Proposal Writing

Proposal Writing Tips

It is important to remember some helpful guidelines whenever you are writing a grant proposal. Without these organizational aides, the process of writing about a complex project can become frustrating and burdensome, leading to a proposal that is as difficult to read and evaluate as it was to write it.

Grant Writng Tips

• Carefully read the program guidelines, usually available on the funder's website, and take note of both the stated and implied criteria that the funder looks for in a worthy proposal. Find all aspects of your project that are reasonably compatible with the funder's priorities and use them to create a theme.
• Outline what is overtly required by the guidelines. Follow this outline to write the text, using distinguishable headers and sub-headers to clarify the various sections of the outline. Try to keep each section to a reasonable length, appropriate to its subject's magnitude in respect to the entire proposal.
• For proposals that do not require that you follow a strict organization dictated by the guidelines, follow this proposal summary:
• I. INTRODUCTION
  II. PROBLEM STATEMENT
  III. PROGRAM GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
  IV. METHODS
  V. EVALUATION
  VI. FUTURE FUNDING
  VII. BUDGET
  VIII. APPENDIX
  © Grantsmanship Center
• Use a positive voice throughout the text. Impart that you are convinced that the project will be successful in fulfilling the funder's priorities. Use confident words such as "will" instead of "would."
• Use simple language except when technical terms are necessary. Be concise and brief.
• Provide appropriate detail within each line item of your budget. For example, if you are budgeting $4,000 for student workers, document the number of students and amount each will be paid - Student Workers: 4 X $1,000 = $4,000. Explain every line item listed in your budget in a short budget narrative.

Proposal Writing Links

The Foundation Center's Short Course On Proposal Writing:
http://fdncenter.org/learn/shortcourse/prop1.html

How To Write A Letter of Inquiry:
http://www.grantproposal.com/inquiry.html

Grant Writing Tips from the National Science Foundation:
http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/1998/nsf9891/nsf9891.htm#table

Grant Writing Tip Sheets from the National Institutes of Health:
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/grant_tips.htm

Last Modified: Tuesday, June 12, 2007 13:35