You might be thinking of making research your career. It is one of the most secure job careers nowadays. But it is not necessary that you can finance your research work all the time. You will need some additional finances for your passion. You will write a grant proposal application to find the funding for your research work. You should make sure to draft your grant proposal application in the best way possible. Several aspects of your grant application will need the utmost care, and attention. The important aspect here is drafting a realistic budget section for your application. A grant budget is the proposing cost of your research work.
It is important to note that you should not mix it up with your organisation budget. You should plan your research budget in the best way possible. This will play an important role in the acceptance of your grant proposal. This article will discuss tips regarding a realistic budget section for your application. It will also explain how you can create a budget for your research work. These aspects will help you in drafting a budget that will impress your financer. So let’s discuss the top 7 tips in detail;
Pick a Budget Tool:
Picking an appropriate budget tool is the first tip for a realistic budget section. You should choose a tool that is easy to use for your financer. You can even ask your financer if he needs a specific format, or tool for the budget. He can even provide you with a template, and you can draft a budget according to that. One of the best tools that you can consider in the context is Microsoft Excel. It is easy to use, and your financer will find it convenient as well.
Add Expenses and Revenues:
It is important to note that budget section is the most crucial aspect of your application. So you should make sure to do proper research about this aspect. This way, you will know the most common mistakes of a realistic budget section. One of the most common mistakes is that people forget to include revenues. You should make sure to include both revenues, and expenses of your grant proposal. You can also make two sections for this purpose. It will make things more understandable for your funder this way.
Categorising Costs for Making Sense:
The goal of a realistic budget section is to convince your funder for funding. So you should make sure to categorise the costs. This way, it will make sense to your funder in terms of how funding will help you in your research. You can make a broad category for the different items. For example, there will be categories in your budget. Those categories can be that of salaries, taxes, equipment, and travel. You can make a table, and explain each category with a description.
Make Sure to Use Real Numbers:
As mentioned earlier, you should make a realistic budget section for your work. So it is important to work in a way that can impress your funder. Using real numbers for making a budget is another important thing. You might consider using imaginary numbers for this aspect, but you should avoid this. You should consider the true cost of your research work too. You might also need new equipment and other supplies. So you should conduct research for drafting a realistic budget section. You can visit different stores for knowing the prices of research equipment. Apart from this, you should also meet vendors in this regard. You can even get help from the internet, and in this way, you can make your budget based on real numbers.
Try to Be Realistic for the Amount You Are Requesting:
This is another important aspect of your realistic budget section. You should make sure that you’re not asking too much amount. There is a set criterion to request the grant for your work. You should not ask for less than $500, or more than $1000. This way, you might impress your funder with your realistic budget. The Academic Papers UK, a top dissertation proposal writing service, published a study about a realistic budget section. It stated that you should ask your funder an amount that he cannot refuse, or reject.
Conclusion
Managing finances for your research work can be an uphill task. You should draft a convincing grant proposal application in this context for managing your finances. A realistic budget section is a key aspect of your application. This article discussed how you can draft this section of your application. You should also make sure to follow these steps while making the budget.
