WRITING A SUCCESSFUL RESEARCH GRANTS PROPOSAL BY: PROFESSOR ADEOLA - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

WRITING A SUCCESSFUL RESEARCH GRANT’S PROPOSAL

BY: PROFESSOR ADEOLA ADENIKINJU Director, Centre for Petroleum, Energy Economics and Law University of Ibadan

❖ Introduction ❖ Overview Of Grant Proposals ❖ The Project Time-line ❖ The Budget ❖ Budget Justification ❖ Conclusion

Contents

Introduction

A proposal is an outline or a description of the intended research. It is expected to address the following basic questions

• What is the problem to be investigated?
• Why

is the problem socially and scientifically important enough to be worth studying?

• What
• bjectives

will be achieved through the research?

Introduction

• How will the research process be carried out?
• What types of results are expected from the research?
• Who are the potential beneficiaries of these results?

Note

• Research proposals are used to assess your expertise in the area in

which you want to conduct research

• Your knowledge of the existing literature
• The quality and originality of your ideas and the feasibility of the

research project.

Introduction contd..

Some factors to consider in successful grant application; ➢Increasingly competitive environment ➢There is a changing paradigm:

➢Increasing preference for multidisciplinary proposals ➢Increasing preference for collaborative research ➢Impactful proposal – problem solving and innovative

➢Strict adherence to grant requirements

Introduction contd..

➢Some Donors require shared funding: institutional contributions (in-kind) ➢Past experiences and publications in similar area ➢Donors can be classified into two:

➢General Purpose grant donors ➢Specialised donors

Types of Grant Funded Proposals

There are two major types of grant-funded proposals. These are solicited and unsolicited proposals.

Solicited Grant Proposals

This usually come in form of announcement ( flyers/brochures/posters/websites) and inform applicants on the following:

• The donor/funding agency and its priorities
• The background to the projects and its objectives

Types of Grant Funded Proposals

• The scope of the research
• Eligibility issues and structure of the proposal
• Grant award procedure
• The submission process
• Who and where to contact for further information

Solicitations

• First step to submit a proposal is to identify a solicitation. The

most common research funding solicitations include Research Funding Announcements(RFAs), Request for Proposals(RFPs), Proposal Announcements(PAs), and Funding Opportunity Announcements(FOAs)

• Among the importance of solicitations is to state whether the

budget is flexible or fixed.

• To clarify any question related to the budget, the best resources

for this are the Office of Sponsored Projects(OSP), Research Grant Managers(RGMs)

• r

Department Research Administrators(DRAs).

Unsolicited Grant Proposals

➢ This type of grant proposal is usually not advertised. The applicant must therefore provide the grant agency with an justification for the proposal. It should provide evidence that the problem exists and that the proposed project will contribute to a solution

Steps in writing Unsolicited Grant proposals

Step 1: Formulating the project idea (the existence of a problem, an unmet need, condition that requires change. Step 2: Developing and writing a Concept paper. An unsolicited research proposal usually starts as a concept paper

• r a letter of intent.

Steps in writing Unsolicited Grant Proposals Contd.

Step 3: Features of the Concept Paper/ Letter of Intent:

• The research problem and the need to address it
• The objective of the study/methodology
• Anticipated results and its value-added to knowledge

and/or policy-making Step 4: Obtaining peer group reaction and support of collaborating individuals or agencies Step 5: Identifying and communicating with potential donors Step 6: Writing a full proposal/ follow-up action

Criteria often Considered in Assessing Grant-Funded Proposal

• Scientific merit (relevance)
• Novelty of concept
• Quality and clarity of written application
• Identification of the research problem
• Focus of research objectives
• Overall methodology
• Research viability
• General mastery of the subject matter
• Research experience of applicant and strength of

collaboration

Tips on Wining a Research Grant

• Adequate knowledge of the funding agencies
• Adequate knowledge of the research agenda of the funding

agencies ( please note that the funders are not always inclined to fund projects that do not address the key/issues in their research agenda

• Adequate knowledge of the general and specific guidelines for

the development of the project document

• Knowledge of some past proposals that have received funding

from the agencies

• Information on the foregoing can be obtained on the website
• f the funding agencies

Structure of a Grant Proposal

• Title page
• Introduction/executive summary
• Brief literature review
• Statement of the research problems
• Research objectives
• Methodology
• Expected result
• Time-line
• Budget
• References

➢ A research proposal may include the following

sections:

Project Time-Line

This provides the reader with a timeline that shows the chronological order in which the activities listed under each goal heading will be undertaken and/or completed.

• It also include information about how/when funds that are

awarded will be spent to support each activity. It is also a graphic (tabular) description of the project implementation

• plan. It lists all project-related activities, persons responsible

for their execution, and the time frame for their implementation.

• The timeline and budget estimates are important components
• f any proposal. Their importance stems from the fact that

they may serve as a determining factors in the success or failure of the proposal itself

Importance of Project Time-Line

• Helps reviewers determine how thorough the investigator is in

conceiving and implementing project-related activities

• Lists major milestones of the project and when they are to be

accomplished

• Serve as a road map in project implementation to track

progress

• Means of accountability since it sets out who is responsible for

which activity

Sample of a Project Timeline

Activity August September October Week Number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Phase 1 Data design/Desktop Research

• Sampling size
• Number of questions
• Target respondent
• Literature Survey

Phase 2 Data Collection

• Administering of questionnaire
• interviews
• focus group Discussion
• Collection of secondary data from various sources

Phase 3 Data Analysis

• Inputting data
• Analyze data with different Techniques

Phase 4 Data report

• Finding
• Policy Recommendation
• Conclusion

Phase 5 Presentation of Draft

• Sending First Draft

Phase 6 Correction

• Correction of Draft report
• Submission of Complete Report

Tips For Developing a Realistic Project Time-line

• Develop activities in the time-line that correspond with those

in the body of the proposal.

• Follow closely the guideline provided by funding agency
• Write time-line after completion of entire proposal
• Develop a simple and easy to understand time-line.
• Make time-line realistic: reflect the available time the researcher

is willing to commit to the project

Budget Administration Process

• Every budget should start with budgeting for the whole grant

and where applicable a budget for each phase of it or according to the pattern of funding expected from the grantor/donor agency.

• The budget must state in clear terms what is to be done at

each level

• The budget must be achievable, practicable and easily

understood

• Expenditure should be planned to coincide with amount to be

available at each stage

• There should be no expenditure commitment in year one for

money expected to be received for year two

• The budget must be detailed.

Characteristics of a Good Budget Planning

• A

good budget is constructed around the project plan/methodology

• Project plan is built around what you need to do to get the job done
• The budget should reflect the spending you need to do to get the

job done

• Personnel costs - What skills do I need and for how long?
• Equipment – does the project have specific equipment costs that

can’t be met from existing equipment; should I hire, borrow or buy?

• Project maintenance e.g. survey costs, postage, catering for

workshops, incentive payments for participants).

• Travel & Accommodation (car hire, airfares, taxi, per diem,

accommodation) – where do I need to go and how long do I need to be there?

• Be comprehensive: Take time to list out all activities that have

budget implications including hiring of personnel, purchase of equipment, travels etc.

• Be reasonable: add only what you need to successfully execute

the project. Remember that your budget will be assessed by experienced reviewers who know what is reasonably required to implement the project,

• Be realistic: your figures should be a reflection of the reality of

the situation as at the time of writing proposal. It may be necessary to conduct a market survey to determine actual price

• f items

Tips for Writing a Good Budget

• Do not include in your budget difficult to audit items, such as

miscellaneous, contingency allowance. Instead list all items and their costs

• Estimate cost of items in the currency recommend by the

donor

• Create budget items closely related to proposed activities
• Write budget after the completion of the development of all
• ther components of the proposal

Tips for Writing a Good Budget Contd.

• A budget that fails to request an adequate amount of funds is

just as problematic to a proposal as one that requests an unrealistically large amount of funds.

Sample of a Budget Estimate

Budget Rate(N) Amount(N) Data Collection A) Primary data gathering Design and Printing of 500 Questionnaires 2 cartons of Paper(including transport) 3000 6000 Printing 50000 50000 Administer of Questionnaire 10 Questionnaire Administrators 4 for Abuja; 4 for Lagos; and 2 for Port Harcourt Abuja Transport @ N15,000 per administrator Accommodation@N10,000 daily per administrator Feeding@N1,500 per day X5 Honorarium @N2,000 per administrator 82,500 412500 Lagos Transport @ N7,000 per administrator Accommodation@N10,000 daily per administrator Feeding@N1,500 per day X5 Honorarium @N2,000 per administrator 74,500 372500 Port Harcourt Transport @ N20,000 per administrator Accommodation@N10,000 daily per administrator Feeding@N1,500 per day X5 Honorarium @N2,000 per administrator 87,500 437500

Sample of a Budget Estimate Contd.

Rate(N) Amount(N) B) Secondary Data Gathering Transport @N260 per day X3 260 780 Feeding @ N1,500 per day X3 1,500 4500 Honorarium @N10,000 per day 10,000 30000 Survey Data Processing Data entry and analysis@N20,000 for 3 Research Assistants X10 days 60000 600,000 Model Simulation and Forecasting 200,000 200,000 Copy Editors 2 copy editors 100,000 100,000 Draft Report production Word Processing, Printing, Photocoping & Binding 60,000 60,000 2,273,780

Challenges in Budgeting

• Late transfer of funds vis-à-vis approved time-lines. Many

donors consider project commencement on the day the project contract is signed

• Fluctuations in the value of local and foreign currency between

time of proposal writing and execution of project activities

• Differences in policy of funding agency and host institutions

with respect to administrative charges

• How to deal with unanticipated expenses when more funds are

needed more than the amount approved.

• What to do with left-over funds

Possible Solutions to Budgeting Challenges

• Once the contract is signed, you may start initial small scale

activities with personal or institutional funds

• No remedy for currency fluctuations. This may work in your

favor especially if the value of naira is falling against the currency of the donor

• Write a strong justification to the funding agency on why more

funds are needed

• Dialogue with local administrator on how to resolve differences

in policy of administrative charge

• Disclose to agency about left-over funds and make a plan on

how the fund will be used.

Budget Justification

• A budget justification is the narrative explanation of the
• budget. Each line item in the budget should have a

justification.

• A good budget justification will help minimize a

sponsor’s questions and avoid harmful budget cuts.

• It is a narrative explanation of the budget that helps the

sponsor evaluates the reasonableness of the budget.

• The primary purpose of a justification is to provide

support for the funds requested to ensure adequate funding.

• Experience

has shown that including budget justifications in the proposal increases the likelihood that the sponsor will award the cost.

Review Process

➢ A blind review of all the short-listed proposals is undertaken by experts on behalf of the funding agency. ➢ The reviewers/assessors are guided on how to grade and rank the proposals using a point system as shown in the example below:

• Statement of the problem ( 25 points)
• General and specific objectives of the study ( 5 points)
• Conceptual framework ( 15 points)
• Hypothesis (5 points)
• Methodology (25 points)
• Analysis of data ( 10 points)
• Ethical consideration ( 5 points)
• Time-line ( 5 points)
• Budget ( 5 points

Scaling through the Review Hurdle

➢ Knowledge on the foregoing is a pre-condition for a successful grants application. By and large, scaling through the first hurdle depends on:

• Strict compliance with mundane instructions like the number
• f words in each sections of the proposals
• Strict compliance with the guide on the submission of

proposal-whether by email or courier including documents which must be submitted along with credentials

• Strict compliance with the deadline for the submission of the

proposal

• Strict compliance with the budget limit of the grant. It is

advisable not to exceed the budget limit that is indicated in the announcement of the grant application

Reporting to the Donors

➢ Donors normally want periodic reports

• n

their

• endowments. They need a narrative (technical) report and

financial report.

• The narrative report will provide information on the essence
• f the grant. For example, the progress on the research

works

• The financial report provide data on amount received from

donor, disbursement to date, the next trance being expected, the extent of performance of the budget and any variation between the budget and actual spending ➢ These two reports are very important as they determine to what extent the donor would be willing to continue his relationship with the done either in respect of that grant or in respect of others in the future.

“The measure of greatness in a scientific idea is the extent to which it stimulates thought and

• pens up new lines of

research.”