Manages the money, rules and reports behind government and foundation grants after they are awarded, for agencies, universities and nonprofits. BLS does not publish separate figures for fundraisers; it counts them within fundraiser (SOC 13-1131), whose median pay is $72,550 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Typical entry-level education: Bachelor's degree.
- SOC 13-1131
- Business and Financial Operations
- Last updated October 9, 2026
At a glance
Grants Management Specialist in four numbers
- Median pay
- $72,550a year, or $34.88/hrBLS OEWS, May 2025Lowest 10% $47KTop 10% $116K
US median, all jobs: $50,980
- Projected growth
- +5.5%Faster than averageBLS EP, 2025–2035This career+5.5%All jobs+3.5%
Projected employment change, 2025–2035 Item Value This career +5.5% All jobs +3.5% - Openings a year
- 10,000140,900 jobs todayBLS EP, 2025–2035
- Jobs in 2025140.9K
- Projected 2035148.7K
Employment, 2025–2035 Item Value Jobs in 2025 140.9K Projected 2035 148.7K - Typical education
- Bachelor'sneeded to enterBLS EP, 2025–2035; mix: O*NET
- Bachelor's90.5%
- Post-bacc certificate4.8%
- Master's4.8%
Highest education held by fundraisers Segment Value Bachelor's 90.5% Post-bacc certificate 4.8% Master's 4.8%
Also advertised as: Grants Manager, Grants Administrator, Post-Award Grants Specialist, Sponsored Programs Administrator, Grants Compliance Specialist.
Pay
How much do Fundraisers make?
Every grants management specialist in the US, by percentile of annual wage
Median
$72,550
Middle half earn $57,480 to $92,180
- 10th
- $46,630
- 25th
- $57,480
- 75th
- $92,180
- 90th
- $115,820
All US occupations: $50,980
| Percentile | Value |
|---|---|
| 10th | $46,630 |
| 25th | $57,480 |
| Median | $72,550 |
| 75th | $92,180 |
| 90th | $115,820 |
| All US occupations | $50,980 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Median annual wage
- $72,550
- Median hourly wage
- $34.88/hr
- Mean annual wage
- $77,200
- People employed
- 111,040
Versus all US occupations
At $72,550, Fundraisers earn 42% above the $50,980 median across all US occupations, a difference of $21,570 a year.
Versus business and financial operations occupations
Inside the Business and Financial Operations group, where the middle occupation pays $80,730, this is 10% below the group median.
Pay range
The top 10% earn $115,820 or more while the bottom 10% earn $46,630, a gap of 2.5×. That is a typical spread for a US occupation.
Rank in the bank
This median pays more than 46% of the 1,741 occupations in the NueCareer career bank.
Cost of living
District of Columbia posts the highest raw median ($80,840), but once local prices are taken into account North Dakota leads at $85,478 in national-average dollars.
Pay by state
Which states pay Fundraisers the most?
State medians come from the same OEWS release as the national figures. The cost-of-living column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, restating pay in national-average dollars so a high-cost state and a low-cost one can be compared directly.
| State | Median | COL-adjusted | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1District of Columbia | $80,840 | $73,557 | 2,350 |
| 2New York | $80,540 | $74,629 | 11,600 |
| 3Maryland | $79,780 | $76,011 | 2,010 |
| 4California | $79,710 | $71,992 | 12,860 |
| 5Massachusetts | $79,060 | $74,756 | 6,160 |
| 6Washington | $79,000 | $73,823 | 3,870 |
| 7Connecticut | $77,730 | $75,022 | 1,350 |
| 8New Jersey | $77,170 | $70,925 | 1,950 |
| 9Minnesota | $76,910 | $77,985 | 3,190 |
| 10North Dakota | $76,040 | $85,478 | 340 |
Job outlook
Is Grants Management Specialist a growing career?
Employment change over 2025–2035, against every US occupation
Faster than average. +5.5% projected growth vs 3.5% for all occupations.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Fundraisers | +5.5% |
| All US occupations | +3.5% |
Source: BLS EP, 2025–2035
Faster than average
BLS projects employment of Fundraisers to change 5.5% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% projected for all occupations. That is 7,800 more jobs.
Annual openings
About 10,000 openings are projected each year, 7.1% of the 140,900 jobs that existed in 2025. Most come from workers leaving the occupation, not from growth alone.
Getting in
How to become a Grants Management Specialist
A bachelor's degree in business, accounting, public administration or a related field is typical, though many specialists move up from program assistant or accounting roles. Federal grants management jobs have their own occupational series and career ladders.
The National Grants Management Association offers the Certified Grants Management Specialist credential, and the National Council of University Research Administrators and the Research Administrators Certification Council support the university side with the Certified Research Administrator credential. Training on the Uniform Guidance and single audit requirements is widely available. A common route is starting in a city, nonprofit or university finance office and specializing in grant accounting and compliance.
- 1
Typical entry-level education
Bachelor's degree
- 2
Work experience in a related occupation
None
- 3
Typical on-the-job training
None
- 4
Preparation needed (O*NET job zone)
Medium preparation
BLS Employment Projections, 2025–2035; job zone from O*NET 31.0 Database.
What education people in the job have
O*NET incumbent survey: the highest level of education reported by people already working as fundraisers.
- Bachelor's Degree90.5%
- Post-Baccalaureate Certificate4.8%
- Master's Degree4.8%
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Bachelor's Degree | 90.5% |
| Post-Baccalaureate Certificate | 4.8% |
| Master's Degree | 4.8% |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
The work
What does a Grants Management Specialist do?
Grants management specialists make sure grant money is spent the way the funder intended. On the funding side, federal and state agencies employ them to review applications for compliance, issue awards, monitor recipients and close out grants. On the receiving side, universities, hospitals, cities and nonprofits employ them to set up budgets, track spending, file reports and keep the organization out of audit trouble.
The work centers on the federal Uniform Guidance, which sets rules on allowable costs, procurement, subawards and reporting for federal grants. Specialists review budgets and budget changes, approve drawdowns, check subrecipients, prepare financial and progress reports, and answer auditor questions. At a research university, the sponsored programs office handles thousands of awards at once, so the job is detail heavy and deadline driven.
Day-to-day tasks
- Review grant budgets and applications for compliance
- Set up awards in financial and grants management systems
- Track spending and approve budget revisions
- Prepare financial and progress reports for funders
- Monitor subrecipients and review their documentation
- Interpret federal Uniform Guidance and funder rules
- Support audits and respond to findings
- Close out completed grants and reconcile final costs
Typical tasks, researched by NueCareer from the sources below.
Working conditions and hours
Specialists work in office settings at government agencies, universities, hospitals and nonprofits, with telework common. Hours are generally regular, with crunches around application deadlines, fiscal year end and audits. The work involves long stretches of spreadsheet, document and systems work, plus regular calls with program staff and funders.
Where the work happens
Indoors, climate-controlled
NeverEvery dayOutdoors in all weather
NeverEvery day
Physical demands
Sitting
NeverAlmost all the timeSeated for more than half the working day.
Standing
NeverAlmost all the timeBending or twisting
NeverAlmost all the time
Working with people
Contact with other people
NoneConstantConstant contact with other people.
Face-to-face discussions
NeverEvery dayFace-to-face discussions every day.
Dealing with the public
Not importantExtremely importantDealing with customers or the public is very important.
Pressure and stakes
Strict deadlines
NeverEvery dayConflict situations
NeverEvery dayCost of a mistake
Not seriousExtremely serious
Autonomy
Freedom to decide
NoneA lotA lot of freedom to make decisions without checking first.
Conditions: O*NET Work Context survey. Each item has its own scale, so each dot is read against the two answers that end its own line.
Core skills
O*NET importance, 1 to 5
- Speaking4.1
- Reading Comprehension4.0
- Active Listening4.0
- Writing4.0
- Critical Thinking3.9
- Active Learning3.3
- Monitoring3.1
- Mathematics3.0
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Speaking | 4.1 |
| Reading Comprehension | 4.0 |
| Active Listening | 4.0 |
| Writing | 4.0 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.9 |
| Active Learning | 3.3 |
| Monitoring | 3.1 |
| Mathematics | 3.0 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Transferable skills
O*NET importance, 1 to 5
- Persuasion4.0
- Negotiation3.9
- Coordination3.8
- Social Perceptiveness3.6
- Service Orientation3.5
- Judgment and Decision Making3.4
- Complex Problem Solving3.3
- Systems Analysis3.1
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Persuasion | 4.0 |
| Negotiation | 3.9 |
| Coordination | 3.8 |
| Social Perceptiveness | 3.6 |
| Service Orientation | 3.5 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.4 |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.3 |
| Systems Analysis | 3.1 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Tools and software
- Customer relationship management CRM software · in demand
- Data base user interface and query software · in demand
- Electronic mail software · in demand
- Office suite software · in demand
- Presentation software · in demand
- Spreadsheet software · in demand
- Web page creation and editing software · in demand
- Word processing software · in demand
- Data base reporting software
- Desktop publishing software
- Enterprise resource planning ERP software
- Graphics or photo imaging software
“In demand” marks an O*NET Employer-Based Hot Technology, software named in real job postings for this occupation.
Personality fit
What personality type suits a Grants Management Specialist?
NueCareer estimate (Holland code CES) built on O*NET's Fundraiser profile, scored 1 to 7
| Axis | Grants Management Specialist |
|---|---|
| Realistic | 1 |
| Investigative | 2 |
| Artistic | 3 |
| Social | 4 |
| Enterprising | 6 |
| Conventional | 5 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
What the work is built around
Day to day this is work built around leading, persuading, selling and making decisions, combined with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data.
- Enterprising6.0
- Conventional4.7
- Social4.4
- Artistic3.2
- Investigative2.0
- Realistic1.0
Closest MBTI types
NueCareer fit scores: cosine similarity between each MBTI type's interest vector and this occupation's O*NET interest profile. Not a BLS or O*NET figure; the method is documented on our methodology page.
Explore further
Careers related to Grants Management Specialist
O*NET related occupations
- Business and Financial Operations
- Management
- Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Management
- Management
- Business and Financial Operations
More business and financial operations careers
Median annual pay, with fundraisers highlighted
- Financial Advisor$105,070
- Accountant$83,680
- Insurance Underwriter$81,370
- Coroner$80,730
- Claims Adjuster, Examiner, and Investigator$78,000
- Loan Officer$76,690
- Human Resources Specialist$75,940
- Grants Management Specialist$72,550
- Appraiser and Assessor of Real Estate$67,960
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Financial Advisor | $105,070 |
| Accountant | $83,680 |
| Insurance Underwriter | $81,370 |
| Coroner | $80,730 |
| Claims Adjuster, Examiner, and Investigator | $78,000 |
| Loan Officer | $76,690 |
| Human Resources Specialist | $75,940 |
| Grants Management Specialist | $72,550 |
| Appraiser and Assessor of Real Estate | $67,960 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
Lists Grants Management Specialist appears on
Questions
Grants Management Specialist: frequently asked questions
How much do Fundraisers make?
BLS does not publish a separate wage for fundraisers. It counts them within fundraiser, whose median pay is $72,550 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The middle half of that occupation earn between $57,480 and $92,180, and the top 10% earn $115,820 or more.
Do you need a degree to become a Grants Management Specialist?
Yes. BLS reports a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for Fundraisers, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as medium preparation. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 90.5% hold bachelor's degree.
Is Grants Management Specialist a growing career?
Yes. Employment is projected to grow 5.5% over 2025–2035, faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 10,000 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.
What does a Grants Management Specialist do?
Grants management specialists make sure grant money is spent the way the funder intended. A typical task: review grant budgets and applications for compliance. Employers most often ask for Customer relationship management CRM software, Data base user interface and query software, Electronic mail software.
Which states pay Fundraisers the most?
The highest state medians for Fundraisers are District of Columbia ($80,840), New York ($80,540), Maryland ($79,780) (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Adjusted for local prices using BEA Regional Price Parities, North Dakota moves to the top at $85,478.
What personality type suits a Grants Management Specialist?
O*NET scores Fundraisers highest on the Enterprising, Conventional and Social interest areas, so the work mixes leading, persuading, selling and making decisions with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ESFJ, ENFJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.