The abstract of a grant proposal plays a critical role in summarizing what the project is about for the potential funders of the project. Below are the necessary components of a grant proposal abstract:

1. Name of agency
2. Type of organization
3. Purpose of project
4. Objectives of project
5. Intervention (action) of the project
6. Target population
7. Location
8. Relevance to funding agency

A brief explanation of each of these important components along with insights into how academic journal abstracts are different from grant proposal abstracts is provided below.

Component of a Grant Proposal Abstract

Most of the items above are self-explanatory but we will go through them anyway. The name of the agency is to identify who is applying for money. Type of organization provides the readers of the abstract with an idea of what your organization is about. An organization can be non-profit, focused on a particular target population such as battered women, and or focused on a particular discipline such as education.

Items 3 and 4 which are the purpose and objectives of the project provide an overview of what the project wants to do. The purpose is a direct response to the needs that have been identified and the objectives systematically spell out how the needs will be addressed.

Item 5 addresses the intervention of the project. The intervention is a specific explanation of how the project will help the target population. An example would be to specifically explain how a reading lab would be implemented to support minorities who are struggling with reading comprehension. In this example, there are three components.

1. The intervention-reading lab
2. The target population-minorities
3. Criteria for inclusion-Target population members struggling with reading comprehension.

There may be more than one intervention. As such, the formatting for this particular part of an abstract can vary.

The location is an explanation of the setting in which the project will take place. Explaining location does not require a great deal of depth. Finally, the last item of the abstract addressed here is relevancy for the funding agency. Every abstract must briefly summarize how the project relates to the mission of the funding agency. Funding agencies want to support projects that align with their goals. therefore, every project that is requesting funding must show how their project supports the mission of the funding organization.

The order in which these items have been presented here is not prescriptive. In other words, it doesn’t matter what order these items are presented in as long as all of these components are there. Each writer and funding agency is going to have their preference about the order but few would argue with whether the listed component should be present or not.

When to write the abstract will depend on the writer. Some prefer to write the abstract at the end of the writing process after the heart of the proposal is completed. Others prefer to write the abstract in the beginning and let it shape the rest of the writing project. It doesn’t matter when the abstract is written as long as it is clear and aligns with the rest of the proposal.

Grant Proposal Abstract vs Journal Abstract

In general, a grant proposal abstract will be much longer than an abstract for a journal article. Grant proposal abstracts are often similar to the length of abstracts for a thesis or dissertation which can run several paragraphs or a few pages. Academic journal abstracts often have a strict word limit and are rarely more than a paragraph or two in most situations.

There are also differences in terms of what is included. The name and type of organization will probably not be included in an academic journal abstract. In addition, the relevancy will be focused on a broader audience beyond just a funding agency in many situations as well.

Conclusion

The abstract of a grant proposal is often the first thing a funding agency looks at when it evaluates a proposal. Therefore, this particular part of the proposal must be well thought out and provide critical information about the project. Neglecting this could lead to the rejection of a project before the content of the proposal is seriously considered for reading.