University Libraries Resources for Grant Writing

Getting Started

In this guide you will find useful strategies for grant writing and proposal development including library and university resources. The majority of content in the guide relates to academic and federal grant writing and is geared for students, faculty, and staff at the University of Alabama.

First question:

Are you trying to find a grant that's generally applicable to your area/discipline in order to craft an appropriate proposal?

OR

Are you trying to find a grant to support/continue a specific research project or interest?

This is an important distinction! The former is much harder to propose than the latter. Why? It comes down to the details. 

Things to consider when searching for grants: 

1) Purpose - Why are you applying for a grant? Circle back to that question above.

2) Cost/benefit - Is the award amount significant enough for the amount of time you will need to invest in the proposal preparation, grant execution, and deliverables required?

3) Workload - Is the amount of work for the grant reasonably executable? Will the amount of grant money support FTE, or if you're faculty, provide enough to release you from some of your teaching? Who will manage the grant (not the research) as in reports, the budget, the individuals potentially hired to work on the project (including students)?

4) Collaboration - Is collaboration with other individuals or organizations necessary for project feasibility, or perhaps it's a grant requirement depending on the type of institution that can apply for the grant funds?

General components of all grant proposals:

1) Statement of need, significance of the project

2) Project objectives and/or hypotheses

3) Project description - population/sample specifics, sampling methods, sample size/power, data collection and security, methodology, tools and technology used or needed, IRB approval

4) Evaluation - proposed types of analyses, findings, and dissemination methods

5) Identification of key players and grant team - jobs, roles, experience, and expertise

6) Budget narrative and justification

Please also visit the Office for Sponsored Programs (OSP) as they must receive your proposal submissions for external funding.  They have several resources and can assist in the proposal preparation process. Additionally, OSP is where you will identify your specific content's Grant Specialist.

Ask yourself these questions:

1) Is your project significant and does it contribute something novel or fulfill a research need?

2) Did you read and follow exactly the requirements outlined in the RFP (request for proposal) or RFA (request for applications)?

3) Is your proposal organized, concise, and clear in outlining your project?

4) Is your budget fair and justified?

UA has an Office of Proposal Development (OPD) responsible for serving research faculty with grant proposal writing support.  There are several services and resources offered.

Please also visit the Office for Sponsored Programs (OSP) as they must receive your proposal submissions for external funding.  They have several resources and can assist in the proposal preparation process. Additionally, OSP is where you will identify your specific content's Grant Specialist.

The Cayuse Research Suite is a cloud-based management software for projects administration and manages proposal submissions on campus. You have access to Cayuse with your MyBama login. For more general information visit the website in Research and Economic Development. If you have specific questions please find and contact your appropriate Grant Specialist in the Office for Sponsored Programs (OSP).