Land grants and computer skills go hand in hand in these days of online submission.
Technology Matters More Than You Think
While it might seem like technology is something that you simply have in your life and something that you don’t need to think about (well, too hard, anyway), whether or not you can apply it to your life is completely different question. If you’re interested in applying for land grants, the paperwork of yesterday has been replaced by pages (and pages and pages) of confusing forms to fill out online. And when you miss just one page, you’re not going to get the land grant you’d hoped for. It sounds tough, but some basic computer skills are going to make all of the difference in how you apply for your land grant.
Word Processing Skills
When you’re filling out your land grant application, you need to make sure you are writing like a grown up. If you’re not already confident in the way that you write (um, grammar and stuff), this might be a good time to employ a professional grant writer to help you out. They’ll make sure you’re not sounding like an idiot who wouldn’t know what to do with a piece of land if it were handed to them (oh wait…). You might want to type out your longer answers on the land grant application into a word processing document. This way, you can check the grammar, the spelling, and you can make sure you sound like the right person to get the land.
Use a program like Microsoft Word to help you out. It points out when you’ve made mistakes and it will help suggest corrections. Then, you can take this perfect writing and then cut and paste it into the grant application you have started online.
Online System Requirements
Wait, if you’re filling out a land grant application, you need to make sure your computer can keep up with you. Dial up isn’t going to cut it. If you have a cable modem or a DSL system, you’ll be fine. If not, you might find that the telemarketer who calls you no matter what you threaten them with is the one who makes your form close when the ringtone is disconnected. And then you need to start over again. Instead, you need to make sure that you are on a computer with a connection that isn’t going to cut out. Head to the library or to friend who isn’t too cheap to buy a good Internet connection.
Other than that, you really just need to be able to use your mouse to move from one active field in the land grant form to another. And you need to know how to type.
