A personal grant is any monetary assistance offered by the government or non-profits to individuals during financially challenging periods. The government provides financial aid for household expenses, education expenditures, childcare, housing, and medical expenses, among many others. Whenever facing economic hardships, consider applying for personal grants to get assistance and reduce stress and strain. Here are the steps you should follow while seeking personal grants:
 

1. Search and Download the Relevant Application Forms

Search for the granting organization you are interested in and download the application forms. Different granters provide funds to individuals with different needs. So, read through the granting organization's requirements and only apply where you are eligible.

Find out the information and documents the granter wants you to submit before completing the forms. It would be best if you were careful to fill in all the required details on the forms because leaving out vital information might make the organization disqualify you from getting the funds.

When applying for any grant, please remember that the process might take longer than you think. That is because the shortlisting panel goes through all applications before carefully selecting and announcing the winners.
 

2. Fill in the Application Forms

Granting organizations request interested individuals to provide various requirements while applying for funding. Hence, check what the granter requires to see if you qualify before applying. The granter will ask you to provide details of how you'll spend the grant money if you qualify.

Most granters these days provide online platforms where you can apply for funds. Therefore, save the information as you continue filling out the forms. Consider writing the details you'll include on the forms so you provide the correct information.

Also, check how you structure the sentences before submitting the application documents. Each paragraph should elaborate something different from the previous ones. Additionally, you can use visuals if you believe it will be better to relay a message to the granting committee.
 

3. Submit the Forms

Review the application documents before submitting them to check if you've provided all the required information. Confirm that you've provided properly-sized documents and formatted your work and that it doesn't have any errors. In addition, check if you've followed the granter's instructions while saving the file size. Also, avoid using similar names on different files.

If you mistakenly use one name on two files, rename them to hasten the application process. Before attaching any videos, images, and audio files, compress them. Finally, confirm that your application forms are error-free before submitting them. Remember that a single error might lead to automatic disqualification. Requesting someone to check your application for typing or grammatical errors would be great. Once you confirm everything is as it should be, save and submit the forms.
 

4. Keep Checking the Progress

After applying, you will get a notification within two days through email. The email will alert you that the committee has received your application and if it has been approved or not. If yours is successful, the committee will send you a tracking number to us when checking the shortlisting status.

Then, the committee will review your application documents and send you another email to inform you that your forms have reached the granter. You will then wait for another email to know whether you qualify for the funding. During the waiting period, you can use the tracking number to check the selection status from the granter's site. The panel will then send you an email to let you know if you won or not.
 

5. Follow Up to Know the Reason for Your Disqualification

The government gives funds to struggling American citizens in the form of personal grants. However, you cannot qualify if you don't follow the granter's instructions and submit all the requirements. In case the shortlisting panel rejects your application, you should check it to know what mistake you may have made.

Confirm if you left some important details or you provided some wrong information. It'll let you know how to apply next time to increase your chances of winning a grant. If the granting organization allows applicants to reapply for the funds, you can do so or try elsewhere.

If you are going through financial challenges and would like to apply for personal grants, the above procedure will guide you in improving your chances of qualifying. It will also guide you on the vital information you should focus on while applying.