General Tips:

1. Have at least two colleagues read your proposal and provide feedback. It would be great if at least one of them has had a funded NSF grant.
2. Make sure you have needed documentation: Animal Use Protocol, IRB for human subjects, etc.
3. Use bolded words sparingly in document to organize, emphasize that you are following the guidelines, or to emphasize a particularly important point.
4. One of the most important things you can dois to read the directions on the NSF grant proposal guide.

Useful links for general information on NSF and/or proposal writing and review

National Science Foundation Website

Within the above site, the following are particularly useful.

• The Grant Proposal Guide
• The grants.gov Application Guide
• The FAQ for RUI

Project Summary: You will probably write the project summary last but since it exemplifies some of the tips outlined above we will discuss it first.

Specific Aims

Research Design and Methods

Student Impact Statement

Future Directions

Budget Justification

Bibliography and References Cited

Some other useful resources for grant-writing tips