Do’s and Don’ts

Good ideas

You need to have one simple message. Identify what is the core thought of your science, but do not oversimplify. Although what you do may be incredibly complex, your communication about it should not.
Pre-review a lot.
Review literature critically, not exhaustively. Explain what is not known and provide necessary references.
Compose your application of a safe third, a risky third, and a third made by a reliable cooperation partner.
Images add ~10% to your chance of acceptance.
Make sure images are well-readable when printed in black/white.
Choose a font and typesetting that is easy to read. Leave generous margins.
Use numbered subsections.
Explain all but the most common abbreviations. Try to avoid many abbreviations in the same sentence, especially for molecules. It is much easier to understand abbreviations in an enumeration “we analyzed the function of p54, p55, p56, and p57” than when they take different grammatical functions “p54 interacts with p55 in presence of p56, which is bound to p57.”
Add manuscripts that are 'in preparation', 'submitted', and 'in press'
Have your English double checked. Triple checked if you apply to an English-speaking country.
Enjoy your application. Your enthusiasm will shine through!

Overdoing buzzwords.
Proposing a project using a high-throughput technology without a clear research question.
Proposing a continuation of your PhD project without any clearly original question and/or methodology.
Proposing a project drafted by your future PI that has nothing to do with your personal research background.
Depending on a technology that both you and the host laboratory need to learn during your project.
Depending on a reagent that you cannot simply buy but need to figure out how to obtain it during the project.
Depending on a collaboration that does not exist yet (a collaboration you cannot prove by facts does not exist in the eyes of a reviewer).