Home Grant Writer Resume template
Grant Writer resume template
A clean starting structure with example content grounded in what grant writers actually do day to day, not generic filler. Download and replace the bracketed placeholders with your own details.
Which resume format should you use?
Reverse chronological
You have a steady work history. This is the format almost every recruiter and ATS expects by default.
Functional
You're changing fields or have gaps in your employment. Leads with skills rather than a job-by-job timeline.
Combination
You're early career or have worked consistently but for only a few employers. Blends a skills summary with a shorter chronological history.
This template uses the reverse chronological format: the one most grant writers should default to, since most Australian recruiters and ATS software expect it.
Professional summary
Grant writer with experience across community, health and arts programs. Skilled at matching funding opportunities to organisational priorities and turning project aims into clear, criteria-aligned applications. Works closely with program staff to gather evidence, build budgets and deliver submissions and acquittal reports on time.
Key skills
- Grant research and eligibility matching
- Funding application drafting and editing
- Budget preparation and forecasting
- Project management
- Business requirements analysis
- Stakeholder management and evidence gathering
- Acquittal and outcomes reporting
- Data storytelling and presenting
- Microsoft Word and Excel
- SmartyGrants and grant management software
- Attention to detail
- Time and deadline management
Experience: example bullet points
- Researched government, philanthropic and corporate grant rounds, matching opportunities to program goals and eligibility criteria.
- Drafted funding applications that translated project outcomes into funder language, securing [amount] in grants across [number] rounds.
- Liaised with program staff to gather evidence, outcomes data and supporting documents for submissions and acquittals.
- Prepared project budgets and timelines in Excel, ensuring alignment with funder guidelines and organisational forecasts.
- Compiled acquittal reports showing grant funds were spent as promised, maintaining positive relationships with funders.
- Managed multiple submissions to deadline using SmartyGrants and internal tracking systems.
Education
A bachelor degree in communications, arts, business or a related field is common, though many grant writers enter with a diploma or certificate in professional writing and relevant experience.
Keywords an ATS is likely to scan for
Applicant tracking systems match your resume against terms in the job ad before a person ever sees it. Only include the ones that actually apply to your experience, but if a term below matches something you've done, use the same wording the job ad uses.
- grant writer
- grant applications
- funding submissions
- acquittal reports
- SmartyGrants
- grant management software
- not-for-profit
- philanthropic funding
- government grants
- project budgets
- stakeholder liaison
- outcomes reporting
- selection criteria
- program logic
- Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission
- DGR status
Getting past ATS screening
- Match the specific skills, certifications and terms used in the job ad, not just your own wording for the same thing.
- Keep formatting simple: no tables, text boxes, columns, headers/footers or graphics. Parsers frequently drop content placed in these.
- Submit as .docx or PDF unless the job ad specifies otherwise.
- Use standard section headings (Experience, Education, Skills) rather than creative alternatives.
- List your core skills and technical competencies in their own section so a keyword scan can find them instantly.
This is a starting point, not a guarantee of interviews. Tailor every bullet point to your own real experience and the specific job ad.