Writing Resources

Academic Writing Grant Writing

Scholarly pursuit:
Individual passion
Past-oriented:
Work that has been done
Theme-centered:
Theory and thesis
Expository rhetoric:
Explaining to the reader
Impersonal tone:
Objective, dispassionate
Individualistic:
Primarily a solo activity
Few length constraints:
Verbosity rewarded
Specialized terminology:
"Insider jargon"

Funder goals:
Service attitude
Future-oriented:
Work that should be done
Project-centered:
Objectives and activities
Persuasive rhetoric:
"Selling" the reader
Personal tone:
Conveys excitement
Team-focused:
Feedback needed
Strict length constraints:
Brevity rewarded
Accessible language:
Easily understood

 Porter, R. (2007). Why academics have a hard time writing good grant proposals. The Journal of Research Administration, 38(2), 37-43.

There is a wealth of information available--from classes to books to websites--that offers guidance on writing a compelling grant proposal. The list below highlights just a few of the options available to you.

  1. Key Proposal Components
  2. Foundation Center Proposal Writing Short Course
  3. Foundation Center Proposal Budgeting Basics
  4. Writing a Successful Grant Proposal
  5. Grant Writing for Education
  6. NIH Grant Writing Tip Sheets
  7. Clark University's NSF: Writing the Proposal-Steps to Success
  8. NSF Grantwriting Tips
  9. NSF Guidance on "Broader Impacts" Review Criterion
  10. NSF Merit Review Criteria
  11. NSF Proposal Processing and Review Guide
  12. NSF CAREER Proposal Writing Tips
  13. Social Science Research Council's The Art of Writing Proposals
  14. Developing a Budget (see Section 3.7)-Human Frontier Science Program
  15. Essay on Learning from Rejected Grant Applications
  16. Princeton University Library's NSF Data Management Plan Template
  17. University of Virginia Library's Data Management Plan Templates

Stay In Touch With OFFICE OF THE DEAN OF FACULTY

413.559.5378 FAX: 413.559.6081
This block requires the "Enable floating privacy settings tab and withdraw consent banner" to be enabled in EU Cookie Compliance settings.