Registration is now closed. If you would still like to register, please call us at 355-0306. Workbooks can still be ordered for pickup in the Office of Research and Innovation after the event. The cost for a workbook is now $100. 

Abstract

Writing a winning grant requires a winning strategy. In this two-day (afternoons of May 10 & 11) webinar designed for faculty members, postdoctoral researchers, graduate students, and administrative staff, and our partners from Henry Ford Health who have some exposure to writing grant applications, Write Winning Grants comprehensively covers practical and conceptual aspects essential to the proposal-writing process. Learn how to tailor your content to relevant agencies, develop strategies for each section of the application, and to articulate your proposal in a way that makes reviewers want to read it. 

Attendees will receive a copy of The Grant Application Writer’s Workbook, which has been written to complement and extend the seminar. The cost to order, which includes shipping and registration, for your agency specific workbook is $90. Registration and payment are due April 21, 2023. More detailed workbook information can be found below.

Overview

This two-part, virtual seminar comprehensively addresses the practical, conceptual, and rhetorical aspects of writing competitive grant proposals. Dr. Robertson will cover:

1. Critical steps for organizing and planning your proposal (all of the things you need to do before you start writing a full proposal in order to have a competitive edge)
2. Understanding the role (and mindset) of your reviewers
3. Our 4-paragraph rhetorical strategy for writing a compelling Specific Aims page (NIH), Overview & Objectives (NSF) section, or the equivalent for other funding agencies.
4. Specific strategies and tips for each major section of a grant proposal

Emphasis is placed on doing the “extra” things that can make the difference between being funded versus not. Regardless of the target agency, participants are taught to write with a linear progression of logic, which leads reviewers through an application without them knowing that they are being led. We also emphasize the fact that applicants are writing for two different audiences – the assigned reviewers, who read the application in its entirety, and non-assigned reviewers who may have read little, or none, of the proposal before the meeting of the review panel.

This seminar is appropriate for junior through senior faculty members, postdoctoral fellows, and doctoral students who have had some exposure to writing grant applications, either through training, mentoring, or personal experience. All participants may use the seminar for new ideas on gaining a competitive edge in “proposalship”, how to write for a broad spectrum of reviewers, and/or for strategies in how to mentor others in proposal writing.

This seminar will focus on proposal writing for a broad range of funding agencies.

Note that the majority of this content will be relevant and usable for individuals applying to various funding entities (e.g., private foundations, professional organizations, and state/other federal agencies). This is because the core structure/format of most grant proposals, and the review criteria for most grant proposals, are very similar across funding entities, often merely called something different.

Workbook Information

National Institutes of Health Version

The January 2023 edition has been updated to comply with the updated FORMS-H general and program-specific instructions for NIH grant applications due on or after January 25, 2023. Some of the updates and information include: detailed guidance for applicants required to submit a Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Plan; direction for how to use the Center for Scientific Review’s Assisted Referral Tool to identify a qualified review panel for your application; updated R&R Budget and Modular Budget Form information for applicants submitting a DMS Plan; updated information on writing the Introduction to an Application section and Progress Report of the Research Strategy section for resubmitted and renewal applications; and a synopsis of a proposed framework for reorganizing the current five core-review criteria into three factors. All URLs and screenshots have also been updated.

National Science Foundation – Research.gov Version

The January 2023 edition has been updated to comply with the revised version of the Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) (NSF 23-1) effective for all proposals due or submitted on or after January 30, 2023. Some changes for this revised version are updates to: conducting a Funding Search on NSF’s new beta.nsf.gov website; kinds of submissions to include that NSF has started using Concept Outlines and the Program Suitability and Proposal Concept Tool (ProSPCT) for their submission; EAGER and RAPID proposal submissions; kinds of funding opportunities to reflect that NSF is piloting the use of the Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) solicitation; the NSF-approved and required formats for the Biographical Sketch; Current and Pending (Other) Support information; and more. All URLs, screenshots, and references to PAPPG sections have also been updated.

USDA/NIFA Version

The October 2021 edition was extensively updated with additional content on strategic presentation of background literature and supporting preliminary data; creation of compelling arguments for project significance and novelty; and biographical sketches. Additional samples, sentence starters, and other practical tools/resources are now included throughout the workbook, along with complete examples of the Overview, Rationale and Significance, and Project Summary parts from a funded AFRI proposal. Other features include modifications for proposals that do not involve traditional hypothesis-testing work, and additional consideration of integrated proposals and those with stakeholder engagement. All URLs and screenshots have also been updated, and this edition is congruent with the new NIFA Grants Application Guide, released October 5, 2021.

Successful Proposals to Any Agency (For proposals other than to the NIH, NSF, or USDA)

Grant applications to most agencies contain basically the same sections – only the specific names for the sections and the order in which they appear in the application are different. In addition, the principles and fundamentals of good proposal writing are the same for all agencies. Given these two facts, we have written a “generic” workbook that can be used to write a proposal to any granting agency. It walks the applicant through the preparation of each section and is meant to be complemented by the specific instructions of the agency that is being targeted. September 2016 edition.