At the West Virginia Grant Resource Centers, we understand that developing competitive project proposals can be tedious, time-consuming, and rewarding. After weeks or months of drafting and editing, you’re well-acquainted with the content of your proposal, and it’s nearly ready to submit. But before you cross the metaphorical finish line, it’s important to verify that your project is, indeed, submission-ready with a Technical Review.Â
What are Technical Reviews?Â
A free pre-award project development service offered by the Grant Centers, Technical Reviews are one of the vital final steps you should take in your proposal development journey. These reviews, often conducted by a grant program office or an experienced grant or technical writer, measure a proposal’s alignment with and eligibility against the funder’s criteria, examine content meticulously for clarity, continuity, and errors (grammatical or numerical), and identify opportunities to elevate the proposal. In short, Technical Reviews are one method of ensuring your proposal is the best representation of your project and can be clearly understood by someone unfamiliar with your organization and funding goals.Â
(graphic showing the steps of the process)
At the Grant Centers, Technical Reviews are conducted by our team of seasoned grant writers who have extensive experience drafting competitive proposals and reviewing them. Our team also excels in working directly with a variety of funders — local, state, federal, and private/foundation — to help clarify requirements and facilitate connections.
What does a Technical Review consist of?Â
- Ensuring Project Eligibility: This ensures that your organization, project, and proposed area of impact are eligible for this specific grant opportunity.Â
- Comparing Proposals with Funders’ Criteria: Reviewing each section of your proposal for clarity and consistency, inclusion of required sections and data, and alignment with the funder’s criteria.
- Accessibility: Identifying jargon or other niche industry phrasings, as grant reviewers may not always be acquainted with the client’s industry.Â
- Stylistic Requirements: Funders may outline preferred margin sizes, font sizes, or page limits. Our grant writers are experts at reviewing NOFOs and RFPs — Notices of Funding Opportunities and Requests for Proposals — and verifying that your proposal follows these guidelines.Â
- Errors: Checking for grammatical and numerical errors.Â
Through Technical Reviews, you can ensure your project proposal corresponds directly to the funder’s requests and priorities.Â
Ready for your Technical Review? Submit a Technical Assistance Request through the Grant Centers’ website. Remember: the sooner we receive your draft, the more time we have to provide proper feedback and make any necessary revisions.