Difference between revisions of "Team:UMaryland/fundraising"

Revision as of 21:49, 11 September 2015

Why Fundraise?

Fundraising is a critical component to successfully navigating the iGEM competition season. It is perhaps one of the most important yet underappreciated activities of any organization. Like lab work, fundraising is not a straightforward process, and will lead to many dead ends and failed attempts before bearing fruit. In writing this guide, I hope to make fundraising fun and easy for your team.

Preliminary Steps

Budget Plan

Before delving into the fundraising process, there are a few documents and analyses that you need to prepare. First and foremost is a Budget Plan for all expected expenditures leading up to the competition. This will vary from team to team, but generally will include registration fees, lab expenses, and expenses related to travel, food, and lodging. Some teams may want to include a stipend for their students as well. UMaryland iGEM’s 2015 Budget Plan is linked below.

Note that many of the values in the Budget Plan, particularly the registration and lab expenses, can be highly variable and flexible.

Executive Summary

After you figure out how much money you will need, the next step is to prepare an Executive Summary. This should be a one-page document detailing your mission and goals. Keep your audience in mind when writing the executive summary: what kind of initiatives do deans, department chairs, and corporate leaders want to give money to? There’s no need to go into heavy detail about the science behind your work; instead, emphasize the impact iGEM has on students and the community. UMaryland iGEM’s 2015 Executive Summary is linked below.

Informational Brochure

The executive summary is great for professional use, but creating a Brochure can be a more effective way to reach out to people. Brochures, in general, are easier and more interesting to read, and is more likely to captivate the audience. UMaryland iGEM’s 2015 Brochure is linked below.

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 <p style = "font-size: 18px">After you figure out how much money you will need, the next step is to prepare an <b>Executive Summary</b>. This should be a one-page document detailing your mission and goals. Keep your audience in mind when writing the executive summary: what kind of initiatives do deans, department chairs, and corporate leaders want to give money to? There’s no need to go into heavy detail about the science behind your work; instead, emphasize the impact iGEM has on students and the community. UMaryland iGEM’s 2015 Executive Summary is linked below.</p>
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+<p style = "font-size: 22px"><i>Informational Brochure</i></p>
+<p style = "font-size: 18px">The executive summary is great for professional use, but creating a Brochure can be a more effective way to reach out to people. Brochures, in general, are easier and more interesting to read, and is more likely to captivate the audience. UMaryland iGEM’s 2015 Brochure is linked below.</p>
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Difference between revisions of "Team:UMaryland/fundraising"

Revision as of 21:49, 11 September 2015

A Step-By-Step Guide to Successfully Financing Your iGEM Team

By UMaryland iGEM

Why Fundraise?

Preliminary Steps