O.k., I am sure that you are smart enough to notice the big gap in posts between June and now. No, I haven't been on a cruise for the last several months. I have been busy, busy, busy writing and working. I have been spending a lot of my time exploring other social networking options as vehicles for getting information to all of you (Facebook, etc.).
There are so many options these days that it's almost overwhelming, isn't it?
In any event, we're back here.....after all of our searching and exploration, it has become clear that this is the place to focus on for sharing our information.
So, feel free to follow us on Twitter or Facebook, but but the grantgoddess.com website and the blog (right here) will be the place to come for your grant-related information.
Everyday thoughts on the grant world from Veronica Robbins, the Grant Goddess.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Write to the RFA or the Rubric?
This is an interesting question - should you address your narrative to the RFA instructions or the scoring rubric (if one is provided for you)?
The best answer, of course, is both. But what if the instructions in the RFA (that's Request for Applications) and the scoring rubric differ?
I participated in a grant competition this summer in which the funder put out the word that they knew the instructions and the scoring rubric did not match, and that even though the readers would be instructed to use the scoring rubric to make their decisions, they wanted the applicants to follow the instructions in the RFP. the scoring rubric was just provided for our information. Huh?
Here's my advice (and what I did for that competition over the summer):
Follow the instructions. However, make sure you also address everything in the scoring rubric. Unless the scoring rubric and the instructions give you opposite instructions (usually, if they don't match, it's the case that one just leaves out criteria that are included in the other), you'll have nothing to worry about if you write to both.
The best answer, of course, is both. But what if the instructions in the RFA (that's Request for Applications) and the scoring rubric differ?
I participated in a grant competition this summer in which the funder put out the word that they knew the instructions and the scoring rubric did not match, and that even though the readers would be instructed to use the scoring rubric to make their decisions, they wanted the applicants to follow the instructions in the RFP. the scoring rubric was just provided for our information. Huh?
Here's my advice (and what I did for that competition over the summer):
Follow the instructions. However, make sure you also address everything in the scoring rubric. Unless the scoring rubric and the instructions give you opposite instructions (usually, if they don't match, it's the case that one just leaves out criteria that are included in the other), you'll have nothing to worry about if you write to both.