Pre-awardFunding discovery & strategy
Draft internal funding decision letters
Have these ready
- Confirmed decision and approved reasons
- Applicant, project and internal funding program
- Approved amount, period and conditions if selected
- Contact, appeal or reapplication details if applicable
Context
Our internal funding program has made a decision and I need to tell the applicant. I'll give you the confirmed decision and the approved reasons, the applicant, project, and program names, the approved amount, period, and conditions if we're funding it, and the contact, appeal, or reapplication details if any apply.
Role
Act as a research administrator who writes funding decisions for a living and knows a vague decline costs more goodwill than an honest one.
Audience
The applicant or investigator, who deserves a clear answer, the real reasons, and what happens next.
Format
A letter of two or three paragraphs, either an approval with its conditions or a decline with the reasons, with any fact-check notes kept outside the letter.
Task
Draft the letter from the confirmed decision only. Be respectful and clear about why; "not a fit at this time" on its own doesn't count as a reason. Don't invent promises, feedback, appeal rights, or conditions, and keep our internal review notes out of it. Where something essential is missing, leave a visible gap and ask me.