Helpful Resources

Online Proposal Writing Resources 

General Guidance

Getting Started

• Fellowships 101: How to Find Fellowships That Are Right for You – by Karen Ruhleder

• Get an Early Start on This Year’s Fellowship Applications – by Colleen Vojak

• The Art of Proposal Writing: Proposal as Genre – by Karen Ruhleder

• The Art of Proposal Writing: Proposal as Roadmap – by Karen Ruhleder

• Help Funders Help You: Five Tips for Writing Effective Funding Applications - by Lewis, Sommerville, Van Bavel, & Cunningham

Guidance for Social Sciences and Humanities

• Grantsmanship in Support of Study or Research: Writing a Fellowship Proposal or Statement of Purpose – by Cynthia Verba

• The Making of a Successful Proposal - University of California, Berkeley

• On the Art of Writing Proposals - Social Science Research Council

• Dissertation Proposal Resources: Nuts & Bolts - University of California Berkeley, Institute of International Studies

• Dissertation Proposal Resources: Style - University of California Berkeley, Institute of International Studies

• Dr. Karen's Foolproof Grant Template – by Karen Kelsky

• Writing Proposals for ACLS Fellowship Competitions - by Christina M. Gillis

Guidance for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)

• A Guide to Preparing Fellowship Applications in STEM - by Karen Ruhleder

• Writing Successful Science Proposals, 3rd Edition – book by Andrew Friedland, Carol Folt, and Jennifer L. Mercer

• Writing Science: How to Write Papers that Get Cited and Proposals that Get Funded - book by Joshua Schimel 

• An Evidence-based Guide to Writing Grant Proposals for Clinical Research - by Sharon K Inouye & David A Fiellin

Resources for Major Competitions

National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (NSF-GRF)

• NSF-GRF FAQs - New and extended FAQ listing by NSF Program Directors.

• NSF Fellowship Advice, by Alex Lang (features many sample proposals).

• Video: Tips for a Winning NSF-GRF Application, by UIUC alum Ritu Raman.

• Where Storytelling Meets Science, by Lesley McCollum and Michelle Lavery.

• Helping Students to Tell Their Stories (general advice on personal statements) - by James M. Lang.

• Applying for Fellowships: Telling the “Story of You” (general advice on personal statements) – by Karen Ruhleder

National Defense Science & Engineering Graduate Fellowship (NDSEG)

• Advice from NDSEG Fellow – Edward Yang

National Institutes of Health - Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NIH-NRSA F30, F31, F32)

• NIH/NRSA/Kirschstein Fellowship – Graduate College Information Session 2018 - University of Illinois

• NIH/NRSA/Kirschstein Grants Policy Statement (summary of eligibility, purpose, evaluation criteria, application guidelines, and award benefits)

• NIH/NRSA/Kirschstein Fellowship - Application Checklist - University of Illinois

• Research Proposals: A Guide to Success, 3rd Edition – book by Thomas Ogden and Israel Goldberg

• Tips on Writing NRSA Proposals - by NRSA reviewers Siegle, Johnson, Everhard, & Newton

• Guide to Effective Grant Writing: How to Write a Successful NIH Proposal - book by Otto Yang

• A Practical Guide to Writing a Ruth L. Kirschstein NRSA Grant – book by Andrew Hollenbach

• The Grant Application Writer's Workbook, NIH version - workbook published by Grant Writers' Seminars and Workshops (not specific to F awards, but contains relevant guidance on major components; the 2013 edition is available from the UIUC library) 

Fulbright: Academic Study/Research Grants and English Teaching Assistantships

• Fulbright Webinars

Supplemental Materials

Personal Statements

• Applying for Fellowships: Telling the “Story of You” – by Karen Ruhleder

• Helping Students to Tell Their Stories - by James M. Lang, Chronicle of Higher Education 

Letters of Recommendation

• How to Ask for a Recommendation - by Leonard Cassuto, Chronicle of Higher Education

• How to Write a Recommendation Letter - by Karen Kelsky (advice for professors)

General Resources for Scientific Writing

• Illinois Library (guide to citation practices and styles)

• Writers Workshop (resources on the writing process) 

• Writing Science in Plain English - book by Anne E. Greene

• The Craft of Research - book by Booth et al. 

• Academic Phrasebank (resource for phrases common to academic writing)