August 1, 2023
When you come across a funding opportunity that looks like a good fit, starting work on it immediately can be tempting, especially if the deadline is only a few weeks away. But jumping into the writing phase without carefully reading the solicitation is always risky. Among other things, it can lead you to miss an important deadline: the submission deadline for questions to the funder regarding the solicitation. To ensure your proposal will be responsive and compliant with the funder’s guidelines, you should always seek clarification from the funder on anything you don’t understand whenever you have the opportunity to do so.
In addition to using the question period to ask about the proposal guidelines, applicants can also provide feedback on areas they believe the funder may have overlooked. For example, if the proposal deadline falls on or near a major holiday, a potential applicant can use the question period to ask whether the funder would be willing to move the deadline back, which the funder is often willing to do. Or perhaps the funder provided conflicting information in the solicitation, listing two submission deadlines. Pointing out such a discrepancy would benefit all potential applicants.
To maximize your ability to ask questions, it’s useful to maintain a list of potential issues that may need clarification. The areas where questions typically come up tend to fall into one of six buckets: (1) eligibility, (2) formatting, (3) scope, (4) personnel, (5) budget, and (6) partnerships.
To help you think about the questions you might need or want to ask, we’ve compiled a list of common questions under each area below. The list consists of examples of questions only and is not meant to be prescriptive or exhaustive: Not all the areas or questions below will apply to every proposal, and the questions most relevant to the types of proposals you typically respond to may not be included.
Most questions about a proposal’s expected structure and content should be answered during a close read of the solicitation and any other materials the funder may have provided. With this in mind, as you read the solicitation, you should actively look for answers to your standard questions. If you cannot find an answer or are uncertain how to follow the solicitation’s directives on a particular matter, you should note this and submit your questions to the funder for clarification.
Funders handle questions about solicitations in various ways. Some funders will list a deadline for submitting questions in the solicitation. This is the approach that government agencies take. There may not be a fixed deadline for submitting questions for government opportunities that remain open for several years. Instead, the funder will advise prospective applicants to email their questions to the contact person (typically a program officer) listed on the opportunity posting. In some cases, the funder will post FAQs on its website and update them periodically as new questions are submitted.
While the opportunity to ask clarifying questions is valuable and helps you better understand a funding opportunity, you must frame your questions carefully. Do not include identifying or confidential information in your questions, as they may become public. If the solicitation directs applicants to submit questions by a specific date, it almost always means the funder will publish the questions received—often verbatim—along with the answers. Funders post the Q&As publicly to ensure a fair and transparent process where all applicants can access the same information.
Is your organization eligible to apply for the opportunity you are considering? Eligibility is an essential question, yet many solicitations fail to provide sufficient information for prospective applicants to determine whether they are eligible. Confusion around eligibility comes up most frequently when the eligibility guidelines include thresholds for experience or knowledge, as in “applicants must have [x amount of] expertise in [type of service or project, tool, or relationship with an administrative body]. Because applicants want to see themselves in the eligible group, and interpreting qualification standards can be nuanced, uncertainty around eligibility frequently arises in these situations. Eligibility is an area where you don’t want any confusion because the funder will not read your application if you are not eligible.
Eligibility Questions
Are there any registrations, accreditations, or certifications to complete before applying? If so, is it acceptable for them to be pending at the time of the proposal submission, or must they be finalized? What documentation is acceptable to document compliance?
Is it possible for your organization to submit multiple proposals in response to the opportunity? While particularly relevant for academic institutions, where more than one faculty member or department may be interested in pursuing an opportunity, this question can also arise in larger non-profit organizations with multiple programmatic units.
Can we apply if we are based in [name of place], but our proposed project will take place in [x place]? If the eligibility guidelines include geographic limitations, you must be clear that you are eligible to apply if you want to conduct activities in a different location (state or country) from where your organization is headquartered. For some opportunities, eligible applicants must be based in the country, and international organizations with registered offices in the country but headquartered elsewhere are ineligible to apply.
Are past performance references required? You will want to know as soon as possible whether the funder requires references for past work similar to the proposed project (e.g., scope, cost, complexity, or all three). If you do not have a strong past performance section, depending on how much it counts in the evaluation, your proposal may not achieve a competitive score. If the funder explicitly states that all qualified applicants must be able to demonstrate experience of a certain kind—and your organization does not have that experience—your organization may not meet the basic eligibility requirements unless there are other options to demonstrate competency. In some cases, the funder may allow past performance qualifications to be met by another organization added to the applicant team through a partnership agreement.
Solicitations almost always include formatting guidance. For the funder, providing detailed formatting guidance to applicants helps ensure all proposals are structured similarly and contain the same amount of content, facilitating their evaluation. If a submitted proposal does not follow the guidelines (e.g., page limits, font size, or file names), the funder can quickly eliminate it.
Although it benefits everyone to have explicit formatting guidelines, solicitations sometimes provide limited or no guidance, leaving applicants wondering whether there are any limitations on what they can submit. To some applicants, the absence of detailed guidance may seem beneficial, allowing them to prepare the proposal as they see fit and in a format they believe is most effective. For other applicants, the absence of guidance creates uncertainty and a strong desire for clarification. The last thing an applicant wants is to spend days, weeks, or even months preparing a proposal only to learn that what they submitted wasn’t at all what the funder expected, resulting in a low score or outright rejection.
Formatting Questions
Page limits. Are there page limits for any or all sections?
Character limits. If the guidelines mention a character limit for certain sections, is it clear whether the limit includes spaces?
Word limits. If a proposal has a word limit, should headings be counted toward the limit, or only the body text?
Fonts. Are there any restrictions on what fonts can be used for the proposal?
Is it permissible to use a smaller font for tables, captions, footnotes, and text boxes?
Can headers be in a different font style or size than the body text?
Hyperlinks
Are hyperlinks allowed in the document? When in doubt, include the full URL in the document, but do not hyperlink it.
Can the hyperlink be “hidden” behind the display text, or must the full URL appear? If you do not receive a response, assume the full hyperlink must be provided.
Margins. What are the required margins for the proposal? If you do not get an answer and are submitting to a U.S.-based funder, it is safest to use standard 1-inch margins.
Paper size. What paper size should the proposal be formatted for? This question may arise if you submit a proposal to a funder based in another country. For example, if you are based in Europe and submitting a proposal to a U.S.-based funder, make sure you set your proposal to 8.5 × 11-inch paper (U.S. letter size), not A4.
Graphics. Is it possible to insert images, figures, and tables? If so, are there any limits on size or placement? Typically, it is not a problem to insert figures, photographs, and tables into a proposal. For some types of proposals, like research proposals, tables and figures are critical and must be included. For non-research proposals, particularly proposals submitted through online application systems where you need to paste your response into a form, you may only be able to insert text. Additionally, some funders allow figures and tables but require them to be submitted in an annex rather than in the proposal narrative.
Appendices. Are supporting materials allowed? A solicitation may clearly state whether you can add an appendix and, if so, what you can submit. And often, a funder will require that certain materials be submitted as an appendix, such as key personnel's CVs. Still, clarification may be needed even when the solicitation provides some guidance around appendices. In addition to checking about restrictions around what types of materials can be included, it may also be relevant to ask the following:
Are there restrictions on the font style and size for the appendices?
Should the appendices be PDFs?
Is there a page limit for the appendices?
Should the appendices be merged into the proposal narrative or submitted as a separate file?
Identifying information. Is there required content for the headers and footers? Some funders want specific content in the header or footer, such as the name of the applying organization, the funding opportunity name, and the solicitation number. If the funder expects specific content in the headers and footers, they will usually state this, but it is good to be alert to this potential requirement when reading the solicitation. The same goes for page numbers. Usually, all pages should be numbered sequentially—but not always. For example, some U.S. government agencies use a proposal submission platform that adds page numbers to the file, and applicants are explicitly told not to number the pages.
Supporting content. Can you have, or should you include, a table of contents, an abbreviation list, and a reference list—and do they count against the page limits?
Language. What language must or can the proposal be written in? Although uncommon, proposals are sometimes accepted in multiple languages, giving you and your team options if you are multilingual.
Templates. Are there templates that must be used for any section of the proposal (e.g., narrative, cost proposal, or appendices, such as CVs)? Always review the solicitation thoroughly to look for references to templates. Templates are sometimes included in the solicitation as blank forms, but are often only referenced and must be downloaded separately from the funder’s website.
☞ Interested in formatting tips? Read “Formatting Tips to Make Your Grant Proposal a Standout”
Issues of scope—or the boundaries of what the funder intends or is willing to fund—are typically opportunity-specific. They touch on the project's where, how, what, and when, as well as matters of scale. Although scope questions can come up with funding opportunities of any size or complexity, they most frequently occur with solicitations for ambitious projects that will take place over several years (e.g., a 5-year grant vs. a 1-year grant) that plan to reach a large number of beneficiaries and achieve a lengthy list of outcomes and deliverables. If you read a solicitation and think, “Do we need to work in all these places and meet all these goals?” it’s a sign you need greater clarity on the funder’s vision for what proposals should cover. Another clue that you might have a scope question is when you read the solicitation and immediately think, “There’s no way we can address all these things in 15 pages.”
Scope Questions
Are there geographic limits? Questions of scope might include clarifying the funder's geographic focus for the opportunity and whether you need to work in all geographic areas mentioned in the proposal or only a subset.
Is there any flexibility? If something in the solicitation’s description of the desired project outcomes seems like it might be difficult or impossible to implement or achieve within the project period or grant amount, you can ask the funder if it would be willing to be flexible on a programmatic requirement, such as a milestone for a particular deliverable.
Can aspects of the proposal be clarified? Scope questions seek clarification of the scope of work described in the solicitation. If you read the solicitation and are not sure you truly understand what the funder wants, you might need to ask, “When you say this [quote language from proposal], do you mean [enter your interpretation]?” An indicator that you need to ask this question is when members of the proposal team disagree on how to interpret a section of the solicitation.
How much detail is needed? When addressing a proposal requirement, it may not be clear how detailed your response should be. For example, you might ask a clarifying question about how much detail is expected in the past performance section. Does the funder want the name of the funder, the name of the project, the project period, the name of the program officer, the funding amount, and a summary of the project and its outcomes—or is some information required while other information is nice to have but not essential?
Is this a preliminary application? Another scope-related question is whether the opportunity is funded. This question can come up, particularly with letters of interest (LOIs). It is not always clear whether an LOI is intended as a screening step, in which applicants with the strongest LOIs are invited to submit full proposals, or whether it is actually funded. Ideally, the funder will clearly state in the solicitation what the LOI represents and whether it is a screening tool or an abbreviated proposal process that will result in a small grant. Less commonly, funders use an LOI to provide an initial round of funding to selected applicants for pilot projects, expecting the pilot project to generate data to support a full proposal.
Personnel questions may concern qualifications, employment status, project team roles and responsibilities, or the definition of “key personnel.” The definition of “key personnel” varies by funder. Some funders leave it to the applicant to define what “key” means, while others state explicitly which positions are considered key. Still others may provide level-of-effort guidelines, such as “Key personnel must be budgeted for a minimum of x% FTE [full-time equivalent] on the grant.”
Personnel Questions
Is it allowable to bid consultants for the key positions? The people you put forward for key personnel positions strongly influence how a funder rates the overall strength of your proposal. For some opportunities, a funder may want only an organization’s employees in key positions, while consultants may be acceptable for non-key roles. To guarantee that those proposed for key positions will actually show up if the proposal leads to an award, many funders will ask applicants to submit signed letters of commitment from each of the key personnel named in the proposal, regardless of whether the individuals are employees of the lead applicant organization, work for a partner organization, or are currently consultants. Funders expect the individuals named to key roles to serve in those roles. If someone named to a key position leaves before an award is made or at any point during the award period, the funder will want an explanation and will not allow you to fill the role until they approve the replacement.
Is it allowable to put “TBD’ for some positions? When a funding opportunity arises, you may not have staff members to fill all key positions or the time to conduct extensive external recruitment to find qualified candidates. Sometimes a funder will allow you to enter “to be determined” (TBD) for non-key roles as a placeholder. Even when using TBD is allowed, you should try to avoid it, as leaving any required position unfilled can weaken your proposal. An exception is when you must fill one or more general or junior positions that do not require unique skills and can be easily and quickly filled if you receive an award.
A proposal budget is another area where the questions can be very specific to the solicitation at hand, although a few questions are standard fare, including:
Are indirect costs allowable? General operating costs (aka “indirects”) generate unrestricted funds for an organization that allow it to pay for office rent, administrative staff salaries, and other expenses not tied to a specific project. Before you invest too much effort into a proposal, it is essential to learn whether the funder allows for a percentage of your organization’s indirect costs to be added to the proposal’s budget and, if so, how much. Most funders list their policy on indirects in their solicitations. But when it is unclear how to interpret the indirect policy, or if no mention of indirects appears in the solicitation, you need to seek clarification as soon as possible. While no organization is excited about a grant that doesn’t allow for indirect costs, for some organizations, indirects will dictate whether to pursue an opportunity: If a funder doesn’t allow for indirects, or if the indirect rate is too low, the organization cannot afford to pursue the grant.
Are matching funds (cost share) required? Another important budget-related question to clarify is whether the funder expects applicants to provide any matching funds. The issue of match touches both eligibility to apply for an opportunity and the feasibility of managing any resulting award. If an opportunity requires an organization to meet match requirements, the applicant must pledge a specified amount (usually a fixed percentage) toward the project costs. If you cannot identify sources of matching funds by the time the proposal is due, your organization will not meet one of the funder’s stated eligibility requirements. Matching funds (aka cost-share) requirements cannot be met by giving the funder a vague promise of potential sources that could generate matching funds if the proposal is awarded. Funders expect a detailed plan for how the applicant will fulfill the match requirement. Raising matching funds can be especially difficult for organizations that rely on a single funding source. For example, an organization might receive most of its funding from a single government agency. To apply for a new opportunity with a match requirement posted by this same federal agency, the organization must identify non-federal funds. One challenge with cost-share situations like this is that federal agency grants often have large budgets, which can make the cost-share quite high and potentially unattainable if the organization has limited funding outside federal grants.
☞ To learn more about cost share, read “Making Sense of Cost Share”
Partnership questions usually concern who qualifies as a partner and how partners’ information should be presented in the proposal.
Can an organization be a partner even though it doesn’t qualify as a prime? In the eligibility section of a solicitation, a funder may state that only certain types of organizations are eligible to apply, such as U.S.-based nonprofit organizations. If it is not clear from the solicitation, it may be appropriate to ask if organizations ineligible to serve as prime (i.e., the lead applicant) can still serve as partners (i.e., subrecipients) on the grant.
How should the partners’ information be integrated into the application? For more complex opportunities, funders will expect an applicant to partner with other organizations. The funder may even require partnerships, sometimes specifying the types of partners to include in the proposal. For example, a funder might insist that national or international organizations intending to apply as the lead organization must partner with a local organization. In cases like this, where the lead applicant is expected to submit a proposal in partnership with other organizations, the solicitation will almost always specify where and how partner information should be included in the narrative and cost proposals. Grant opportunities from private foundations are not always explicit about how to incorporate partners into the proposal, so follow-up questions to the funder may be necessary. Note that requirements imposed on the prime typically flow down to the partners. For example, if the funder requires applicants to provide 20% matching funds, each subrecipient must also include 20% in their budgets. You should always seek clarification if there is any doubt about which requirements apply to the prime and which to the subrecipients, because the answer may influence whether it’s feasible for certain organizations to join as partners.
If you want to prepare a proposal with the greatest chance of success, it helps immeasurably to be as clear as possible about the proposal guidelines.
When you read a solicitation, it’s helpful to have a list of questions in the back of your mind so that you can be alert and primed to spot the answers. Your questions may concern deadlines, deliverables, proposal structure, eligibility, budget requirements, or scope. From your experience working on other proposals, you may have identified several questions that you must know the answers to before you decide to respond to an opportunity or begin writing. Examples of the former might be questions about eligibility or financial implications, such as whether the opportunity requires matching funds. Examples in the latter category might include questions about the proposal’s layout or structure.
Ideally, answers to most, if not all, of your questions should be found in the solicitation. However, funders are sometimes unclear or fail to include critical information. For these situations, it’s essential to take advantage of opportunities to ask the funder questions about the solicitation. If there is an open call for questions on a solicitation, funders will generally collect all questions, remove duplicates, and publicly post them and their answers. Because the questions you submit will likely be released to a public forum, you should review them to ensure they do not mention your organization’s name, allude to your organization’s planned approach to the opportunity, or reveal your organization’s strengths or weaknesses. If the solicitation does not mention a formal question period, you may be able to submit your questions directly to the program officer listed as the contact person for the opportunity.
☞ To read more about contacting program officers, see “When Is It Appropriate to Contact Program Officers?”