I am working on writing a grant proposal to travel to ASCME. The following criteria is required for writing a competitive grant application. I've attached a copy of my proposal. I would appreciate any feedback on my work. Thank you.
“Provide a summary of your research project or travel. Include all pertinent background information to properly introduce the travel event or research topic. Reminder: Your audience comes from a diverse group of graduate students, please write accordingly.”
2. PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES
“Provide the goal(s) of the proposed research or travel, personal goals, hypotheses (if presenting or conducting research), and your expectations of the research or travel when applicable. If you are presenting during your travel, please give a brief description of your presentation.”
Your personal goals for attending the conference or conducting the research should be included to strengthen the application.
3. INTELLECTUAL MERIT/SIGNIFICANCE
“State why this research or travel is important to the greater community and how it contributes a deeper understanding of the proposed subject matter.”
4. PROCEDURES/METHODS
*For Research proposals only*
“Briefly outline the methodology and/or techniques that will be used to successfully conduct your research.”
5. SCHEDULE
“Include a schedule in table format outlining key components of your research or travel.”
Research: Include expected landmark dates, time frames, and goals.
Travel: Include a link to the entire conference itinerary and a personal schedule of events to be attended. If no schedule is presently available, state that one is not available and include your departure and return dates in table format (If a schedule is not available, please specify in your narrative that it is not available).
Most funding agencies provide a template for writing a research proposal, which should only be used when applying for a grant. The sections of a research proposal should be developed according to the agency’s format to make it neat and eligible. The following could render rich relevant inputs.
Attard, N. (2018). WASP (Write a Scientific Paper): Writing an academic research proposal. Early Human Development, 123, 39–41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2018.04.011
Boyle, E. M. (2020). Writing a good research grant proposal. Paediatrics and Child Health, 30(2), 52–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paed.2019.11.003
Thomas, C. G. (2021). Research methodology and scientific writing. Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64865-7_7
Good luck,
I would also include working with others across your organization who have received awards from the sponsor you are targeting. While they may not share their proposals, they may be willing to provide you insight into what the sponsor is looking for in a proposal. Also, don't forget about your office of sponsored programs, they often have someone who handles grant writing and proposal development who can assist or connect you with resources on your campus.
Heather Douglas Michael Uebel Christine McClure Mohialdeen Alotumi
Thank you all for your feedback. I am following your advice. I've created the first draft of my grant proposal and attached the outline for writing a grant proposal. It is due on Monday, Nov 15th. Please let me know if you see room for improvement.
Sincerely,
Evan
Most importantly, grant providers will usually have list of expectations to meet and it is vital that you address these whilst completing the grant applications. Ensure you read the expectations carefully and provide the information.
Good luck with your proposal!
back when i was writing grant proposal, a grantor told all of us (applicants) that the majority of denials (he gave a percentage, which i do not recall) were for lack of following direction and/or not giving/writing what was asked exactly. he said this because no one was calling with questions or asking for clarifications and he encouraged us to do so. being slightly oc,/perfectionist, i did and very often got the grant(s)
Mary-Helen Castanuela and Heather Douglas thank you. Heather, given your experience I would love to get your advice on organizational leadership. Are you familiar with Adaptive IQ? I've attached the article for reference.
I am continuing to work on the grant writing process. I did not receive funding this round. I've enumerated the feedback from the graduate student council.
1. Include any background info about the novel contribution.
2. Show how your grant project will help the problem or need.
3. Including the conference schedule and what specific events.
4. Mention of previous research.
6. Summary poorly written.
7. Does not explain the importance of travel or specific topic of presentation.
8. The proposal could be improved by better explaining and elaborating on their research.
Any feedback on this would be greatly appreciated.
Evan Gertis-- these are very specific and direct critiques, so i am wondering if u r asking how to address/fix them-- and of them. otherwise, most of these can be applied to a research paper or a research proposal. thus, i think the main problem is in the writing. #8 sums it up. to be very blunt, to be a good grant writer, one must first be an excellent writer.
also, in light of what heather douglas says, there are usually 10-1 (at least) applicants for a grant.
did u have specific guidelines or requirements for the submission.?
cannot open file-- unfamiliar with the extension .pptx
can u please send a pdf? thanks
Mary-Helen Castanuela I've converted it to a pdf, thank you. I will revise the proposal based on your feedback and the feedback from the grant reviewer.
Evan-=- i opened the document to the grant review-- did u mean to send that? please tell me what kind of feedback u r looking for?
mary-helen
Mary-Helen Castanuela I was sharing the grant review training as a pdf instead of pptx. I've incorporated the feedback from the grant reviewer into my proposal. If I could get your feedback on it I would appreciate it. Thank you.
Mary-Helen Castanuela Heather Douglas Again, thank you both for your help on this project. I've updated my grant proposal again to incorporate the feedback from the reviewers. Again, this is the feedback that I received from my grant reviewers:
Summary does not include any background info about the novel contribution. Goals are stated but does not show how your grant project will help the problem or need. Great job attaching the schedule link and on your budget. Thanks for submitting your grant proposal! In the future, please make sure you clearly state everything you are requesting in your budget justification and that it matches what you are requesting on the budget worksheet. Also, including the conference schedule and what specific events you would be attending is encouraged as well. Finally, there were no references included and no mentioning of previous research, please include that in the future to provide a more holistic summary and intellectual significance explanation. This is listed as a travel grant. Budget justification section is poorly elaborated. No references section included. Itinerary link not listed. Summary poorly written. Does not explain importance of travel or specific topic of presentation. This proposal is asking for more than is allotted. The organization was very clear and followed the guidelines. There are many grammar and word choice errors. The proposal could be improved by better explaining and elaborating on their research project.
I would love to get your feed back on my latest iteration.
Adding this as a resource: https://www.grants.gov/grantors/grantor-tools-and-tips.html
I will try to apply for the grant again. My latest version is attached here. It was not accepted again.
hi evan-- a proposal is written somewhat like a research paper-- have u written one of those?
Mary-Helen Castanuela I have written one in the past. I'm currently writing my thesis at this time.
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