For Your Considerations: General grant writing aids
This page contains several two-page white papers; "For Your Considerations" (FYCs), created by the Office of Campus Research Development. They are designed to help researchers with writing a persuasive argument for their grant proposals. These FYCs focus on general grant writing best practices and on writing about specific and complex concepts that funding agencies are expecting applicants to demonstrate in their proposals.
Writing the Statement of the Problem
Funding agencies emphasize the importance of connecting research to societal problems. How can researchers demonstrate the link between their work and the societal problem they hope to impact?
The first two pages of any proposal are critical to introducing your proposed work. How do you craft an introduction that engages reviewers from the beginning?
NSF defines convergence as "a means of solving vexing research problems . . . [by] integrating knowledge, methods, and expertise from different disciplines." How can you demonstrate this NSF Big Idea in your research or education proposals?
Integrating Research and Education
Some NSF grant programs expect Principal Investigators (PIs) to focus not only on the research they are proposing but also on the educational activities associated with this research. What are the best ways to showcase the integration of research and education in proposals?
Evaluation and Education Research
Education-focused proposals often require evaluation of the project or program of focus and possibly even education research that contributes to the scholarship of teaching and learning in a particular field or across fields. What is expected to develop either of these sections?