A Quick Guide

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Where to Begin

For those of you beginning the grant-writing process, we would suggest reading the following three items in the order in which they are listed:

1. "The Making of a Successful Proposal".(PDF)
   The Graduate. Graduate Division, University of California, Berkeley. Spring 1987. Reprint.
2. "The Art of Writing Proposals: Some Candid Suggestions for Applicants to Social Science Research Council Competitions" by Adam Przeworski and Frank Salomon. Social Science Research Council. September 1988. This work is geared for those in the social sciences, but it is still one of the best resources on grant writing in general.
3. "The Holy Grail: In Pursuit of the Dissertation Proposal" (PDF) by Michael Watts. Dissertation Proposal Workshop, Institute of International Studies, University of California, Berkeley. 2001. As with the example above, this work is geared for those in the social sciences, but it still provides a wealth of information for proposal writing in other disciplines. Sample budgets are also available on this Web site.

After you have familiarized yourself with the above resources, we would recommend that you select readings from the following categories, depending on your discipline:

Humanities:

• Carlson, Maria. "Submitting A Grant Proposal: Risks, Benefits, and How to Succeed". Faculty Proposal Development Tutorial, Hall Center for the Humanities, University of Kansas, 1998.
• Gillis, Christina M. Scholarly Arguments: "Strategies for Writing Persuasive Proposals in the Humanities". Townsend Center for the Humanities, University of California, Berkeley, 1993.

Sciences:

Ernst, Michael. "Writing an NSF Career Award Proposal". Notes from a May 2000 workshop at the University of Washington College of Engineering.

• Grant Proposal Guide, National Science Foundation, Effective September 1, 2004 [nsf0423]. Posted July 14, 2004.
• "A Guide for Proposal Writing", (PDF) National Science Foundation. [nsf04016] Posted February 20, 2004.

Social Sciences:

• Krathwohl, David R. How to Prepare a Research Proposal: Guidelines for Funding and Dissertations in the Social and Behavioral Sciences. Third edition. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 1988.

Resources and Tutorial for Writing Grant Proposals: Resources, tips, and instructional guides for writing grants, proposals and dissertation proposals. (Source: Sponsored Projects Office)

• • National Institutes of Health: Quick Guide for Grant Applications  and How to Write a Grant Application
  • National Science Foundation: Guide for Proposal Writing
  • Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance: Developing and Writing Grant Proposals
  • The Foundation Center: Proposal Writing Short Course
  • Michigan State University: A Guide for Writing a Funding Proposal
  • Human Frontier Science Program: The Art of Grantsmanship
  • Dissertation Proposal Workshop, UC Berkeley Institute of International Studies