Overview

The Project Description is limited to 15 pages, single spaced, includes a section on "broader impacts," and describes in detail the rationale for your proposed project. It provides an opportunity to present your logic model and describes intended outcomes and specific activities, including your research plan; your partners and advisors; your management, dissemination and evaluation plans; and your prior NSF support for projects specifically related to your current proposal (if applicable). Project details must be well thought out and concisely articulated in order to present all of this information in a 15-page, single-spaced document.

NOTE: Appendices are not permitted, so the project description must include all charts, diagrams, and photos within the 15-page limit.

The reference section of your proposal (not included as part of the 15-page project description) will include all bibliographic citations included in your project Description.

This module will cover the following sections of the Project Description: Project Overview; Rationale and Importance; Intellectual Merit; Broader Impacts; Expertise and Management; Special Review Criteria; Results of Prior Support and References. You will work on the Research and Development sections in Module 4; Independent Review (Evaluation) in Module 5; Dissemination in Module 6; and on your Project Summary in Module 8: Putting it All Together. We save the Project Summary for last, as sometimes it is easier to write after the Project Description is completed.

Module format

Each module has the following sections, organized into tabs.

• Overview provides module objectives.
• Topics covers 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 four topic tabs:
• • Technical Criteria
  • Merit Review Principles and Criteria
  • Writing a Compelling Project Description
  • References Cited
• Proposal Steps will summarize the activities from the previous tabs within the module. Each of these summaries are designed to help write your project description. This module also has one assignment that you will submit for feedback.
• Resources provides general and specific resources and quick links to useful sites.