September 7, 2022January 16, 2023

How To Become A Grant Writer? Everything You Should Know

Are you thinking about pursuing a career in grant writing? Or find out more about tools available to grant writers?

A grant writer is in charge of putting together and distributing a business or organization’s grant proposals. How to become a grant writer? For technical writers, grant writing can be a successful and fulfilling career. Even though the job does require a certain set of abilities, many professionals can find work in grant writing with little to no prior experience.

If you’re interested in learning more about grant writing for beginners, grant writer salaries, and how to locate grant writing jobs, continue reading.

Table of Contents

What Is A Grant Writer?

A grant writer helps businesses and organizations raise money from foundations, corporations, and perhaps even the government to support various initiatives and programs.

You may be looking for funding for initiatives like community development, low-income housing, environmental education, and other things.

Grant recipients are typically non-profit or governmental institutions, though this can vary. When you work as a grant writer, you may either work full-time for one organization or you may freelance and work with numerous organizations that offer a variety of services and serve various groups.

A grant writer may also be in charge of conducting grant research, which includes locating potential funders to support particular projects, programs, or services, depending on the demands of the organization and/or the position.

A grant writer needs to be knowledgeable about funding options available in particular areas or that support particular kinds of work.

Private foundations, public bodies (city, county, state, federal), or businesses like Wells Fargo or Walmart may offer funding opportunities. Each of these types of funders will have particular priorities they concentrate on and may only fund work in specific geographical locations.

It’s crucial to remember that funders may adjust their priorities in accordance with their business model or what they deem to be urgent needs. You must stay current on these kinds of changes if you want to match projects and programs with funding sources.

In order to match needs with funding opportunities, you must also familiarize yourself with the work of the organization or organizations you are working for. In order to help create all the necessary content for a grant application, a grant writer will probably need to collaborate with other members of the organization, including program staff.

You must have sufficient knowledge of the organization, the project, or the program to tell an engaging story, which is a crucial component of grant writing.

The entire grant application, including the budget documents, information about the organization for which you are applying for funding, required attachments, and any other particular requirements, will be your responsibility as the grant writer.

You need to make sure you adhere to all of the funder’s guidelines and provide a compelling argument for why the organization deserves the funding.

Additionally, you might be in charge of assisting with follow-up reports and the data management related to these reports.

In order to avoid missing reporting deadlines and other follow-up steps, it is your responsibility as a grant writer to clearly communicate the funder’s expectations to the relevant organization staff.

What Qualifications Should A Grant Writer Have?

Numerous hard and soft skills are required for successful grant writing. Grant writers primarily need the following skills:

Attention to detail
Organizational skills
Research skills
Practical thinking
Persistence

What Makes Grants Writing Rewarding?

If you want to learn how to write grants, you probably want to change the world, either locally or globally. Because you are supporting organizations that provide essential services like homeless shelters, free medical care, support for single mothers, and more, grant writing can be very rewarding.

You might land a job with a company that you are passionate about and use your work to help them change the world. You may have the chance to interact with and network with a wide range of businesses that offer a wide range of services if you choose a career in grant writing.

Grant writing may also be a good fit for you if you value flexibility because it gives you the option of working from home, which gives you more freedom and flexibility than you would have in a conventional office setting.

The amount of work you take on may be based on how much money you are looking to make once you establish a reputation as a grant writer and accumulate enough experience.

How Much Money Do Grant Writers Get?

The average annual salary for a grant writer in the United States in 2021 will be $52,929, with salaries ranging from $39,500 to $68,992, according to data gathered by Indeed. By clicking the aforementioned link, you can look up salaries for different companies.

Because you can work for various organizations on various types of grants and your salary can rise as you gain experience and more certifications, you might be able to earn more money as a freelance grant writer.

It’s possible that some companies or organizations will want to pay you on a commission basis, but it’s best to determine your hourly rate based on your experience. If you’re reading this without any experience, keep in mind that you might need to gain education and experience in order to advance to positions with higher salaries.

With experience, you may be able to earn up to $150 per hour if you are paid hourly. Your starting hourly rate is probably around $20.

How To Become A Grant Writer?

You can break into the grant writing industry in a number of ways. You can follow these fundamental steps to start writing grants:

Obtain an undergraduate degree.
Learn to write grant proposals.
Gain experience.
Update your resume.
Join a group for grant writers.

1. Earn An Undergraduate Degree

Employers prefer applicants with a bachelor’s degree for positions in grant writing. Your ability to write grants will improve once you have earned your bachelor’s degree. Although you don’t have to major in English or writing to write grants, picking a major that requires persuasive writing or extensive amounts of writing may be beneficial.

To prepare for a career in grant writing, you might want to take courses in English-related majors like journalism, marketing, public relations, creative writing, and others, in addition to your major.

2. Update Your Resume

Before you apply for grant writing jobs, it’s critical to update your resume. Your new resume should highlight the abilities you’ve gained through volunteer work or internships, which you can include as relevant work experience.

When applying for jobs, you might also consider reading through the job description and requirements and modifying your resume to fit the requirements of the position.

Asking a representative of one of the organizations for which you wrote proposals while doing volunteer work or an internship might also result in a letter of recommendation.

3. Learn How To Write Grant Proposals

After earning your bachelor’s degree, you might want to hone your grant writing abilities. By enrolling in an online grant writing certificate program, you can accomplish this. A certificate will make your resume more appealing to employers. Another option is to enroll in an online course that teaches grant writing.

There are a lot of affordable or free online resources available for writing grant proposals. For instance, the American Grant Writer’s Association offers certification opportunities or online courses in grant consulting and grant writing.

You can gain skills that you can use right away in the grant writing career field by taking these professional development courses and earning these certifications.

4. Gain Enough Experience

The majority of entry-level grant writing positions demand two years of experience. Finding a volunteer or internship opportunity is the best way to gain experience as a grant writer. Many employers will prefer to work with a grant writer who has prior experience in the sector for which they are writing grants.

For instance, volunteering or doing an internship in the medical field can be beneficial if you want to apply for a job writing grants for a healthcare company. Writing grant proposals that are successful is made simpler when you are knowledgeable about a particular industry.

You might also try establishing contacts with other grant writers. They might be aware of some open positions that you could look into, and they might also give you advice that will improve your chances of landing a job.

5. Become A Member Of A Grant Writers Association

You will have more access to job opportunities and training if you decide to join a professional organization for grant writers. You can attend conferences and network with other qualified grant writers if you join a grant writers association.

Advantages Of Becoming A Grant Writer

Getting into grant writing has some advantages, such as:

Flexible Schedule

Some grant writing experts can set their own schedules and work at their own pace since most grant writers work under deadlines rather than during regular business hours. Professionals are able to work at the hour of the day that suits them the best because of this. Professionals can frequently be more productive and keep a better balance between their personal and professional lives by having a flexible schedule.

Remote Work

While some grant writers work from offices, many are able to do so from home. Remote grant writers conduct independent work while corresponding with their teams and managers via email and video calls. For professionals who enjoy traveling, don’t want to commute, or live in an area with few job opportunities, remote work is a fantastic option.

Influential Work

For underrepresented groups, charitable causes, and small businesses, grant writers typically write grant proposals. These organizations receive financial support thanks to the grant writers, and this benefits the neighborhood. A grant writer might, for instance, create a grant proposal for a charity that provides and installs clean water pumps for communities that would not otherwise have access to them.

Take Away

The type of employment a grant writer secures frequently determines their work environment.

This advice can assist you in beginning your career as a grant writer in addition to the earlier steps:

Volunteer: Take into account joining a nonprofit organization that champions a cause you believe in. As a result, you gain a deeper understanding of the nonprofit industry and have the chance to collaborate with others who share your values.
Consider signing up with the Grant Professionals Association. This can assist you in starting your career and locating other experts in your field.
Create a professional website, attend nonprofit events, and get in touch with other industry professionals to establish a strong professional network. Finding employment opportunities may be made easier by doing this.
Find a mentor or an internship to help you better understand the field of grant writing if you’re trying to build a portfolio. You may be able to network and find a job as a result.

Related Reading: Why is Writing Important?