The Writing Jobs

Last Minute Grant Proposal Improvements

There comes a point where you never want to look at your grant proposal again. You have spent weeks working on it and the fast-approaching submission deadline that once filled you with fear, now makes you elated. You are ready to send it off and take a long weekend. Not yet! Stay dedicated enough to make the following last minute improvements and set your application apart from those that were sent off in haste.

1. Hide it from yourself. After reading the same proposal repeatedly, your eyes gloss over typos and your mind hears what you wanted to say - not what you actually wrote. Take as much time away from it as you can, even if it is only a few hours. When you come back to it, your perspective will be fresh and you will easily pick up on details that you previously missed.

2. Reread the RFP and application guidelines. You should know these almost by heart because they are in essence, the treasure map. Grant makers often tell you exactly what they are looking for through their outlined priorities and goals. Be sure you have clearly stated how your project will help accomplish these. Also, look for specific instructions about formatting (e.g. margins, page length, font, number of copies to submit) and follow them.

3. Ask a friend for honest feedback. Find someone who is unfamiliar with the project because they will read it like a grant reviewer would: without any prior knowledge of your work. After they have finished reading, ask them to sum up your project out loud. If they cannot, go back and clarify the parts that stump them, because these are mostly likely the parts that will stump a grant reviewer too.

4. Write your goal in two sentences. Unlike objectives, your goal is a lofty ambition; an answer to the question, “How do you want to change the world?” Write your goal on a post-it note and stick it next to your computer screen. While doing final edits, ask yourself if you have weaved that goal into all the activities of your project.

5. Add cited research to your needs statement. A needs statement should be backed up by persuasive proof. Someone making the case for a problem with homelessness and states, “64% of students who fail a class at Palm High have been homeless at one time” is more convincing than he who writes, “homelessness is a problem at Palm High.” To prove that you are not making up statistics (like I just did) cite your sources in a footnote.

6. Add page numbers. Reviewers almost always work in groups and appreciate being able to reference certain pages when discussing proposals.

7. Add white space. Chances are you have so much to say about your program that you have already considered changing margins, single spacing, and using 10-point font to cram as much text into your document as possible. Please don’t. Grant readers will appreciate an application that is not only succinct and specific, but also easy on the eyes.

8. Deliver it in person (or let FedEx do the same). Even if you have enough time to send it by mail, seeing the grant transferred from your hands to the safety of the hands of the Foundation will prevent any middle of the night panic attacks. The signature that FedEx requires is the second best thing. If you must submit electronically, print out your confirmation screen or email.

Congratulations! You have not only finished your proposal and sent it out into the world, but by making the easy improvements above, you can enjoy that long weekend without having to worry that you missed something.

Katie Krueger is the editor of Find Funding, a FREE Grant Writing Newsletter! Subscribe online today at http://www.FindFunding.net