Here's how you can access specialized training programs to advance in Grant Administration.

Grant management is a key to success and ability to gain additional grant funding opportunities on the "go forward." It's important to align with organizations that are vetted, reliable, and have a professional caliber in their offerings. There are tons of people and organizations out their vying for your dollars. Spend wisely and do your research. I like to start at the local level, in your community, such as your local community college, Chambers of Commerce, Boards of Trade, and the like. Supporting locally helps everyone!

These workshops are invaluable to connect with other professionals, or aspiring professionals. The learning can often be done in half hour, if you get the lectures/documents afterwards, but the connections you make are invaluable. To state an obvious networking comment: you never know when someone you connect with becomes relevant to you.

Even if you are not working for the Government, getting access to these course can be invaluable. My experience is that occasionally I seem to know the rules beter than the government oficial. The downside here is that these courses focus on 1 grant type, which may not be worth your time and effort.

Fortunately, every career path has professional development organizations, to learn and to network. Specific to this question, I greatly appreciate the multiple learning and networking programs established by the Grant Professionals Association. I’m also familiar with the National Grant Management Association (the topic of this blog is literally their title!). Neither of these is a promotional statement. I personally enjoy the time away from deadlines to meet with other professionals We’re glad to share our experiences and insights, through a conference session, virtual workshop, casual conversation between colleagues, or blog article. Certification opportunities might be the next step. I’m thinking about that right now for myself.

Personally, I would focus most of your time on self-study. The vast amount of knowledge readily available online is amazing. I would always tell my staff, time permmitting, to spent time finding interesting information online, as part of their working week. Especially for Grant managment, with it's various disciplines attached, and with completely unrelated varied projects, this is the fastest and most efficient way to study. The obvious downside is that you do not get any formal recognition for your learning.

Federal agencies are mandated to offer technical assistance as part of their duties as grantors. For each program the organization must identify key points of contact including the Program Officer, Grants Officer, and Financial Officer, who should be accessible to offer support - acting as your main liaisons. Subscribing to agency and program newsletters is crucial as they offer ongoing training on various relevant topics. Enroll in all of them, even if you won’t be able to attend, you will still receive the recordings and the training materials. Associations like the National Grants Management Association are essential for staying updated on OMB, Uniform Guidance Regulations, and other regulatory factors affecting all your grant programs.