Why Hire a Grant Writer?

First, a disclaimer of sorts. Hiring a grant writer isn't something every researcher needs, and plenty of strong applications get written without any outside help at all. If your own process works for you, there's no real reason to change it.

But if you've found yourself wondering about it, or you've thought about it and weren't quite sure what it would actually involve, here are honest answers to the questions I get asked most.

What do you actually get from hiring one?

Your time back

Writing a strong application takes hours you probably don't have, hours you'd rather spend at the bench, with your data, or just not working evenings and weekends again. That time has a real cost, and easing the load can be greatly beneficial to you and your other work.

Specific expertise

Grant writing is its own skill, separate from writing a paper, and it's not something you pick up automatically just because you're a good scientist. In fact, speaking from personal experience, during my years of training very little time was spent on science communication as a skill. Knowing how to structure an argument for a funding panel, how to frame significance, and how to anticipate what a reviewer is looking for takes practice, and it takes someone who has spent real time specifically on that problem.

They have time

This sounds like a repeat of the first point but it isn't quite, because while you're juggling experiments, supervision, teaching, and your own deadlines, a grant writer's whole job for the period you're working together is your application. That focus is important, and it's why you can have a quick turnaround on a grant, with no cost to the quality.

An outsider's perspective

When you've lived inside a project for years, it's hard to see which parts are obvious to you but not to anyone else, and that's exactly where a good grant writer is useful. They come in without those preconceptions, ask the basic questions a reviewer would ask, and notice the gaps you've stopped noticing simply because you're too close to the work. They also have the liberty to be more critical of the work, which is sometimes really helpful in making it more fundable.

A few common questions

Will they write it all for me?

Not quite. It's really a joint process rather than a handoff. I can't write a strong application without you, without your data, your reasoning, and your understanding of where the field is going. What I bring is the structure, the framing, and the writing itself, but the science and the direction stay yours, and it's better to think of it as working alongside someone than passing something off your desk.

Are they actually invested in the outcome?

Speaking for myself, very much so. I care deeply about every piece of work I take on. Partly that's because a good outcome is good for my own reputation, but mostly it's because I've sat on the other side of this process myself and I know exactly what it feels like to need a grant to come through, and that feeling doesn't go away just because I'm not the one running the experiments.

Does needing help mean I've failed somehow?

No. This one comes up more than people say out loud, and it usually carries the feeling that asking for help with writing means you should have been able to do it yourself. But hiring a professional service to help you reach your goals is simply smart, and knowing your own strengths, along with knowing where you'd rather spend your limited time and energy, isn't a weakness so much as good judgement. We outsource many services in our day to day lives, this shouldn't be seen as anything other than just that!

Is it expensive?

Probably less than you'd assume. There's often an idea that bringing in a grant writer means a big, all-in cost, when really it doesn't have to be. There are different ways to work together depending on how much support you actually need, and within your budget, from a full draft and rewrite to a focused review of something you've already written, to help with just one section you're stuck on.

The point isn't to hand over the whole project, it's to get the right amount of help for wherever you happen to be.

Final thought

Hiring a grant writer isn't about not being capable, it's about recognising that your time and your science are valuable, and that getting funded is its own skill that's worth bringing in support for, if and when it makes sense for you.

If you're curious what that could look like for your next application, get in touch.