Research development

Writing a Research Grant Proposal

Writing a Research Grant Proposal
Short description of the project, Background, Methodology, Budget, Outcomes of your study, Institutional approval

Short description of the project (abstract)
This section should include information relating to:

• The purpose of the research
• The importance of the research
• The background and feasibility of your project
• A brief description of relevant information, the target population, hypotheses, and methodology
• A brief description of methodology and expected results
• A description of the contributions your research will make to the field of knowledge and health outcomes.

Background

• Make certain that your background discussion remains focussed on the issues your research will address. At the end of each topic, point out to the reader how your proposed findings will help resolve important issues in the field.
• The background section should contain:
  • Information about the scope of the problem i.e. why it is widespread, serious, or important.
  • A critical review of the relevant literature, including highlights of ongoing research and gaps in knowledge. As a general rule, citations older than 10 years should not be used unless they are absolutely necessary in making the case for the proposed study or, if they are seminal works that should not be omitted.
  • An explanation of why this study needs to be done, and why this research is relevant and necessary for the target population. The work must be placed in context. Use statistics and prevalence rates to emphasise the need. Spending some time to conduct a small pilot study before you submit your proposal will increase your chances of getting funded. If pilot data is unavailable, specifically mention data relating to similar projects that support any of the ideas or hypotheses of the proposed study.
  • A well-grounded theoretical basis for your study or project; remember that reviewers tend to look favourably upon projects that have strong theoretical underpinnings. You need to convince the reviewer that you are planning to test hypotheses, not simply collect data to confirm your favourite hypotheses, and that you are open-minded enough to reject your hypotheses if the experimental results do not support your hypotheses.
  • The long-term uses of this research, including the contributions to the existing pool of knowledge.

Methodology
The goal of the research design and methods section is to:

• Minimize the number of assumptions reviewers must make about your project.
• Show that you are using scientifically sound approaches.

• Make sure that the study you describe corresponds with the specific objectives you listed earlier in the proposal.
• Make sure that the underlying science and methods behind your plan are sound, feasible and complete as possible.
• Give details of:
  • The design of the study (e.g. descriptive, comparative, longitudinal, case-control, quasi-experimental, randomised) and explain why that design was chosen.
  • Data collection procedures (how will the data be collected, who will collect the data, what procedures will be used?).
  • The procedures for training of researchers or interviewers.
  • Access to specialised facilities or equipment where applicable.
  • Procedures for handling of participants and confidentiality issues.
  • Procedures and approval for working with animals where applicable.
  • Possible hazards to research personnel and study participants and procedures to prevent dangerous situations.
• Briefly discuss the limitations of the proposed study, and alternative methodologies for carrying out the proposed research plan if these limitations impact negatively on your ability to conduct the study as planned.
• Give a timeline for tasks to be completed during the project period. The timeline must accurately reflect what was planned for in the study and be consistent with the requested budget.
• Statistical Considerations

Researchers that do not have a sound working knowledge of statistics are advised
to consult with a biostatistician to ensure that the procedures for sampling,
data collection and data analysis are scientifically valid.

Ensure that the following have been fully considered in your methodology section:

• What data will be collected and the frequency of data collection.
• The inclusion and non-inclusion criteria for subjects or participants.
• The source of recruitment of subjects or participants is clearly indicated.
• The nature of the control group, if any, indicating whether it will be simultaneously studied or whether it will be a historical reference group.
• The research instruments and data collection forms. If these have already been developed, include a copy of each instrument in an appendix. Include details of previous reliability and validity data for the instruments.
• The sample size. Indicate whether this is sufficient in the light of the expected difference and the variance within the control and test groups. What power does this sample size give you for addressing the objectives of the study? How long will it take to obtain this sample size?
• Data analysis and evaluation. The data collection should address all the objectives of the study and the statistical analysis should consider all the data collected. Indicate the statistical procedures and methods that you will use to analyse the data for each hypothesis you are testing and explain how will you deal with missing data. The methods to be used for statistical analysis must be appropriate and documented.

Budget

• Include all other sources of funding for the proposed study.
• Provide a justification for all categories of funds requested.
• Reviewers can recommend budget cuts when they think that expenses are overly high or unwarranted. The budget must accurately reflect the plan for data collection, data analysis, and data write-up.
• If you are just beginning as an independent investigator, do not ask for a very large grant. Demonstrate that you can complete a good small project with a relatively smaller amount of money and establish a good track record before applying for larger research grants.

Outcomes of your study

• Consider the following questions:
  • Why are you doing this research?
  • What are the long-term implications? Who will benefit from these findings and who might be deprived or harmed as a result of the study?
  • What will happen with the research findings?
  • What is the ultimate application or use of the research?

Institutional approval
Ensure that your proposal has the necessary ethics and institutional approval before submitting to the funding agency. Incomplete proposals could be returned to you and will delay the review of your proposal.