Grantwriting is preparing a project proposal so that it complies with the donor's rules and convinces the evaluator. It is not the art of writing beautifully but the ability to read the call conditions and fit your idea into someone else's structure with someone else's criteria.
- Read by
- An evaluator with a scoring form
- Start with
- The topic conditions
- Structure
- Follows the evaluation criteria
- Over the limit
- Not read
The commonest misconception: grantwriting is not about the quality of the prose. Your proposal is read not by an editor but by an evaluator with a form and a score, whose job is to find answers to specific questions.
Three things it starts with
Reading the conditions, not the programme description. The topic sets the type of action, funding rate, consortium requirements and expected outcomes. The programme description is context; decisions are made on the topic.
The idea before the template. A proposal begun by opening the template almost always turns out to be a list of activities with no logic. That logic is easiest to test with a logframe before any text is written.
Structure by criteria. The sections of a Horizon Europe proposal mirror the award criteria for a reason: writing about impact in the methodology section means the evaluator will not credit it.
What actually costs points
Not style but specifics: drifting from the topic scope; unmeasurable expected results; a consortium whose partners duplicate rather than complement each other; a work plan that does not match the narrative; a budget unsupported by the content.
And separately: exceeding the page limit. Excess pages are not skimmed – they are automatically made invisible, and a section pushed there counts as unaddressed.
What is not expected of you
Promises you cannot guarantee. Evaluators can tell ambition from overstatement, and an inflated budget or unrealistic plan directly lowers the implementation score – with no chance to "fix it later".
Frequently asked questions
Where do I start with a first proposal?
With reading the topic conditions carefully and checking eligibility. Then with the project logic: objectives, results, how to measure them. The text is written last, once the logic holds together.
Do we need a professional grantwriter?
Not necessarily, but you do need someone who will read the conditions in full and check compliance. The most expensive mistakes are formal ones: not matching the topic, breaching the consortium composition rules, exceeding the page limit. None of them depend on the quality of the writing.
Read on GetGrant
Updated 27.07.2026 · Reviewed by: GetGrant editorial team
