Key Tips For a Great Grant Proposal Executive Summary

No grant proposal is complete without an effective executive summary. Your executive summary is one of the first things a reviewer will read when considering your grant application. It should be concise, well-written, and communicate the importance of the proposal and how it will achieve its goals. If you don’t know where to start, it can be helpful to look at an example of executive summary for grant proposal.

Luckily, this article is here to help you out with a great summary example that you can refer to. We’ll also share some key tips to guide you in making your executive summary proposal stand out and convincing!

What is an Executive Summary?

In a nutshell, an executive summary for a grant proposal is meant to provide busy people with a synopsis of your funding request.

It includes a brief overview of the organization and highlights from the project narrative (including goals and objectives). This can also include information on how you will use the awarded funds if granted.

Some of the questions your consecutive summary needs to answer are:

• How do you define your mission?
• Why is this mission so important?
• What is the need for it, or what problem is it solving?
• How will you accomplish your final goal?
• What makes you the best candidate to fulfill this role?
• How much will it cost? 

Importance of an Executive Summary for a Grant Proposal

An executive summary provides a brief and clear overview of a complex document for people who don’t have time to read the entire thing. It aims to persuade readers to invest time and effort into studying the proposal more closely.

Here are three other key reasons why an executive summary is important when vying for a grant: 

• It can help you capture funding opportunities by showing that your idea is feasible and well-developed. Prospective funders want to know that you have taken all the necessary steps to ensure your project is worth investing in. The executive summary serves as evidence of this planning process. 
• It can help improve the chances of getting funded by succinctly highlighting how your project meets funding criteria. Funders often receive dozens – if not hundreds –of proposals each year. And they may only skim through documents before deciding which ones merit further review. Your executive summary needs to demonstrate quickly how your proposed project stands out from others vying for support. 
• An effective summary helps clarify complex information. It reduces ambiguity and ensures that potential investors understand what you are proposing. This becomes especially important if a panel or committee members review multiple proposals at once; they must grasp the main points.

Key Tips For a Great Grant Proposal Executive Summary

• Plan Your Executive Summary: Like any other writing project, planning your executive summary before you begin drafting it is essential. Outline the main points you want to make and create an organizational structure that makes sense for your argument.
• Write Concisely: Because space is limited in an executive summary, be sure to write concisely and avoid excess sentences. Use strong verbs and active voice where possible and eliminate extraneous adjectives or adverbs wherever feasible.
• Make a Strong Argument: An effective executive summary will make a clear, concise argument for why the grant proposal should be funded. Be sure to highlight what makes your project different and how it can benefit its target audience.
• Stay on Topic: Keep your executive summary focused on the purpose of your proposal. You want readers to easily understand what you are trying to accomplish.
• Proofread Thoroughly: Once you have finished drafting your executive summary, give yourself time for a final proofreading pass before sending it off”.

Example of Executive Summary for Grant Proposal

For a foundation

The purpose of this grant proposal is to provide funding for a new community center in the town of Shepherds town, West Virginia. The proposed community center would serve as a hub for social and recreational activities for residents of all ages. It would also include facilities for meetings and events and space for local businesses to operate. This project would benefit the entire community by providing a clean and safe place where people can socialize and enjoy themselves.

The center would offer a variety of activities and programming for all ages, including afterschool programs, arts and culture events, fitness classes, and more. This project will also create jobs and serve as an important gathering place for the local community. We are requesting $10,000 in funding to help make this vision a reality.

For a research proposal

This research proposal aims to improve our understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In particular, we will investigate how gene expression changes lead to AD pathology development. The proposed study will combine cutting-edge bioinformatics techniques and traditional wet lab approaches. This project will yield new insights into the pathogenesis of AD and help us identify potential targets for therapeutic interventions. 

The total cost of this project is $200,000, which includes funding for personnel, equipment, supplies, and other associated costs. The research team comprises an interdisciplinary group of experts in neuroscience, genetics, biochemistry, computational biology, and mathematics. This award would allow us to hire additional personnel, including a postdoctoral fellow programmer analyst, and support undergraduate students involved in the project. The funds would also be used to purchase sequencing reagents necessary for performing RNA seq experiments, microarray chipsets, and microscopes software packages. 

With these resources, we can achieve significant progress toward our goals and generate publishable results within two years.

Final Words

An effective grant proposal needs a well-written and compelling executive summary. This section is your opportunity to introduce your project and make the case for why you deserve funding. It should be concise, but include all of the key points that will convince reviewers to read on.

Take ideas from the example of executive summary for grant proposal in this article and get started on a convincing summary for yours!