What Does a Grant Writer Do?

In the past decade or so, there has been increasing awareness around the role that grants and grant funding plays in supporting nonprofit organizations, community causes, emergency response, individual scholars and other aspects of community living. With this increased awareness, it might seem like there are millions of dollars just floating around waiting to be claimed and that Grant Writes are the ones who know the "secret" to making that happen. The fact is, a Grant Writer could more accurately be called a "Grant Proposal Writer" and the job entails more than simply tapping into funding sources and holding open a bucket (or bank account.)

While some Grant Writers work independently, others work for a specific organization. Grant funding can be a productive way to acquire funding for a nonprofit agency or charitable cause, but it is not without its restrictions and challenges. A Grant Writer's job includes researching and identifying potential funding sources, determining the requirements and likelihood of being a funding match and targeting and nurturing specific foundations and funders to build positive relationships.

Grant Writers also prepare the proposals--this can be as simple as a brief letter stating the need or cause and how the money will be used to very complicated proposals full of hundreds of pages of documentation, budgets, and other detailed information. Different funders have different demands and requirements, most have specific deadlines, and most grant funders require reports and follow-up data to show that the money has been used wisely and responsibly. A Grant Writer often has the responsibility of taken care of the initial research and proposal writing, as well as any follow-up statistics, data and reports.

Most grants are not lifetime grants. When a nonprofit organization or charity relies heavily on grant funding, that means that grants must continuously be applied for and monitored. Funding a project or organization with a two-year grant means that before that two years is up, the organization needs to find another source for that income (unless the project will be completed and the need for funding is eliminated.) This can mean a great deal of work and responsibility for a Grant Writer.

Most Grant Writers get paid a salary and this is actually recommended by the profession. It is considered unethical for a grant writer to accept payment based on a percentage of the amount raised. Not to mention, this can mean that a Grant Writer does hours and hours of work and unless the grant is awarded (something that can be arbitrary and have absolutely nothing to do with the quality of the proposal), the writer does not get paid.