Form 1 National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Applicant Survey

Thank you for submitting an application for grant funding from the National Endowment for the
Arts (NEA).
This brief survey will collect information about your perceptions of the grant application
guidance and systems provided by the NEA. When responding to these questions, please reflect
only upon your most recent experience applying to the NEA.
These survey questions are related primarily to NEA systems (e.g., arts.gov website, NEA
applicant portal), and guidance provided by the NEA (e.g., grant guidelines and application
instructions, NEA staff). Do not reflect on your experiences with Login.gov, SAM.gov, or
Grants.gov, unless the question specifies otherwise.
Your responses will remain anonymous and will be used only to evaluate the effectiveness of
the NEA's grant application guidance and systems. Your responses will not be associated with,
nor have any influence on, the review of your grant application.
OMB No. 3135-0130
Expires: XX/XX/XXXX
1. Please select the grant program to which you most recently submitted an application.
• Grants for Arts Projects February Cycle (GAP 1)
• Grants for Arts Projects July Cycle (GAP 2)
• Challenge America
• Our Town
• Research Awards (NEA Labs and/or Research Grants in the Arts)
2. Please select the artistic discipline/field associated with your project.
• Artist Communities
• Arts Education
• Dance
• Design
• Folk and Traditional Arts
• Literary Arts
• Local Arts Agencies
• Media Arts
• Museums
• Musical Theater
• Music
• Opera
• Presenting & Multidisciplinary Works
• Theater
• Visual Arts

3. Was this your organization’s first time applying to the NEA?
• Yes
• No
4. How did you first become aware of the NEA grant program to which you applied?
• NEA website
• NEA social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, newsletters)
• NEA staff
• Grants.gov website
• State arts agency
• Arts service organization
• From another funder (public or private)
• Word of mouth
• None of the above
5. Did you utilize any of the following technical assistance resources while preparing your
application? Select all that apply
• Webinars (live or archived)
• Q&A or office hours sessions
• Video tutorials
• Example application narratives
• Application checklist
• FAQs
• Spanish-translated materials
6. Please rate your satisfaction with the clarity of the grant opportunity guidelines located
on the NEA website (e.g., program description, eligibility information, award
information, etc.).
• Very Satisfied
• Satisfied
• Dissatisfied
• Very Dissatisfied
7. Please rate your satisfaction with the clarity of the instructions located on the NEA
website on how complete Part 1 and Part 2 of the application.
• Very Satisfied
• Satisfied
• Dissatisfied
• Very Dissatisfied
8. Please rate your satisfaction with the functionality of the NEA's applicant portal.
• Very Satisfied
• Satisfied

•
•

Dissatisfied
Very Dissatisfied

9. The total amount of time necessary to prepare and submit Part 2 (NEA Grant
Application Form) of my application was reasonable.
• Strongly Agree
• Agree
• Disagree
• Strongly Disagree
10. Please estimate how much time staff, consultants, grant writers or others working for
your organization spent on preparing and submitting Part 2 of the application. Include
time spent drafting responses to the application questions, selecting and preparing work
samples, and time spent working in the Applicant Portal to submit your application.
Do not include time spent registering/renewing with Login.gov, SAM, and grants.gov or
submitting Part 1 of the application. Round up to the nearest hour (ex. if the total
amount of time was 19.5 hrs, enter 20).
• Open box where they can enter up to 2 digits.
11. The total amount of information required by the NEA for Part 2 (NEA Grant Application
Form) of the application was reasonable.
• Strongly Agree
• Agree
• Disagree
• Strongly Disagree
12. Did your organization contact NEA staff during the application process?
• Yes
• No
13. For what reason(s) did you contact NEA staff during the application process? Select all
that apply.
• Discuss general questions about the grant program, such as areas of focus,
eligibility requirements, application due dates, the review criteria, etc.
• Discuss potential project ideas, and/or artistic discipline/field-specific matters
relevant to the application
• Discuss the registration process, Part 1 of the application, and/or seek assistance
with Login.gov, SAM, or Grants.gov
• Discuss specific application requirements or other components of Part 2 (NEA
Grant Application Form) Technical assistance with the NEA's applicant portal
• Other

14. How satisfied were you with the overall quality of your interactions with NEA staff?
• Very satisfied
• Satisfied
• Dissatisfied
• Very dissatisfied
15. What was your reason for NOT contacting NEA staff while preparing the application?
Select all that apply.
• The guidelines and instructions answered my questions
• The webinar or online tutorials answered my questions
• I have applied before and already knew how to prepare my application
• NEA business hours were not convenient
• I have unsuccessfully tried to contact NEA staff in the past
• I didn't know I could contact NEA staff
• Other
16. How satisfied were you with the overall experience of preparing and submitting Part 2
of the application (NEA Grant Application Form)?
• Very satisfied
• Satisfied
• Dissatisfied
• Very dissatisfied
17. You selected “dissatisfied” or “very dissatisfied” to the previous question. If you would
like, please share comments on how the experience could be improved. (Optional)
18. Although the NEA does not have control over the registration or Part 1 submission
processes, we are interested in your experiences with Login.gov, SAM, and Grants.gov.
How satisfied were you with the overall experience of registration and submitting Part 1
of the application?
• Very satisfied
• Satisfied
• Dissatisfied
• Very dissatisfied