Grant Writing 101

When writing a grant proposal you are selling both your research and yourself.  You have to build up your ethos to prove that you are capable of carrying out the procedures.  You must sound like an expert in the subject you are researching.  Providing a resume and references allows the selection committee to see your educational background and your previous success in the lab.  They aren’t going to give you money for a good idea if they don’t think you can effectively act on the idea. 

But the good idea is also important, which is where logos comes in to play.  When writing the grant you have to give the committee a logical reason to support your project.  The key to this is outlining how the knowledge you are searching for will impact the field.  What gaps are you going to fill in the literature on the subject?  How will filling these gaps benefit future research?  What doors would be opened?  By detailing the benefits to academia you provide a logical reason for the committee to give you the funds. 

The final step involves a little pulling on the heart-strings.  How is your research going to benefit the world?  Will it save lives?  Help the environment?  By outlining the overall purpose toward which your research is directed you are painting the big picture.  This is not just a project to determine the role of a certain protein in the development of stem cells.  It is a project which could drastically impact stem cell research, which in turn would lead to regenerative therapies that can cure many diseases.  

Paint the committee a rhetorical picture.  Sell yourself and your project.