Overview

In no more than three sentences, this section will establish the need for and impact of your project. Both must be explained in the most concise terms possible, while still making your points clear and understandable to reviewers. The beginning sentence should be broad; the second and third sentences should focus on your project.

Example: In a global community where economies are interdependent, we need to understand the world in which we live. It is the obligation of our university to prepare students to function in a globalized world, so that they can better meet their responsibilities as citizens. We will augment student competencies in global studies through an interdisciplinary approach.

Purpose

The goal of your project will be stated directly and succinctly in this section. Use a single sentence, followed by a brief rationale statement on why your goal has been chosen. Be sure to use active language.

Example: The purpose of this two-year project is to strengthen and improve instruction in International Studies and the study of foreign languages through curriculum development and faculty enrichment. This interdisciplinary effort will expand the understanding of cultures and languages throughout all disciplines.

Expected Objectives

This is the “meat” of the abstract, so devote most of your allotted space to this section. In four or five sentences, describe three measurable objectives that demonstrate how you will achieve the goal. This is your promise to the donor about what you will do to solve the problem for which you are seeking the grant.

Example: We will augment student competencies in order for them to function successfully in a global economy. This will be accomplished via curriculum revision, which will create eight linked courses that will enroll 25 students per course over a two year period. In addition, foreign language instruction will take place through the infusion of 16 “Languages Across the Curriculum” courses. To fortify interdisciplinarity, collaboration and coordination between courses and disciplines, a learning community will be developed. Students and faculty will meet once per week in open forum discussions about specific international topics viewed from various perspectives.

Activities

Two to three sentences will summarize the major activities that you expect to undertake in order to reach your objectives. The plan of operation within your proposal will relay further details, therefore, choose only your strongest activities for use in the abstract.

Example: We will establish a minor in Global Studies to augment foreign language instruction via the expansion of the “Languages Across the Curriculum” project. To ensure that voices from various cultures and disciplines are present on campus, four distinguished scholars from diverse parts of the world will be invited over a nine month period each year. Faculty will collaborate with their international colleagues in order to globalize their research and curriculum.  

Conclusion

In one or two sentences, summarize why your project is important. Do this by tying your idea back to the issue you mentioned in the introductory sentence. No new information should be added here; you simply need to unify the sections. Stock phrases like “In conclusion…”, or “Taken together, these results show…” may be used to finish your abstract neatly.

Example: In conclusion, this project will build bridges across disciplines as a result of the curriculum development, faculty enrichment and student competencies in international studies. In doing so, this project will influence the entire community by infusing the college’s intellectual life with a deeper appreciation of other cultures, languages, and the international issues that make the planet interdependent.

With respect to style, I suggest that you aim for an average of 16 words per sentence. Each of your sentences should be short enough to be read aloud without pausing for breath. You want to keep the reader’s attention at all times. Ask others to read the finished product to determine where clarification might be needed. It should end with an impactful sentence the reviewers will remember as they begin reading the full narrative of your proposal. Above all, a great abstract is conveyed concisely and in a manner that is easy to follow.

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Overview

The overview will contain the long-term objectives, followed by the aims that support those objectives. It is the introduction that will illustrate the importance of the project in terms of its effect and impact. As seen in the following example provided by the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater, the author begins with the objectives, followed by the aims and the methodology.

Example

One long-term objective of this project is to understand the development of the ability of organs peripheral to the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) to synchronize with the external environment. The first aim supports this objective with a systematic analysis of when during development an entrainable circadian rhythm is present in the developing eye, ear, nose, heart, and pronephros of the model organism, Xenopus laevis. We first test for the onset of circadian rhythm in each organ within the context of the embryo by assaying for rhythmic expression of circadian genes in a light/dark (LD) cycle. Next, the ability of each organ to intrinsically generate circadian rhythms is tested by assaying for rhythmic circadian gene expression in organs cultured in vitro in constant darkness (DD). Lastly, the ability of each organ to directly entrain to light is tested by culturing organs in vitro for two days in LD followed by three days in a DL cycle and assaying for rhythmic gene expression that correlates with the anti-phase light regime. Quantitative Real Time PCR will be used to measure gene expression in all these experiments.

Intellectual Merit

This section will address what is currently known and, more importantly, what is not known in the field. This shows how the proposal will fill an important gap in existing knowledge. Specifically, the NSF requires that you address how the proposed activities will advance knowledge in your own scientific field and across other fields in creative and transformative ways. The qualifications of the Principal Investigator (PI) and the institutional resources are also key elements in this section. As noted in the example below, authored by PI Katja Michael of the University of Texas at El Paso, the PI begins this section with the importance of the study, speaks about innovation and the rationale on why the study should take place. This is followed by the qualifications of the PI to undertake the study.

Example

Since glycoproteins of moderate size can now be synthesized in homogeneous form by native chemical ligation techniques, there is a great demand for their synthetic building blocks, i.e. thioester (glyco) peptides and glycopeptides with an N-terminal cysteine. An original concept based on the photochemical acylation of thiols and glycosylamines under mild reaction conditions will be established in order to afford thioester peptides and glycopeptides. Thioester peptides are prone to C-terminal epimerization during standard acylation conditions. In contrast, their photochemical generation under neutral or weakly basic conditions is expected to produce minimal amounts of epimerized byproduct, which will contribute to improved reaction yields, and thus to the overall reaction yield of glycoproteins synthesized by native chemical ligation. The P.I.’s recent research results demonstrate that photochemical acylation condition minimizes aspartimide formation and thus increases the product yield. The P.I. endeavors a novel and broadly applicable, photochemical approach to make these important peptide derivatives better accessible to the scientific community. Developing novel methods for the efficient synthesis of thioester peptides and glycopeptides hascross-disciplinary implications. Not only does it expand the synthetic methodologies available to organic chemists, but biophysicists, glycobiologists, spectrosc opists, and pharmacologists will also benefit from the improved accessibility of pure, homogeneous glycoproteins in large quantities.

Broader Impacts

The Broader Impacts statement is an important part of the Summary Page and will heavily affect your chances of being funded. According to the NSF criteria, this section is about understanding and promoting teaching, training, research and learning. A description of how science and technology will be enhanced, as well as the broad societal impacts should be included in this section. The following example, which was posted on the website of the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater, effectively states the impact that will be had on undergraduate education and research and how the university will support lab experiences for students.

Example

This proposal is a vehicle for providing an opportunity for undergraduates to become immersed in basic research full time for ten weeks during the summer (impact on 8-12 undergraduate students over three years). The University of Wisconsin at Whitewater has a strong commitment to undergraduate research. Also, programs are in place to support undergraduate research through small intramural grants awarded to students as well as programs that support hands on lab research experience students. This proposal builds on these programs and provides support for students that have been trained in the laboratory in the fall and spring semesters to continue their research full time for 10 weeks of the summer and become immersed in their project.

Conclusion

An excellent Summary Page is critical for leaving reviewers with a good first impression. You want reviewers to see you in the very best light, so that they can champion your proposal. It will also be the page that can lead to immediate rejection, if it is not written according to the NSF directions. Since it is the most important part of your proposal, it will take time, but if done correctly, it will ensure your proposal gets noticed and potentially reaches the top of the competition.

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