Applying for a Grant - Where and How
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Grant applicants need to be registered with CRR prior to submitting a grant application through Grants.gov. By registering with the CCR, the organization is required to designate an e-Business Point of Contact (EPOC) According to Grants.gov, the EPOC is the sole authority of the organization capable of designating or revoking an individual's ability to submit a grant application on behalf of their organization through Grants.gov. The CCR also provides organizational information that Grants.gov uses to verify an applicant's identity and to pre-fill repetitive information on grant application, which will ultimately save you time in applying for a grant.

4. Register with Credential Provider.

Grants.gov employs the use of e-Authentication to ensure the security of your information that is submitted electronically in an application. e-Authentication is done through the use of Credential Providers. It is the process of determining, with certainty, that the person applying for the grant is who they are claiming to be in the application. The Credential Provider for Grants.gov is an organization called Operational Research Consultants (ORC). When you, as a grant applicant, are applying for a grant, you'll receive a username and password, which is then used to register with Grants.gov as an authorized organization representative, or in other words, as an individual designated as authorized to submit grant applications for your business or organization through Grants.gov. Once you've registered as an authorized organization representative, your EPOC is asked to validate the registration. Once your EPOC validates the request, the individual requesting authorized organiza!

tion representative's status for your organization will receive a notification via email confirming that you're not able to submit grant applications electronically through Grants.gov, which is the fastest and easiest way to expedite your grant application.

5. Register with Grants.gov.

As mentioned, when applying for a grant, it is necessary to register with Grants.gov as an authorized organization representative in order to submit a grant application electronically. According to Grants.gov and their instructions file, the E-Business Point of Contact (EPOC) listed on an organization's Central Contact Registry (CCR) registration will receive email notification stating that the grant applicant has registered to submit grants. The EPOC will then need to log onto the EBiz section of Grants.gov and assign the "Authorized Applicant" role to the grant applicant. Once the EPOC does this, the applicant will receive email notification stating that they have been designated as an AOR and will be able to submit applications through Grants.gov.

While there are many steps involved in applying for a grant, doing so online will move the process along much smoother and quicker than through traditional paperwork applications. The site offers user-friendly instructions and support tools, including a tutorial, a help section, a user guide, a quick reference section, and a frequent questions and answers section. Through this information, most questions and problems are addressed, and where something unusual occurs, personalized support is also available through the Grants.gov contact center.

About The Author Rebecca Game is the founder of Digital Women ®, an online community for women in business. A 30 year entrepreneur and dedicated to helping other women find business loans and business grants. Visit her site: Business Grants for Women or at her main site: http://www.digital-women.com.

Applying for a Grant - Where and How
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Additional Resources

category - Applying for a Grant

Department of Agriculture: Technical Assistance and Training Grant
The Department of Agriculture has recently established the Technical Assistance and Training Grants program.

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National Institutes of Health: Expanding the Encyclopedia of DNA Elements in Human and Model Organisms
The National Institutes of Health, in cooperation with the National Human Genome Research Institute, has established a funding opportunity to support the Expanding the Encyclopedia of DNA Elements in Human and Model Organisms project.

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United States Department of Agriculture: Rural Development
USDA Rural Development is an agency that is operating under the United States Department of Agriculture. The primary goal of the USDA RD is to assist in the improvement of the economy and quality of life in rural areas located in the United States.

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Grants From The National Science Foundation
Since its creation in 1950, the National Science Foundation has been constantly promoting the progress of science by way of advancing national health and prosperity and financially supporting research and development studies in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering.

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