The following 7 tips on applying for grants can be useful for any size of grant you might be thinking of applying for. The first time you fill one out, the process is going to seem a bit daunting, especially if the application is for a rather large grant. Take your time and ease into the process. It might be helpful to start small and work your way up to larger grants later on.
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Don’t Get Frustrated
There are many aspects involved with applying for grants and it’s easy to become frustrated with the entire process. Take your time collecting information, filling out forms, and be prepared to make adjustments when necessary.
Have Someone Look over Your Application before Sending It in
It helps to have the opinion of someone else as to whether or not your application is easy to understand. It’s also beneficial if the person critiquing your application has filled out a few of their own in the past. They will be able to know what to look for and give you tips on what needs to be changed.
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Find out How Long It Will Be before You Receive Any Form of Notification
Knowing approximately how long you need to wait before you should start to become concerned is useful. Most organizations will have an approximate length of time that you should expect to wait before being notified of your acceptance. They should also notify you if your application was declined and they might even offer some feedback on why it was declined.
Make Your Application is Clear and Precise
Besides clarity and precision, being realistic is another aspect to keep in mind when filling out your grant application. It’s easy to overload the application with a lot of unnecessary statistics and material. Don’t send publications, videotapes, or other forms of documentation that they don’t need. Stick to the facts and leave it at that. Most funders have a lot of applicants to go through and if you have tons of unrequested materials included with your application, they might save yours for last. Worse yet, they might simply reject it to make things easier on themselves.
Don’t Pass out One Generic Proposal
When applying for grant money, you need to appeal to different funders, which mean your proposal will most likely need to be altered for each funding source. You’ll need to follow the guidelines stressed by each funder and work these into your proposal, so as to be more readily noticed by each funder. Align your goals with the guidelines organizations state in the grants they are offering. Make sure to follow the specifics attached to each guideline as well.
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Know Where Funding Comes from
Get a list of sources where funds will be coming from for the grant you are interested in applying for. Some foundations will let you know what types of projects they do and do not support, which is always a good thing to know. Find organizations that have guidelines that fit in with the goals you have planned for your grant money.
Plan Ahead
Knowing well in advance what you need when applying for a grant will make the process that much easier. It’s best to have any necessary forms, the proper documentation, or statistics that you will need before actually beginning the process of applying for a grant. You’ll need to have all your goals and various details in place before you can even think of beginning the application process.
Reading over these 7 tips on applying for grants should give you a general idea as to what’s in store for you when applying for a grant of any kind. What sort of experience have you already had with grant applications?
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