Proposal Preparation Quick Guide
Who’s this page for and what’s it about?
This information walks you through key elements of the proposal preparation process.
We assume:
- You are a Principal Investigator (PI) or Research Administrator
- Your proposal is for specific research, instruction or other sponsored activities, or it is a pre-proposal that requires institutional sign off
- You’ve identified the sponsor and have worked out an intellectual plan for the proposal narrative
This information is designed for a PI or Research Administrator submitting a proposal. However, we have included links to specific UW guidance where it applies.
1. Read the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)
There are a variety of types/names for the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO): Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), Solicitation, Program Announcement, Request or Call for Proposal, Pre-Application / Letter of intent, Broad Agency Announcement, Request for Application etc. Make sure you read it.
What’s in it & Key info:
Specific sponsor info, key details, & instructions as well as links to requirements including:
- eligibility
- preparation & submission instruction,
- references sponsor policy guidance,
- due dates/deadlines & any other instructions,
- budget details (unallowable costs, limitations on F&A, required activities & costs to include),
- technical instructions
- intellectual Property (IP) requirements
- sponsor funding mechanism
Make sure to follow all links within the funding opportunity to understand critical details.
Watch this 4 minute video on Reading the Notice of Funding Opportunity and expand the sections that follow for details.
Understand the Sponsor Funding Mechanism
The type of funding mechanism a sponsor uses determines the extent of sponsor involvement in the project as well as programmatic flexibility and the regulations that apply.
Federal sponsors use grants, cooperative agreements, contracts and other transaction agreements for awarding funds.
Federal contracts and other transaction agreements have specialized and sometimes, unique, requirements and, therefore, take longer to prepare and review. This is also true in instances where the UW will be receiving federal contract or other transaction agreement flow-through funding from other institutions.
Review:
- How do I know what project type to select on an eGC1 and why is it important?
- Why should I route an eGC1 for a Contract or an Other Transaction to OSP ASAP?
Identifying Key Terms in Solicitations
A variety of terms in notice of funding opportunities indicate a higher level of review by the PI and/or the University is required before the proposal can be submitted.
These examples highlight some of the compliance requirements and terms which may take longer for PIs to prepare for and require more scrutiny before applying.
Examples:
- Requirements which may be cost prohibitive and a PI may decide not to move forward with a proposal, such as
- Are there IT or other data security requirements
- Intellectual property conditions
- Does the sponsor require rights to background IP?
- International relationships
- Are there limitations on who can participate?
- Training required prior to proposal submission, such as Research Security Training
Become familiar with and use this tool for Identifying Key Terms in Solicitations to help build in enough time for proposal preparation and review.
Challenges to be aware of in the Funding Opportunity:
- Formats not standard across sponsors, information is variable, and it’s not the ONLY place to look.
- Other sources mentioned in the funding opportunity announcement e.g. policies & proposal guidelines, sponsor websites must be understood.
- Sometimes a single reference to a requirement may mean multi-office or lengthy (days+) review process at the UW
- Information presented in a funding opportunity may require more scrutiny. Some requirements may mean the PI and/or the UW may not be able to submit.
Review more in the following section Understand & Prepare Key Proposal Elements.
2. Understand & Prepare Key Proposal Elements
Who are your collaborators?’
Understanding who the collaborators are on a project helps drive understanding what you need to gather or include in a proposal. For example biosketches, attestations, screening, letters of intent etc…
Identify external collaborators so you can:
- Accurately portray subrecipients vs consultant vs vendors
- Gather all subrecipient documentation to incorporate into the proposal, such as
- Letter of intent, scope of work, detailed budget & justification, compliance, or other sponsor proposal requirements
- Obtain contractor quotes for their scopes of work
- Collect letters of intent from consultants
Are there international collaborators?
- International collaborators may mean additional requirements
- Does the sponsor allow international collaborators?
- Review guidance on Foreign Interests in Sponsored Programs
- Are Export Controls required?
- Is there International/Global Team Recruitment?
Are collaborators considered investigators or key personnel?
- Who is an Investigator and needs to disclose SFI?
- Completed Biographical Sketch, and/or current and pending support documentation
- Including disclosure of all foreign interests
Which personnel included in a proposed project are considered covered individuals?
- Covered individuals typically need to complete Research Security Training before a proposal can be submitted.
- Have these individuals made their Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program attestation?
Confirm all proposed personnel have completed any required training as early as possible such as:
What does the project include?
Sharing Data and Materials
- What do you need to include in your proposal when using or sharing information and data and/or sharing materials?
- Confidentiality & Non-Disclosure agreements may need to be in place before developing or submitting a proposal.
- Are Data sharing plans required?
- For example NIH data management & sharing requirements
- Are there controlled-access data requirements?
- Do Export Control measures need to be in place?
Information Privacy & Security
- Classified or Restricted Information
- Computing for Restricted Access Data?
- Are there IT requirements that must be in place for proposal to move forward?
- Will you need separate agreements or approvals in place before the proposal is submitted or work takes place?
- Understand Privacy and Data Sharing requirements
Intellectual Property
Will there be intellectual property (IP) or background IP involved?
Some funding opportunities may require the UW to provide the sponsor rights to the UW’s IP by virtue of submitting a proposal.
These proposals require greater institutional scrutiny and should be submitted to OSP no later than 7 days before a sponsor’s submission deadline.
Human or Animal Subjects Identified?
- Identify Human Subjects or Animal use in the projects appropriately.
- Plan for securing protocol approval should you receive a fundable score.
- Proposals should not include specific protocols until the compliance office has reviewed this scope of work in relation to the protocols. Note that eGC1s, however, may list intended protocol numbers if they are pending.
Where will the research take place?
- Do you have the authorization to use proposed facilities and space?
- This will depend on your unit policies.
- Location will influence Facilities & Administration (F&A) / Indirect Cost (IDC) rate used
- Sponsor requirements around location? For example:
- Do they allow the work to occur in the proposed location?
- Are there other requirements that must be in place for the work to occur in that location? E.g. NSF’s Harassment-free Work Plan
- Is an export control license required for the location?
- Consider how locations impact the budget.
- Off campus locations may need rent as a direct charge.
- Special facilities may incur additional fees.
When are key dates?
When is the proposal due?
- A key tip is to work backward from the UW’s internal GIM 19 seven business-day deadline.
- Make sure to consider any unit/school specific deadlines in your planning as well as unit/school specific deadlines for routing proposals.
- Units & schools may need to return proposals for correction, take this into consideration when planning to route your proposal.
Complex proposal?
- Use project management tools for proposal development to ensure elements are completed on time.
- Get subrecipient materials early: they often have their own internal deadlines as well.
- Consider allowing at least two weeks before the UW’s GIM 19 seven business-day deadline for subrecipients to get their final material to you. E.g. budget, scope of work, etc…
- Review guidance on preparing proposals that include subrecipients (GIM 7).
Project Dates
- Consider the start & end dates
- Some sponsors have specific project dates you must adhere to
- Make sure personnel, space, locations, equipment will be available during the time frame being proposed. This will help inform appropriate estimates for the budget.
How is the project being proposed?
Budget & Budget Justification
The budget should be a reflection of all the elements within a project and how the project intends to spend sponsor funds to achieve the goals. It must also be consistent with sponsor requirements and the funding opportunity.
- Review more on proposal Budget Development.
- Use SAGE Budget can help you set up proposal budgets with UW institutional data (F&A, Benefit Rates, etc.).
- Refer to the Institutional Facts and Rates.
Scope of Work
The scope of work (SOW) or research plan should be a detailed blueprint or outline of the entire project and how it will be accomplished, including project tasks, deliverables, and timelines. It should specify exactly what, how, and when things will be done. A SOW must meet sponsor requirements.
When submitting draft proposal material, the scope of work must be far enough along to support meaningful reviews. In these cases, make sure there are enough details around the “who, what, where, when, and how”” so your campus unit and institutional reviewers have the information they need to carry out their review.
Abstract
The abstract also known as the project summary should be a clear & concise outline of problem & objectives with expected outcome of the proposed project.
Abstracts are typically part of a proposal and there is also a section for the abstract in the eGC1. These two sections should match. In the absence of an abstract requirement in a proposal, the eGC1 abstract should be a high-level description of the scope of work.
Some sponsors like NSF require the project summary to address the intellectual merit & broader impacts that will result.
3. Follow Institutional Proposal Preparation & Submission Guidance
Be aware of and follow institutional policies and guidance for proposal preparation and submission. Remember the institution is the applicant not individuals. At the UW all proposals to external sponsors must be submitted via OSP.
At the UW preparing and submitting a proposal involves a variety of offices, roles and responsibilities, as well as policies. Expand sections for more details.
Roles & Responsibilities
Deadlines for Proposal Submission
Review UW Internal deadlines for proposal submission – GIM 19
4. Follow Project Management Strategies:
Use project management tools to prepare required proposal elements.
- Develop & share checklists: institutional info, budgets, formatting requirements, proposal specific data, sponsor formatting requirements etc.
- Review proposal formatting reminders
- Use Project management tools for proposal development
5. Routing & Approvals
Route proposals on time and plan for internal deadlines including the GIM 19 seven business-day deadline.
Pay attention to the assurances you are making when routing your proposals in SAGE.