dates

Contact Us

 @SussexResearchr