Grants from the Office of Undergraduate Research are competitive as there are limited annual funds available. The information on this page will help you prepare a comprehensive proposal; following these steps and guidelines will increase the liklihood of your proposal (and subsequent funding) being approved!

Carefully read through the application materials and talk with your mentor (and group members, if applicable) well in advance of the deadline.

• Write your grant proposal and get feedback.
• Prepare your budget and budget justification.
• Obtain a letter of support from your mentor. Only one letter of support is required per individual or group.
• If you have any dangerous materials, human subjects, or animal subjects, be sure to have the appropriate documentation showing approval for those aspects of your project

We are happy to talk with you about your grant application. You can:

• Check out the FAQ
• Contact Us

Read Through The Application Materials And Get Everyone On Board

All grant applications are available online. You can visit the OUR Grant Funding page to find details about each grant including an application link and required materials.

Talk with your mentor well in advance of the deadline and discuss whether or not you should apply. Discuss what would be in your project description and your budget. Make sure your mentor knows that they will have to write a letter of support for you.

If you are part of a group, select one student to take the lead on submitting the application, and make sure that the student has everyone's first and last name and CWU email address. CVs for all participants are also required for the Faculty-Student Provost Grant.

Write Your Grant Proposal And Get Feedback

The main component of the application will be your grant proposal. This should be no more than 3 pages (double-spaced) in length, and should include the following:

• Project title and names of all students and mentors involved
• Abstract or creative artistic statement of the setting/context in which you will conduct your research/studies (250 words max)
• Abstract of your research goals or questions and/or your project (250 words max)
• Project description of no more than 3 pages, double-spaced, including:
  • Project goal(s): What you hope to achieve. The important thing here is to be realistic. The committee does not expect you to cure cancer with $500.
  • Project objectives: How you plan to achieve your goals. What are the steps you will take and the methods you will use?
  • Background: How your project relates to what is already known or has already been done, both within the broader discipline and, if applicable, within your lab on campus.
  • Anticipated results: This section will vary considerably based on the type of project. If this is a project you've been working on for a while in the lab, you might have a very good idea what to expect; if you are just starting out, you may be in a more exploratory phase. The committee does not expect you to know exactly what will happen, but wants to see that you've thought about what might happen.
  • Timeline for completion of your project, including plans for presenting your work
  • References/bibliography if applicable (not included in the 3-page limit)

Prepare Your Budget And Budget Justification

A well-considered budget is a very important part of your proposal. Please show real, total costs in your budget. Although the amount of funding you can receive from the OUR is limited, the budget should accurately reflect all of your expenses.

Put your budget together using a spreadsheet (template and example provided below).

Your budget should include:

• An itemized list of supplies and/or analyses
• If you are traveling to conduct research, include travel as needed (described below)
• Other sources of funding received and/or requested.

Research budget template

Research budget example 

Your budget justification helps us interpret your budget. It describes why you need what you've asked for, and how you calculated the costs. The budget justification should be written in paragraph or bullet list form, or a combination of the two. 

• The purpose of the itemized expenses should be explained and prioritized in case you are not fully funded.
• If you are purchasing equipment, describe where it will reside once your work is complete (equipment purchased with grant funds belongs to the university, not to the grant recipient).
• For all expenses, provide the basis for the cost estimates (online catalog links are fine, vendor quotes, etc.).
• ​If your expenses total more than the amount you are requesting from the OUR, describe how you plan to cover those additional expenses.
• If you have applied for other funding, describe what you've applied for and when you expect to hear about your funding status.

Submit A Letter of Support

A letter of support from your mentor is an important part of your application—and it's required. Talk with your mentor and make sure he/she/they know what they need to do. The letter should be specific to you and your project, written on letterhead, and needs to be submitted alongside the other required documents in the application. 

It is the responsibility of the student(s) applying to obtain the letter of support from their mentor and submit it in the application. Click here if you or your professor have questions about what to include in the letter of support.

Human Subjects, Animal Subjects, and Dangerous Materials

If your research involves human subjects, animal subjects, or dangerous materials, you will need to provide documentation that you have received approval for your work as part of the application. For animal subjects and human subjects, this can be the letter of approval you and your faculty mentor received from the Human Subjects Review Council (HSRC) or the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). If you haven't yet been approved, you can submit a copy of your application to the HSRC/IACUC with your grant proposal for the committee to review. If your proposal is accepted, it will be contingent on the approval of your HSRC/IACUC application. For dangerous materials, you will need to prepare a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) document. You can find examples here and here, but we recommend connecting with your mentor on the structure of your SOP and what details it should include, as they will look different from project to project based on the materials/equipment involved.

Ready To Apply?

Click here!