Overview

The goal of this course is to learn about all the key aspects of writing NSF proposals. While this particular course focuses primarily on ITEST proposal writing, the approaches here are transferable to other NSF proposal types.

The ITEST Proposal Development Course, hosted and facilitated by the STEM Learning and Research Center (STELAR), has been developed by seasoned ITEST PIs to provide new proposal writers with guidance on developing a strong proposal. The information included in the course is a collection of insights and recommendations from the community and is not officially sanctioned by NSF. Completing the course does not guarantee the participants’ proposals being more likely to receive funding from NSF or the ITEST program. Information submitted through the course (e.g. Course Activities) is confidential and can be viewed only by STELAR.

The course covers the critical components of developing a successful NSF ITEST proposal, including forming partnerships; writing a compelling narrative; developing research and evaluation designs that are well-aligned and effective; planning for fruitful dissemination; preparing a budget; and, finally, submitting the proposal to NSF.

Each module will cover a different topic in proposal writing. The module-specific topics are listed below:

• Orientation (You are in this module now)
• Module 1: Introduction to the STELAR Center, NSF, and ITEST
• Module 2: Forming Partnerships
• Module 3: Writing a Compelling Project Description
• Module 4: Developing a Research Plan
• Module 5: Developing an Evaluation Plan
• Module 6: Dissemination
• Module 7: Preparing a Budget
• Module 8: Pulling it All Together
• Module 9: Finalizing and Uploading to Research.gov

Module Format

Each module will have the following sections:

• Overview provides module objectives.
• Topics cover specific module content. Embedded within each topic tab are activities and assignments designed to build on and support what you have just learned. This module has two topic tabs:
  • Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
  • Sneak Peek
• Proposal Steps will summarize the Activities and Assignments from the previous tabs within the module. Each of these summaries is designed to help with writing your proposal.
• Resources will provide general and specific resources, quick links to useful sites, and exemplars of proposal material in future modules. Note: There are no resources in this module