Pre-Award Frequently Asked Questions
Proposals involving Animal subjects
My grant proposal includes a subrecipient, and only the subrecipient will be using animals in the research. Do I need to mark "Yes" on the face page of my application to indicate that animals are being used, even if no animals are being used on this campus?
Deadlines
- The deadline is no later than 5:00 pm on the date on which the proposal is to be submitted to our sponsor.
- That is frequently the date listed in the solicitation, but in many cases, such as when UT is a subcontractor, a deadline may be set by the lead institution that is earlier than the date in the solicitation. The deadline may be earlier if the research team will be unavailable and would like to submit early.
Are paper applications exempt from this policy?
Do non-federal proposals need to be submitted to OSP five days before the agency deadline?
- All documents (needed by the sponsor and /or the University) must be included in the finalized UTHSC Cayuse routing, which should be received by OSP 5 business days before the deadline.
- Note- documents cannot be accepted from the individual collaborators and must be officially authorized by the institution’s Authorized Official or Sponsored Programs Office.
- It is important to notify collaborators early so they can work through their internal processes in time for OSP to receive their documents.
What if I’m submitting to another institution who is leading a proposal?
- It is important to establish the date in which the lead institution needs UT’s institutionally reviewed and approved documents.
- That date will be the deadline entered in Cayuse and used to create the internal timeline for review and submission.
- Please include any previous communications about the proposal submission needs of the lead institution.
- Yes - the five-business-day deadlines applies to all documentation that requires Pre-Award review and/or approval, including letters of intent, Just in Times and RPPRs.
- Any pre-proposal that requires institutional approval must be routed and approved
via Cayuse.
- Common indicators of needing institutional approval are references to the university’s research office (AOR/SRO/SPO) needing to review, approve, submit, sign, etc.
- Common language seen in solicitations are, but not limited to:
- Submission required by a person with "submit privileges"
- "Institutional countersignature" required
- "I certify that I am authorized to submit"
- "I have reviewed and agree to terms and conditions".
- Any proposal the requires OSP action must be routed through Cayuse as the institution must have official record of what was submitted to a sponsor. Please contact egrants@uthsc.edu for solicitation specific guidance when you identify a “pre-proposal” opportunity.
What happens if I do not know about a funding opportunity until late?
- Most funding opportunities, especially federal, have published deadlines such that the internal deadline policy can be followed.
- Please contact egrants@uthsc.edu for solicitation specific guidance when you identify a “pre-proposal” opportunity.
On any given deadline, the OSP receives many applications that must be processed. Each application takes time; if the PI sends another version, then the review process must start over. If the PI sends additional files via e-mail, there is a risk of error due to the possible confusion of the new and old versions. The only time-corrections can be made is when the reviewer (Claire, Michelle, or Shannon) requests corrections to ensure the grant follows the guidelines. The five-day deadline is also necessary for grant.gov submissions to allow time for resubmissions in the event there is an error that must be corrected. All applications must be submitted error-free by close of business which is 5:00 p.m. CST.
No. In addition to the standard NIH deadlines, which now fall about every two weeks, NIH RFAs and RFPs can be due almost any day. In addition, many other sponsors, including federal (e.g., NSF, HRSA, DOD), state, and private (e.g., AHA, CFRI, other foundations), have deadlines that fall on various dates throughout the year.
Helpful Links:
Electronic grant packages
I have not had an opportunity to attend a training session on electronic grant submission. Will the OSP prepare the grant package for me if I send the scientific portion over electronically?
When submitting an electronic grant application, is it okay if I send a partial package to OSP by the internal deadline date and then send additional sections later, to allow more time for me to write/review/correct the scientific sections or get collaboration letters, etc.?
I need to submit a proposal through Proposal Central. Is UTHSC registered there?
Yes, UTHSC is registered in Proposal Central. Dependent on the sponsor, the Proposal Central forms can have different requirements such as the requirement for institutional signature and/or approval. It is important to carefully review the requirements for the specific opportunity you wish to submit to.
All proposals requiring submission via Proposal Central must be routed through Cayuse for internal routing, review, and approval prior to the sponsor’s deadline. A full, finalized PDF copy of the Proposal Central forms must be attached to the Cayuse SP prior to routing.
Proposal Central registration can be completed by the investigator and does not require institutional approval.
All applications made via Proposal Central should identify the following individuals for the following common proposal roles:
Grants Officer/ Business Official/ AOR: Brenda Murrell (bmurrell@uthsc.edu) Associate Vice Chancellor for Research
Fiscal Officer: Raaj Kurapati, Executive Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration and Chief Operating Officer (rkurapat@uthsc.edu)
Technology Transfer Officer: Tinieka Thrailkill, University of Tennessee Research Foundation (ttriple2@uthsc.edu)
I am submitting a grant which requires electronic submission by the PI. Do I have to let anyone know
Electronic Routing
Contact your department business office. They will need to enter information into the human resources data base to allow you access either as a "researcher" or "administrator." If you need to be included on proposals as a member of the project team, you should be identified as a "researcher." Here is the IRIS transaction to be used:
ZSESATAUTH000 - IRIS User Tools -> User Access -> Satellite System User Request
Business staff simply enter personnel number and request access type (researcher or admin); use the "researcher" designation for anyone who will be paid from a sponsored project.
RPPR
General Information
The University of Tennessee is an educational agency of State of Tennessee, exempt from federal income tax as a state agency, under section 170(c) of the IRS Code.
UTHSC's IRS determination letter
UTHSC is NOT a 501(c) 3 organization; however, it is tax exempt (see above). Investigators wishing to respond to opportunities that require the applicant to hold 501 (c ) 3 status must work with the university of Tennessee Foundation ( POC: Greg Harris Assistant Vice Chancellor for Strategic Initiatives & Advancement Services (901.448.4975 gharris@utfi.org) to establish if the submission can be made. Proposals approved by UTF must also be routed in Cayuse for institutional review and approval prior to the internal 5 full business day review window. OSP strongly recommend contacting both UTF and OSP as soon as you are aware of the submission.
Grant Application Process
You need to route it only if:
- the letter of intent requires institutional signature,
- the LOI requires a budget, OR
- an institutional official must submit the LOI.
Grants
Inventions
NIH Multiple PIs (MPI)
NIH Public Access Policy
Yes, NIH requires that all articles be submitted to PubMed. Since some journals take care of the PubMed submission, the author is advised to check with the Journal or check the list of journals that submit to PubMed.
Additional information about submission of NIH-funded articles can be found on the NIH Public Access Policy website or the UTHSC Library reference.
For Pre-Award questions not addressed above- please email egrants@uthsc.edu .