“The Proposal Project,” funded by the Graduate School, aims to: 1) strengthen grant-writing
skills of graduate students through training and practice; and 2) increase the number
of externally-funded fellowships and traineeships awarded to graduate students at
Southern Miss. Residency programs for students in the humanities, performing arts,
or other related disciplines will also be included for consideration of proposals.
Grant-writing workshops will be held each fall and spring semester, providing training
to enable students to identify potential funding sources, to prepare competitive proposals,
and to navigate the submission process. Proposal Project winners (as determined by
the ranking committee) who submit an approved proposal to an external agency or organization
will receive a cash award of $500 whether the proposal is funded or not
Grant Writing Workshops
Grant Proposal Development for Graduate Students (Hybrid)
Presenter: Marcia Landen, Associate Vice President for Research
Must be a master’s, specialist, or doctoral student in good academic standing.
Must be enrolled at the time of submission of the proposal, and must remain enrolled
throughout the project period if proposal is funded.
May receive only one award per academic year.
6 Steps to Receive the $500 Award:
Grant-writing workshops will be held each fall and spring semester, providing training
to enable students to identify potential funding sources, to prepare competitive proposals,
and to navigate the submission process.
Letter of Intent (LOI)
The LOI (limited to one page) must include the following elements:
Student’s name, degree program, and school
Name of student’s advisor/committee chair
Proposed title of the project
Brief description of the project
Brief project budget description (*must include stipend support*)
Name of agency to which the proposal will be submitted (include URL)
Deadline for submission of the proposal
Purpose of the LOI:
The LOI will be used to pre-screen intended proposals for student eligibility, adherence
to expectations for funding source and budget, and quality of the project.
LOI’s will be ranked by a committee representing all colleges, and the student will
be informed of the ranking the LOI receives. Those receiving top five rankings will
be eligible for the cash award following submission of the approved proposal. If a
top 5-ranked student fails to submit an approved proposal, the next person in line
will be eligible for the award.
Requirements:
The proposal must be submitted to an external funding agency (government, private
agency/foundation, or business/industry) or fellowship program.
The proposal must comply with all relevant university, state, and federal policies
and regulations, and it must meet all requirements of the funding agency.
The proposal must be reviewed and approved by the major advisor/committee chair and
submitted according to the normal submission process for the discipline. (For example,
most proposals require pre-submission consultation with an Office of Research Administration
(ORA) administrator for guidance on budget development, agency’s forms, and internal
approval).
Minimum expectations of the proposed budget:
The fellowship/traineeship will provide full stipend support at or above the USM base
level plus fringe benefits for one or more terms; or
The fellowship/traineeship will provide full-time tuition plus fees for one or more
terms; or
The traineeship will provide full support for a writer's/artist's residency or similar
program
Following final submission of the approved proposal, the student’s major advisor or
committee chair must provide a letter to the Dean of the Graduate School affirming
support of the project, acknowledging review and approval of the submitted proposal,
and confirming submission of the proposal.
A $500 check will be mailed (or direct deposited) to the student upon receipt of the
letter of verification.