Basic Elements of a Grant Proposal

The two greatest challenges to writing a grant proposal are getting organized and getting started. If you begin with the basics, you will not feel so overwhelmed.

First you need to understand the reason for writing a grant proposal. Grants are funds awarded in response to a detailed plan to accomplish something. This detailed plan is called a grant proposal.
Regardless of the grant source, your ability to receive funding will rely upon your efforts to make your case in for getting the money. Writing grant proposals that are organized in sections make it easier for donors to locate the information. Every section should reinforce whatever issue is being proposed for funding.

It is a good practice to take one section at a time, and get all of your ideas about that section documented before moving on to the next section. All of the information provided in each section should clearly relate to the primary issue presented in the grant proposal. Preparing thoughtful responses to the basic sections will give you a strong foundation for submitting a good grant proposal.
The following briefly explains the basic sections that should be included when writing grant proposals:

PROBLEM STATEMENT: A Problem Statement identifies something wrong that is in urgent need of a solution. Keep in mind that the types of problems identifying significant pain, suffering or hardship for others will have the greatest chance for getting funded.
Your Problem statement should answer the questions:
1) What’s wrong that I want to change?
2) What types of people are suffering from this problem and where are they located?
3) What sources can a reference as evidence to support what I am saying about this problem?
Once the problem statement is solid, the other sections will all serve to support eliminating or reducing the problem.

NEEDS STATEMENT: The needs statement describes a lack of resources required to solve a problem. There may be more than one needs statement associated with each problem statement.

GOALS: A goal is a general statement about the intent to reduce or eliminate a problem. It summarizes the answer about what the plan is to make the problem go away. For example, the goal could be to prevent youth (ages 18-24) from going to jail for substance abuse related charges.

OBJECTIVES: The steps to help meet the goals make up the objectives. These steps must be measurable so that they can be later proven. Suppose a grant proposal is using the goal given in the example contained in this document. In that case an objective could be as follows: To develop alternative sentencing options for 50 youth arrested for substance use related charges. The number of youth in this example is what will be measured. Also notice that the objective clearly connects with the stated goal.

IMPLEMENTATION: This section may be called different names such as “Methodology” or “Scope of Services”, depending upon the type of grant or preferences of the grantor. However, the body of information is essentially the same when writing grant proposals. The implementation describes the project design or action plan for meeting the goals and objectives.

ORGANIZATIONAL CAPACITY: After the plans to reduce or eliminate a problem have been effectively described in the implementation section, the grant proposal still needs to prove that the applicant has the ability to make it happen. This section should demonstrate that the applicant has a good idea of what it will take to run the project which includes adequate staffing and resources.

EVALUATION PLAN: Everyone who receives funds for their projects will be required to prove the extent their project was beneficial. The evaluation plan in a grant proposal will demonstrate “how” as well as “how much” things change for the better as a result of what was done. The evaluation plan also describes the type of information that will be collected and reported to assess the proposed effort or project.

BUDGET: Many people make the mistake of using the same figures for the project budget and the organizational budget. A project budget is different from an organizational budget even though both must be considered in a grant proposal. For example, an organizational budget may include the cost for: rent, telephones, supplies and the Executive Director. On the other hand, a project budget should display only the portion of the rent, telephones, supplies and the Executive Director that is dedicated to the project.

BUDGET NARRATIVE: A grant proposal budget needs to be complete with calculations that show how each cost was determined. This detail is summarized in a budget narrative. Budget narratives are required to offer a brief explanation about why and how money is being spent. The justification for the expenses should reflect the stated goals, objectives and project implementation.

ABSTRACT: An abstract is a summary of the project that generally includes the brief information regarding the problem, needs, overall plan, target population, cost and experience of the applicant. This synopsis is generally contained on one page and may also be used for press releases.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: An executive summary is a more expanded detail that may include a summary from every section in the proposal. The executive summary should be limited to between 2 and 4 pages. Both the abstract and executive summary are developed after a proposal is completed. However they are generally the first sections of the grant proposal that a reviewer will read.

While there are certain basics of writing grant proposals, the categories of required information may vary according to the type and amount of funding being requested. For example, a grant proposal that is seeking to cover costs for a bus to transport homeless people will not need all of the same type of information as one seeking funds to operate an after school program.

Many times a grant proposal will be submitted in response to a Request for Proposal (or RFP) from a funding source. The content of the RFP will influence the content of the grant proposal. However if you do not have an RFP, completing the information for the sections described in this writing will provide the basic content needed for developing your grant proposal.