Crafting a grant’s budget says a lot about a project’s feasibility–the capacity to scope a complex project, account for mundane details, anticipate outcomes or prepare for pivots. Many grants (such as the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada) offer matching funds, meaning they will match (often in cash) the contributions you’ve also secured from partners (a combination of cash and in-kind).

Beyond the budget itself, documenting in-kind contributions helps demonstrate existing support for and investment in the project–even if a grant doesn’t require in-kind contributions. That is, whether or not you need to state so explicitly in a grant, successful partnerships depend on a whole range of labour, time, and resources, many of which may go underestimated or altogether invisible on paper. Taking stock of these contributions on a grant application—in a budget section or elsewhere—can show a strong and transparent foundation of understanding between you and your partners. This foundation is crucial to a project’s early success.

In-kind contributions can seem nebulous at first, especially when there’s no hard and fast rule for calculating them and when guidelines may vary across institutions. We offer the following strategies to start thinking about the range of possible contributions from partners. 

What are in-kind contributions?

For many funding agencies, your project partners can support your budget in two ways: through cash or in-kind contributions. Cash contributions cover direct expenses of grant-related research or activities. A partner may provide you a cash contribution to cover a certain expense or provide general funds to use towards the whole project at your discretion. 

In-kind contributions cover all other forms of non-monetary support, often in the form of a non-reimbursable donation, that aren’t immediately accessible to the team in terms of cash or an existing fund. For instance, a partner may contribute in the form of staff time, labour, or the lending of resources. 

This means that the possibility for in-kind contributions can include many, many things. Thankfully, some funding agencies like SSHRC will provide their own guide to calculating some common forms of in-kind contributions. But many in-kind contributions can be rather intangible, flexible, and highly specific. No list will fully anticipate the specific needs of your project or the unique capacities of your partners.

Rather than beginning with specifics, we propose thinking about your contributions broadly through following categories: Time, Events, Infrastructure, and Knowledge Mobilization. These categories have some natural overlaps, and they cover only some of the most common examples of in kind we see in our clients’ grant proposals.

TIME: Includes the time for staff, students, and other employed persons on a grant. When calculating time, consider the institutional or workplace standards for remuneration. Will an in-kind contribution of a university staff member include an hourly wage plus benefits? Will tuition factor into a student’s employment, and will that student be paid hourly or by a stipend? Will they be hired under a certain classification (Teaching Assistant, Research Assistant, etc). 

EVENTS: Will you be organizing a conference? A general meeting? A community event? Will it be hosted at your institution, at a venue provided by your partner, or elsewhere? Will there be travel costs? Will there be catering, or a videographer, or an Elder opening ceremony? Where will you gather, and who will provide that space? Who will pay for parking?

INFRASTRUCTURE: Includes meeting space, A/V equipment, software, digital platforms, repositories and archives, data storage, subscriptions to publications, and other material and virtual resources needed to complete the project. As a starting point, consider which resources you already access at your institution and draft a list of the ongoing and additional supports you will need for this specific project. 

KNOWLEDGE MOBILIZATION: Knowledge mobilization refers to the process of communication, partnership development, and project design through which you facilitate research impact. Knowledge mobilization can include all of the categories above, and it also encompasses other needs, assets, and activities that often fall through the cracks. 

Will your social sector partner be sharing your work together at a local community block party booth? Designing marketing materials or drafting media releases? Providing seeds and equipment to build a community garden? Training local health practitioners to use the practices or resources that you have designed together? Hosting a podcast episode about the project? 

Talking to your partners about these types of activities is a great way to signal that you recognize their contributions and learn more about the true costs to them of working with you. It can also uncover new opportunities to amplify each other’s work. 

Here are some further strategies for calculating in-kind contributions:

1. Always check institutional guidelines and available resources: Your institution may have its own internal requirements for calculating and managing contributions, as well as processing internal expenses through them. We highly recommend checking with your institution’s Office of Research Services (or similar office) for rules around accessing internal resources and processing expenses. 
2. Document and show your work: Some funders may require quotes or other documents that will determine your calculation. Gather estimates from vendors or refer to standard professional rates to determine fees for consultants or other professional services. Refer to institutional per diem rates, catering menus, flight searches, venue rates, etc. In your letters of support, ask your partners to include how they calculated their contributions (e.g. staff salaries, venue space).
3. Justify your expenses in the whole application, not just the budget: If you’re paying for travel costs for a speaker or student, you’ll want to include their names or roles in the application itself. Ask your partners to include specific names of individuals in their letters of support where possible. Specificity is almost always more compelling. 
4. Have open discussions early in the application phase: Consider the structural realities, principles, or worldviews within which your partners live and work. How and where do they place value? How do they wish for these contributions to be represented in a proposal? What challenges or opportunities do they foresee in this project? What is needed in order to build and sustain trust relationships? 

Beyond demonstrating your number-crunching skills and resourcefulness, a well-designed budget demonstrates to your reviewers and your partners that you have thought through how to make the project feasible, authentic, and rewarding for all involved. Take this opportunity to build strong foundations for future work and long-term partnerships. 

Further Reading and Resources

• “Guidelines for Cash and In-Kind Contributions,” Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, accessed June 9, 2024, https://www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca/funding-financement/policies-politiques/cash_inkind-especes_en_nature-eng.aspx 

• “In-Kind Contributions Explained,” York University, accessed June 9, 2024, https://www.yorku.ca/procurement/information-for-researchers/cfi-grant-applications-awards/in-kind-contributions-explained/ 
• “Items Involving In-Kind Contributions,” Canada Foundation for Innovation, accessed June 9, 2024,
• https://www.stfx.ca/sites/default/files/documents/Guidelines_on_Valuing_In-kind Contributions_2023-24.pdf 
• “Research application budgets,” Office of Research Services (ORS), University of Victoria, accessed June 9, 2024, “https://www.uvic.ca/research-services//funding/research-finance/research-application-budgets/index.php 
• “Tri-agency financial administration,” Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), accessed June 9, 2024, https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/InterAgency-Interorganismes/TAFA-AFTO/index_eng.asp 

Heidi is an editor and humanities scholar completing a PhD in English at the University of British Columbia, where she focuses on science, technology, and domesticity in nineteenth-century literature and culture. She is passionate about the relationships between research, storytelling, and its many publics, which she brings to her work in communications and grants development with Hikma.

Ai is passionate about bridging academic insight and real-world impact. She  strives to integrate her extensive program management background with her scholarly expertise in education. Her journey has taken her from global institutions like the Asia-Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO to the Consulate General of Japan in Vancouver. These experiences have honed Ai's skill in navigating diverse stakeholder interests, fostering cross-cultural collaboration, and designing innovative programs. Ai's  mission lies in making knowledge accessible and impactful for everyone.