KUMC Research Institute

Sponsored Programs Administration (SPA)

Proposal Preparation and Submission thru Grants.gov Presented by: Mei-Shya Chen Debi Maloney

January 27, 2009

What is Grants.gov

• Grants.gov is the Federal government’s E-Grants system developed to improve government services to the public.

- To find and apply for funding - Provides a consistent electronic submission process for all agencies• Grants.gov will replace federal agency-specific

proposal submission systems that have been used in recent years, most notably NSF's FastLane, DOE's IIPS, and DOD’s CDMRP.

Transition Dates-NIH planned transition dates of mechanisms for e-submission using the SF424 (R&R) Transitions on Hold:• Complex-Project/Center (P), G12, M01,

R10/U10, R24/U24, U01, U19, U45, S06

Prepare to Apply• Registration -Only the applicant organization needs to register with Grants.gov -NO, PI does not need to register with Grants.gov -PI must have an account set up in the eRA Commons

• Obtain Software - Pure Edge - Adobe Reader 8.1.3 (recommended) - Adobe Reader 9.0

Terminology• An “FOA” is a Funding Opportunity

Announcement. This is the Grants.gov term for all requests for application (formerly RFP/RFA).

• The SF424 (R&R) is a set of standard forms used across all agencies. This stands for Standard Form 424 (Research & Related).

Find FOA• Search funding opportunities -NIH Guide for grants and contracts -Grants.gov (grants offered by the 26 federal grant-making agencies)• Download application package

-Download Opportunity Instructions and application, save the files to your PC.-Sign-up to receive notifications of changes

to the application package.

Filename• When you download, rename the file as

follows:PI last name first initial agency acronym due date.pdf

(i.e. Smith P NIH 02-05-09.pdf)• If you had more than one file with the

same name, just add a relevant date to maintain unique naming.

Application Package• Each application package will include all of

the forms required for that particular solicitation. You must use the application package that is specific to the solicitation you are responding to.

• Read the application instructions! The FOA will indicate which forms are required and which are optional.

SF424 (R&R)• SF424 (R&R) Standard Forms include:

– R&R Application cover page – R&R Project/Performance Site Location(s) – R&R Other Project Information – R&R Senior/Key Person Profile– R&R Budget – R&R Subaward Budget Attachment Form– PHS 398 Cover Page Supplement

SF424 (R&R) • SF424 (R&R) Standard Forms include:

– PHS 398 Research Plan – PHS 398 Modular Budget– PHS 398 Checklist– PHS 398 Cover Letter

Application Package• START EARLY! • As you work on the file, save it often• Complete the 424 (R&R) first. It populates

other components.

Internal Proposal Review and Submission Timeline

• 12 business days prior to agency deadline - A hard copy of the draft proposal (completed forms and draft research plan) and an internal routing checklist must be provided to the SPA office for initial proposal review and feedback.

• 7 business days prior to agency deadline - Review feedback will be sent to the PI. PI will then make suggested changes.

• 3 business days prior to agency deadline - Upload the FINAL proposal package in the SPA dorpbox for final review and submission.

Application Completed• Please complete the required forms and upload

the completed file to SPA Drop Box. Send an eamil to spa@kumc.edu to notify SPA office that you have uploaded your application package.

• The Grant Specialists will review your application and give you feedbacks for changes needed.

• SPA will submit the application. (by 5:00 p.m. local time of applicant organization)

Validation ProcessSPA receives at least four e-mails regarding

each submission: – First confirms receipt by Grants.gov. – Second confirms validation by Grants.gov. – Third confirms receipt by Sponsor. – Subsequent emails from Sponsor regarding

tracking through the Sponsor’s system (e.g. NIH Commons) or contact information.

Validation-Common Errors/Warrings

• Invalid or Missing eRA Commons Username

• Missing Organization Name for Senior/Key Person

• Senior/Key Person Effort on SF424 R&R Budget Form Must be More Than zero

Common Warnings:• Role of Co-PD/PI is not used by NIH • No degrees submitted for PD/PI

Validation-Common Errors/Warrings

PDF issues: • NIH only accepts attachments in PDF format. • Avoid scanning text documents to produce the

required PDFs.• Disable all security features in the PDF file. • Only use standard characters in file names:

A through Z, a through z, and 0 through 9, Hyphen (-), underscore ( _ ). Don’t use spaces, special characters (*, #), or long file names.

• Do not include any information in the header or footer area of the attachments.

NIH Parent Announcements• Parent Announcements (For Unsolicited or

Investigator-Initiated Applications • R01-Research Project Grant (PA-07-070)• R03-NIH Small Research Grant Program

(PA-06-180)• R21-NIH Exploratory/Developmental (PA-06-181)

SPA ContactsMei-Shya Chen 8-1259 mchen-su@kumc.eduVickie Eaton 8-1239 veaton@kumc.edu Letter A-GAnca Geana 8-5717 ageana@kumc.edu Letter H-QDebi Maloney 8-6570 dmaloney@kumc.edu Letter R-Z

Pre-Award OfficePhone: 8-1251spa@kumc.edu

Useful Information• Information often requested on grant

applications• NIH planned transition dates of

mechanisms for e-submission using SF424

• Avoiding Common Errors• Sample Application R01