Introduction to Pre-award Research AdministrationKaren Hawkinson, Frances Spalding and Roger Wareham

02.18.2010

What to expect? Nuts and Bolts

Mining Web pages and Other Electronic Considerations

Resources

Professional Organizations

What does a sponsored project look like? Binds the university with a set of terms

and conditions Obligates the university to a line of

scholarly or scientific inquiry Both the grantor and grantee agree how

the funds will be spent A level of fiscal responsibility is

understood Results of the study will be shared

Common Types of Sponsored Agreements

Grant

Cooperative Agreements

Contracts

Sub Awards

There are a Variety of Sponsors Federal Government

◦ Departments like Agriculture◦ Independent Agencies, i.e. EPA, NSF

State Governments

Foundations, i.e. MacArthur

Industry, i.e. General Motors

Non-profit organizations, i.e. Cancer Society

Where to identify funding opportunities On line services like COS

◦ Searches◦ Alerts

Agency web pages

Discipline listings

Grants.gov

Foundation directory on line

More and more proposal creation means stepping into the electronic world

Growing number of sponsors are requiring submission of proposals through electronic means:◦ Electronic forms sets◦ Downloading forms on to a webpage◦ Completing a proposal on line

Check sponsor’s requirements for electronic submission

Some things to find out Does your agency require registration with

a user name and id? NSF is an example with FastLane. Grants.gov on the other hand does not require user registration

Are there electronic requirements? NASA Nspires will not support IE with a MAC

File formatting for attachments? If a sponsor requires PDF documents attached for example you will need a copy of Adobe Professional (Discounted prices are available through OIT, http://www.oit.umn.edu/utools/index.htm)

Getting started Download a copy of the Sponsor’s

request for proposal (RFP), a.k.a. funding opportunity announcement (FOA) or other acronyms

Read thoroughly

Discuss project, budget and deadlines with the PI

Formal proposals include many common elements Cover page Abstract Scientific narrative, including statement of

work, literature review, methodology Key Personnel (which may include both a CV

and possibly an Other Support page) Resources Budget and justification Appendices Letters of Support

Budget section includes Direct costs are those identified specifically with a particular sponsored activity

Indirect costs (a.k.a. facilities and administration) are costs incurred for common objectives and cannot be identified readily with a singular sponsored project

Direct cost portion of the budget includes such items as Salaries and benefits Consultant Equipment Materials and supplies Travel Other direct costs Consortium costs

Submitting a proposal Preparing a proposal routing form (PRF)

Routing the PRF for signatures

Transmit proposal package to SPA. Based on proposal type, there are several ways to accomplish this

Be available for SPA questions and possible changes prior to submission

SPA policy for submission Grants.gov proposals must be submitted to

SPA at least 5 working days prior to the sponsor’s official published submission deadline.

Paper copies must be delivered to SPA 24 hours before proposal is to be mailed.

Other electronic submissions including Fastlane must be submitted to SPA at least 24 hours before deadline. Check SPA webpage for more information: http://www.ospa.umn.edu/policiesandprocedures/deadlines/deadlineFAQs.html

SPA’s Proposal Review Includes

Review the budget; Review matching and cost sharing

requirements and commitments; Ensure proper indirect costs

calculations; Check the accuracy of administrative

and institutional information; Ensure that all regulatory requirements

have been satisfied;

It doesn’t end there, SPA’s review also covers Proposed contract award language

conforms with University policies; Check that any potential conflicts of

interest have been managed or eliminated;

Evaluate potential export control issues;

Guarantee that all required representations and certifications are included.

Some Common Problems with Submission to Avoid Inadequate budget justifications

Missing Sub award letter of intent

Missing Sub award scope of work

Math errors, mismatched numbers

Non-compliance with formatting specifications

Make your pre-award life easier

Utilize timelines Use checklists to cover each proposal

component, who, what, and when Frequent check ins with PI Communicate with your Grant

Administrator Complete your routine application

components early Check budget numbers against narrative,

justification, cover, does everything match?

Route PRF for signatures as soon as possible

Mining webpage

SPA’s webpage is a wealth of information:ospa.umn.edu

Check sponsor and agency webpage for the latest information: An example:

www.ed.gov Grants.gov: www.grants.gov Other electronic systems, Proposal Central

used by foundations is an example: www.proposalcentral.altum.com

Resources EGMS, a University of Minnesota proposal

prep tool, check it out at: www.egms.umn.edu

(EGMS labs where you can get hands on assistance schedule:

http://www.ospa.umn.edu/GrantGov/Schedules%20and%20Calendars/trainingschedule.html#labs Your department grant office Mentor from a more experienced co-worker SPA office, specifically your Grants

Administrator

University Training Options SPA sponsored trainings:

www.ospa.umn.edu/Grants.gov/index.html#training Training Services:www1.umn.edu/ohr/trainingservices/spa/index.html Organizational Effectiveness training:http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/orgeff Library: http://www.lib.umn.edu/registration Academic Computing:http://uttc.umn.edu/training/courses/index.jsp

Professional Associations GMUN-Grant Management User Network,

University of Minnesotahttp://www.ospa.umn.edu/GMUN/index.html NCURA-National Council of University

Research Administratorshttp://www.ncura.edu

SRA-Society of Research Administratorshttp://www.srainternational.org

Any thing you would like to discuss?