Use when writing or reviewing NIH, NSF, or foundation grant proposals. Invoke when user mentions specific aims, R01, R21, K-series, significance, innovation, approach section, grant writing, proposal review, research strategy, or needs help with fundable hypothesis, reviewer-friendly structure, or compliance with grant guidelines.
View on GitHubskills/grant-proposal-assistant/SKILL.md
January 24, 2026
Select agents to install to:
npx add-skill https://github.com/lyndonkl/claude/blob/main/skills/grant-proposal-assistant/SKILL.md -a claude-code --skill grant-proposal-assistantInstallation paths:
.claude/skills/grant-proposal-assistant/# Grant Proposal Assistant ## Table of Contents - [Purpose](#purpose) - [When to Use](#when-to-use) - [Core Questions](#core-questions) - [Workflow](#workflow) - [Section Frameworks](#section-frameworks) - [Reviewer Mindset](#reviewer-mindset) - [Guardrails](#guardrails) - [Quick Reference](#quick-reference) ## Purpose This skill guides the creation and review of competitive grant proposals (NIH R01/R21/K, NSF, foundations) by ensuring clear hypotheses, compelling significance, genuine innovation, and feasible approaches. It applies reviewer-perspective thinking to structure proposals that address common critique points before submission. ## When to Use Use this skill when: - **Writing new proposals**: NIH R01, R21, R03, K-series; NSF grants; Foundation applications - **Specific Aims development**: Crafting the critical 1-page aims document - **Section drafting**: Significance, Innovation, Approach sections - **Proposal review**: Pre-submission critique, mock study section preparation - **Resubmission**: Addressing reviewer critiques, strengthening weak areas - **Budget justification**: Aligning resources with proposed work Trigger phrases: "grant proposal", "specific aims", "R01", "R21", "NIH grant", "NSF proposal", "significance section", "innovation", "approach", "study section", "reviewer", "fundable" **Do NOT use for:** - Manuscripts (use `scientific-manuscript-review`) - Fellowship personal statements (use `career-document-architect`) - Letters of recommendation (use `academic-letter-architect`) ## Core Questions Every grant proposal must convincingly answer these four questions: **1. What is the central hypothesis?** - Testable, specific, falsifiable - Not just "we will study X" but "we hypothesize that X causes Y through mechanism Z" **2. Why is the problem important NOW?** - What gap exists in current knowledge? - Why is this gap significant for the field/patients/society? - Why is this the right time (new tools, preliminary data, shifting parad