Prepare Proposal
Proposal Application Package
Before beginning your application, carefully read the Request for Application / Proposal or Program Announcement / solicitation. Use any sponsor-provided templates.
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The eGC1 is the required internal compliance form that PIs and department can access via SAGE, the System to Administer Grants Electronically. The entire proposal package must be attached to the GC1.
GIM 1 Section 1 provides guidance regarding the review and approval of proposals (GIM 1, Section 1).
- F&A Waiver Request
A PI (with concurrence of their Chair and Dean) may request a partial or complete waiver of F&A cost recovery when 1) a non-profit, charitable sponsor does not have a published, generally applicable policy regarding payment of F&A costs; and 2) application of GIM13 rates would result in a rare, unavoidable and adverse consequence to the University public mission. No F&A waiver is required for the University to accept a published, generally applicable F&A rate policy of a non-profit, charitable organization. The University does not waive F&A for for-profit entities. Waiver of F&A cost recovery for government entities will be considered but requires demonstration of a clear statutory provision or other official notice from the government agency. -
If the sponsor does not specify a particular format for the cover/title page, OSP will provide standard cover and include specific language if necessary.
See Facts and Rates for institutional numbers, codes, contacts and addresses needed to complete the cover page.
If the department would like to draft the cover letter, the letter should carry the university letterhead, be drafted and signed by the principal investigator, and be countersigned by an institutional representative, the Office of Sponsored Programs.
- Budget
The budget is the financial expression of the scope of work (i.e., science). The two are mapped together by the budget justification section of the application. Sponsors customarily specify how budgets should be presented and what costs are allowable. Note any restrictions that the sponsor indicates in the announcement.
- OSP Guide to Budget Preparation (GIM 1 Section III) Includes guidance regarding salaries, excess compensation to faculty, provision for anticipated salary increases, employee benefits, direct operations costs, cost-sharing, facilities & administrative (indirect) costs, and unexpended balances.
- Facts & Rates for Grant Applications Includes tuition, salary, stiped, rent, and facilities and administrative cost rates.
- Budget Increases Often, proposals need to be submitted with multi-year budgets. OSP's guidance to PIs and departments is to use the current NIH Fiscal Policy for Grant Awards to determine an appropriate inflation and apply it to both salaries and other recurring costs. It is standard to use a 2% rate for federal awards unless a sponsor provides an alternate rate within a policy statement, program announcement or other guidelines for the program. If there is reason to expect a promotion, larger salary increase or other impact that would provide a reason to use a higher rate, and the sponsor does not cap the rate, please provide a justification for use of a higher rate.
- SAGE Budget A comprehensive, easy-to-use, campus-wide budgeting tool that assists users in generating budgets for grants & contracts. Budgets can be imported into the eGC1 budget page and a pdf version with full detail is attached to the eGC1 for reference.
- eGC1 Cost Sharing Addendum
When applicable, this form must be completed and submitted to OSP at the time the application is reviewed. Cost sharing occurs when an application commits allowable expenses (i.e., personnel, tuition, equipment or services) for which the research grant will not be charged. - Person Months Conversion Chart
- Person Months Interactive Calculator
- NIH Salary Cap NIH has announced the new salary cap in its Guide Notice NOT-OD-12-035; however, NIH applications with a detailed budget should continue using the actual institutional base salary of all individuals for whom reimbursements are requested. If the proposal is funded, NIH will adjust the salary to the salary limit in effect at the time of award.
- OSP Guide to Budget Preparation (GIM 1 Section III)
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The justification provides specific details about how the sponsor's funds will be spent.
At a minimum, the following fields should be addressed, in the order that they appear in the budget: personnel, supplies, equipment, travel, other direct costs, F&A, and subcontracts/consortium (if applicable).
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The narrative must contain specifics including details of experiments and/or applications, both to show that planning has been done and to help reviewers understand why the particular application you propose is better than other ideas. It is critical to respond to all sponsor requests for information about the project.
For detailed guidance and tips on proposal writing in general, please see the following links under "Proposal Writing."
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Depending on sponsor requirements and the nature of your proposal, the following items may be contained within your proposal.
- Abstract
- Table of Contents
- Introduction (including Statement of Problem, Purpose of Research, and Significance of Research)
- Background (including Literature Survey)
- Description of Proposed Research (including Method or Approach)
- Description of Relevant Institutional Resources
- List of References
- Personnel Section: an explanation of the proposed personnel arrangements and the biographical data sheets for each of the main contributors to the project.
- Consultant Letters: All consultant letters of support provided by consultants who are working outside of their university or organization should not use their organization's letterhead.
- Representations and Certifications
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