how to set fees

I am a novice grant writer. I've working in research at a university and have edited dozens of NIH grants before submission, most of which were awarded. I want to write grants for small community-based nonprofits that need help. I have 2 interested clients. Any suggestions or resources on how to set fees?

Omua

I am also a novice grant writer, but can offer a few guidelines that have served me well in my business. All of the following should be tempered, of course, by where you are located in the country, and the size of the organization you are dealing with, and - in particular - the size of the grant, but here goes: for a foundation grant, $500 to $2000; for a federal grant, $1000 to $3000; for a state grant, $1500 to $4000.

Mind you, I am suggesting these prices in an area where the cost of living is relatively low (along with pay rates) and for a *novice* grant writer. I have a friend who regularly charges in excess of $10K for a federal grant but she has 25 years experience and a 95% funding rate! Hope this helps.

Hello,

I am interested in taking grant writing courses. Would anyone recommend taking these courses and did you have trouble obtaining employment afterwards?

Thanks,

I appreciate the info, cevans1969. I was devaluing my services by considering charging much less. I'm going to re-evaluate my plan.

Omua

cevans1969 in Newport, North Carolina said: I am also a novice grant writer, but can offer a few guidelines that have served me well in my business. All of the following should be tempered, of course, by where you are located in the country, and the size of the organization you are dealing with, and - in particular - the size of the grant, but here goes: for a foundation grant, $500 to $2000; for a federal grant, $1000 to $3000; for a state grant, $1500 to $4000.

Mind you, I am suggesting these prices in an area where the cost of living is relatively low (along with pay rates) and for a *novice* grant writer. I have a friend who regularly charges in excess of $10K for a federal grant but she has 25 years experience and a 95% funding rate! Hope this helps.

Leeza Lei in Dallas, Texas said: Hello,

I am interested in taking grant writing courses. Would anyone recommend taking these courses and did you have trouble obtaining employment afterwards?

Thanks,

I would strongly recommend taking courses of any type. If you need a suggestion, I took two courses taught by Dr. Beverly Browning at Ed2Go.com and found them exceptionally helpful. Specifically, I took Advanced Grant Proposal Writing and Becoming a Grantwriting Consultant. The courses were worth many times what they cost (and that wasn't much). If you're looking for a more formal setting, I recently learned about an undergraduate certification program available from Fort Hays State University. It is a virtual college program and requires 3 semester-length courses. I've heard good things about this program.

As for "employability," I recommend taking all the courses you can get. Then read all the books you can and start with Dr. Beverly Browning's "Grant Writing for Dummies", 2nd edition. Once you have done all this, you will most definitely be "employable" just as I am. This is the course of action I followed and I have been busy ever since I "hung out my shingle." Good luck!

Charge all that the market will bear and then add 10% for your trouble. And always wait for the other side to be the first to state what it's willing to pay. As for courses and training, they're no substitute for actually writing proposals. And as for 95% funding rate, hasn't it been said before that a sucker is born every minute?

i need someone to write a grant for my mother church oneloce504@yahoo.com

Find a mentor and learn by doing, plain and simple.... Always be skeptical of anyone's claims to get virtually every proposal funded. If possible, seek and demand detailed written explanations of how such funding rates are measured and precisely what they encompass. Be particularly wary of hucksters and charlatans when seeking guidance or instruction. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!