The areas that are important to me would be; The budget amount they are requesting. The budget break down. The price research and comparisons and the purpose for each expense that they are requesting funds for. Also find it interesting to see if they have any other area incoming that maybe cover other expenses they have and what are other possible area of funding they may seek if funding is not provided by us.

@justinjts I agree that the budget is definitely a huge aspect to consider. I would also be curious to know the timeline for funding if it requires additional funding beyond the students' senior year. Furthermore, I would also add an analysis of the need for this device because if there is a similar one already on the market that completes the same goals, it may not be worth the investment. The need must outweigh the expenses associated with funding and marketing the device. It is also beneficial to have a well thought out execution plan to show the sincerity of the group in accomplishing their goals in a timely manner. Where the research will be conducted is also important to know if the location even has the capabilities to support the study. If not, additional time and resources may be required ultimately adding to the budget as well.

Important factors to consider when deciding on a proposal to fund would be idea, timing, objective plan, and budget. It would be important to consider the idea they are proposing in regards to the need in current medical settings. It would need to be considered if there is a current need for the material or if this idea fixes something that isn't a current issue. There is also the factor that there could be something already too similar to the idea that takes away the need for the proposal. If the idea is enough to satisfy the need then the plan needs to be considered. For example, how does the team plan to implement the new implantation device? What materials/resources are they going to need? Do they have certain resources at their campus or would they need additional assistance finding locations? How long would they take to complete the project? Is there a chance that the project exchanges hands? If the device is made, is the team planning to complete pre-clinical/clinical trials? Or would they leave that to a different team/phase? Do they need to contact other labs for these tests? And along with the logistics of the plan and timing itself, the possible budget would then be considered. How much money would be needed for each phase of the project? Is there a back-up plan for procedures that do not work? Is that additional funding? Does the PI they are working under have any other grants? A decent amount of information and intent of the students needs to be known to make an accurate response to the proposal, which in some grant cases, takes months for a response.

As someone who has received multiple research grants, it seems most grant committees look at the individual/team's qualifications, the intellectual merit behind the proposal, and its broader impacts (which includes the problem and customer pain hoped to be addressed). These committees also want to know how the funding will be used, given grants are not always solely research-based. For grants that push for commercialization, typically the committee asks you to also conduct market research as well as propose strategies to translate the product you envision from the lab bench to market which you will refine throughout the grant timeline. These are all considerations that you should make if attempting to secure a grant for an implant. As a biomedical engineer I would more specifically be interested in the materials you plan to use and how your implant will be tested (i.e. for biocompatibility) to ensure safety and efficacy.

I would be very concerned about the scope of this project. An implantable device will take years to develop fully from bench to bedside. Assuming the Capstone team understands this, they should have a project timeline mapped out and the written proposal should clearly define the scope of the project. It should be clear to the reader what the team expects to accomplish, and how and when they plan to do those things.

A previous poster mentioned that this project could be passed down to another group once this group is finished. The grant proposal should also outline what future work would be needed if this project were to continue. If I were to fund this grant, I would want to know that I wasn't going to give money to something that was not going to get to a final bedside stage without a plan to move it beyond the end of the Capstone term.

I concur with mmodi's response on the team member's merits, intellectual merit, and impact. I would add that the feasibility of the proposal is another important consideration. Feasibility is inclusive of previously mentioned parameters such as individual qualifications, but is also justified by the other resources available to the team (animal testing facility, characterization equipment, etc.).

ag2357's response outlining the timescale of the project is also very important to consider. This can be greatly affected by what class of device the team is trying to develop. A class I bandage, for example, will have a substantially less rigorous approval phase than a class III implant.

For me, I would like to feel confident that the project is going to see completion. This aligns with many of the points that previous posters have already called out - a timeline with actions for each phase of the project (literature review, design of experiment, pre-clinical and clinical trials, etc.), overall merit of the team, and the purpose of the project. At my current job we face challenges from our upper management if they feel like what we are presenting to them is not achievable or doesn't serve a new purpose/create a solution to an existing problem. I would give the same scrutiny to project proposals as it doesn't make sense to allocate funding to a project that seems doomed to fail. I think as another poster already mentioned as well - what is the purpose of the funding? Why does the team need funding for the project, are there other methods or solutions that the team can explore before giving funding? I would challenge the teams to come up with creative methods that may save money on the project, and then if there are no other options, then funding can be considered.

I agree with @mmodi that student merit and intellect should be the most important factor when deciding a grant recipient. Grants are meant to result in an end product, whether that is a new product that can be pushed towards commercialization or a research breakthrough. So it makes sense that the most decorated/qualified student or group would receive a grant as they would be the most likely candidate to achieve an end product.

While I agree with many of the people before me and think budget is one of the most important aspects of the grant proposal, in order to not sound like a broken record, I would like to zoom into the issue. While budget requests from the team are important, as someone on the research commission, it would be beneficial for me to look into the specific methodology used by the team as this can reveal in great detail whether the project is feasible or not. Methodology usually mentions what types of instruments, animals, hardware, software, etc. the team requires. From this you can weed out whether the budget matches the instruments used in the methodology and if it is plausible. If there are animals used, how many are required? Is the number a little too much for the project? In what amounts does the supplier supply them, and will there be delays in delivery depending on the timeline of the project? If yes, then the budget needs to be rethought for the test animals at least. What about any software used? Does the institute have a license for them and are they affordable? What about other types of technology that are more modern or new? Are they affordable? Reliable? Depending on the feasibility of all the materials required, only then can the budget be secured. 

To start with the amount of viable background knowledge accumulated for the study’s proposal is very important. Before I allocate any funds, I would like to feel confident that the study is bound to produce some type of results. The next areas that would be important to be is the study’s budget, timeline of the study, as well as amount of capable staff. These elements will ensure that the study can be completed under a viable amount of time with a reasonable amount of funds not to go over budget.