Structuring Your Proposal

Structure Is Strategy

A grant proposal is not an essay. It is a structured argument designed to guide reviewers through your case in a specific order. Getting the structure right is not just formatting; it is strategic communication.

By the end of this lesson, you will know the standard components of grant proposals and how to organize them for maximum impact.

Quick Recall: In the previous lesson, we wrote needs statements using the zoom in, zoom out technique, combining data with human stories. That needs statement is one piece of a larger puzzle. Now let us see how all the pieces fit together.

The Universal Proposal Structure

While every funder has specific requirements, most proposals contain these core components:

Critical rule: always follow the funder’s required structure, not a generic template. If they specify sections in a particular order, follow that order exactly.

The Executive Summary

Write this last but place it first. It is a one-page overview of your entire proposal that busy reviewers read to decide how carefully they will evaluate the rest.

Executive summary checklist:

• Who you are (one sentence)
• What the problem is (one sentence)
• What you propose to do (two sentences)
• What outcomes you expect (one sentence)
• How much funding you request (one sentence)

AI-assisted executive summary:

Based on this proposal information, write a one-page executive summary:

Organization: [NAME AND MISSION]
Problem: [NEEDS STATEMENT SUMMARY]
Project: [WHAT YOU WILL DO]
Outcomes: [EXPECTED RESULTS]
Amount requested: [DOLLAR AMOUNT]
Duration: [PROJECT TIMELINE]

Write in clear, confident language. No jargon. Every sentence must earn its place.

Quick Check: Why should you write the executive summary last but place it first in the proposal?

Project Description: The Heart of the Proposal

This is where you explain exactly what you will do, how, and why your approach will work.

Organize the project description around these questions:

1. What will you do? Specific activities and interventions
2. Who will do it? Staff qualifications and roles
3. Who will benefit? Target population with numbers
4. Where and when? Location and timeline
5. Why this approach? Evidence that it works

Show your theory of change:

IF we provide [INTERVENTION]
TO [TARGET POPULATION]
THROUGH [SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES]
THEN [EXPECTED OUTCOME] will occur
BECAUSE [EVIDENCE/LOGIC]

This logical chain helps reviewers follow your reasoning.

Goals, Objectives, and Outcomes

Reviewers care most about this section. Vague goals lose proposals. Specific, measurable objectives win them.

The hierarchy:

• Goal: Broad statement of what you want to achieve (1-2 per project)
• Objective: Specific, measurable target (2-4 per goal)
• Outcome: Change that results from achieving objectives

Use SMART criteria for every objective:

AI can convert vague goals into SMART objectives:

Convert these vague goals into SMART objectives:

Goal 1: Improve youth employment
Goal 2: Reduce food insecurity
Goal 3: [YOUR GOAL]

For each, create 2-3 specific, measurable objectives with realistic targets and timeframes.
Our target population: [DESCRIBE]
Our capacity: [DESCRIBE WHAT YOU CAN REALISTICALLY ACHIEVE]

Quick Check: What does each letter in SMART stand for, and why does each element matter for grant objectives?

The Logic Model

Many funders require or appreciate a logic model. It is a visual summary of your entire project theory:

INPUTS → ACTIVITIES → OUTPUTS → OUTCOMES → IMPACT

Staff time    Tutoring     200 students    20% reading    Higher
Volunteers    sessions     served          improvement    graduation
Materials     Parent       40 workshops    80% parent     rates in
Funding       workshops    held            engagement     5 years

AI can draft your logic model:

Create a logic model for this project:
Project: [DESCRIBE YOUR PROJECT]
Resources available: [STAFF, BUDGET, FACILITIES]
Target population: [WHO YOU SERVE]
Timeline: [HOW LONG]

Format as a table with columns: Inputs, Activities, Outputs, Short-term Outcomes, Long-term Impact.

Evaluation Plan

Funders want to know how you will prove the project worked.

Two types of evaluation:

• Process evaluation: Did you do what you said you would? (Tracked through outputs)
• Outcome evaluation: Did it make a difference? (Tracked through measurable changes)

Specify for each objective:

• What you will measure
• How you will measure it (tool, survey, assessment)
• When you will measure (baseline, midpoint, end)
• Who will conduct the evaluation

Try It Yourself

Create a proposal outline for your project:

1. List all sections required by your target funder (or use the universal structure)
2. Write one SMART objective for your project
3. Draft a basic logic model using the template above
4. Write a three-sentence executive summary
5. Use AI to refine your objective and logic model

Having the structure clear before writing prevents the chaotic, last-minute scramble that produces weak proposals.

Key Takeaways

• Always follow the funder’s required structure exactly because reviewers score against specific sections
• Write the executive summary last but place it first: it summarizes your entire case in one page
• Project descriptions must answer what, who, where, when, and why with a clear theory of change
• Convert vague goals into SMART objectives: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound
• A logic model visually connects inputs to activities to outputs to outcomes to impact

Up Next

In Lesson 5: Budgets and Timelines, we will build the financial and scheduling components that demonstrate your organization can actually execute what you are proposing.