RESEARCH ADMINISTRATION TRAINING SERIES
Understanding Proposals & Awards
Goals of this Session
Understanding Proposals & Awards
- Recognize essential components of a research proposal
- Understand the purpose of the routing process
- Understand the award process
Who’s Authorized to Submit?
- UNH employees with appropriate credentials and experience may submit proposals as Principal Investigators or Project Directors (PI/PD)
- Other personnel, including professor emeritus and affiliated faculty (with zero-time appointments) may do so with the permission of the unit head
- New University employees whose appointments have not yet started may submit proposals through the University with the permission of the unit head
Proposal Types
- Letter of Intent – commonly used by foundations for screening to second stage
- Concept Paper – An internal working document used to solicit informal feedback
- White Paper – A concept paper sent to a sponsor
- Preliminary Proposal – Often, the first stage of a two-stage submission process
- Formal (Full) Proposal – Submission used by a sponsor to determine whether a project merits funding.
Proposal Development – Roles & Responsibilities
Proposal Development – Roles & Responsibilities (cont’d)
Proposal Development – Roles & Responsibilities (cont’d)
Common Elements of a Proposal
- Cover Page
- Abstract/Summary
- Statement of Work or Research Plan
- Budget and Budget Justification
- Additional information
- Current and Pending Support
- Letters of Support or Collaboration
- CV or Biosketch
- References
- Data Management Plan
Approvals Required for All Proposals
Campus department/unit
College or Coop. Ext. Dean
Institute Director
SPA
Getting Approvals – UNH “Yellow Sheet”
The Yellow Sheet captures information necessary to review and approve a proposal for external sponsorship.
Getting Approvals – UNH “Yellow Sheet”
It involves consideration of:
- Its merit and appropriateness to the institutional mission
- Financial impact of the proposed activity
- Compliance with institutional policies and sponsor requirements
Yellow Sheet – Test Your Knowledge
Who is the Yellow Sheet for?
Timeline for Submissions
Proposal: Five(5) working days prior to the proposal deadline for processing within SPA. Yellow Sheet: 24 hours before deadline.
Getting The Proposal Out The Door
- Contact your GCA early – Ask Questions
- Review and follow Agency Guidelines
- Collect Yellow Sheet Approvals
- Sent to GCA for Final Review and submission to Sponsor
Meeting the Deadline
- GCA Reviews
- Agency Forms and Compliance w/ Sponsor guidelines
- Budget
- Cost Sharing – Required approvals
- Where it’s started
- Subcontractor Documentation
- UNH Policy & Compliance
Award Acceptance
Award Acceptance
- What must be in place to accept an award?
- Who does what at award time?
Approvals
- Institutional Review Board
- Institutional Animal Care & Use Committee (IACUC)
- Environmental Health and Safety
- Conflict of Interest
- Time & Effort Certification Training
Acceptance of Awards
- Is done by Research Administration.
- The department, the PI, and AFC are copied.
- If an award is received by the PI, department, or unit, it should be forwarded to the GCA as soon as possible.
Budget Considerations
- Many times the agency will award the full amount requested. Other times, they may award a lesser amount based on a percentage, or based on removing certain parts of the project.
- Depending on the situation or the amount of the cut, the agency may require, or we may want to submit a revised budget or revised scope of work.
- If the agency does not require a revised budget, you may still work with the PI to make a determination whether to submit one.
- If the PI needs to modify the scope of work in order to meet the budget, he/she will want to communicate that to the agency Program Officer.
- If changes to subaward agreements are necessary, work with the Subrecipient Agreement Coordinator.
Review of Agreements
- Before accepting an award on behalf of the University, the GCA reviews all terms and conditions and is responsible for negotiating appropriate remedies.
- University policy must always be followed. Terms and conditions take precedence over all. We can be more restrictive, not less.
Key Areas Negotiated in Agreements
- Indemnification – UNH does not cover sponsor loss unless UNH is negligent or exercises willful misconduct.
- Warranty – UNH does not guarantee any research results.
- Proprietary Information/Material – UNH will signs & accepts Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA) on behalf of PI.
- Liability – UNH does not accept provisions which impose unlimited liabilities for UNH i.e. re-procurement provisions.
- Intellectual property
- Export controls
- Publication Restrictions
- Reduce Administrative Burden
Does the university ever refuse to accept an award?
- It is not likely that the university would refuse to accept an award, but it is possible
- The university reserves the right to refuse an award if the terms and conditions are unacceptable and cannot be negotiated to meet the needs of both the university and the sponsor
Spending in Anticipation of Award
Not Fully Executed (NFE)
- Allows the PI to:
- Begin a seasonally-dependent project
- Place an advanced order for long-term items
- Provide continuity of funding for students and staff
- Record and track expenditures and eliminate the need to charge other unrelated accounts
- Eliminated the need for cost transfers
Account Set-Up
- Research Administration generates Notice of Award (NOA)
- Research Administration distributes to PI, BSC, and Accounting & Financial Compliance
- Research Administration activates project in Banner
- Budget is released and HR account code established
Research Administration Team
Questions?
Thank you.
Knowledgeable research administrators are essential to the management of the research enterprise and play a critical role in research administration at the University.
Next Session:
When: December 16, 2014
- Session I 9:00-10:15 am
- Session II 10:30-11:45 am
Where: MUB Room 338/340
What: Budgeting
