• Confirm mode of delivery (electronic or paper).
• Submit the appropriate compliance committee forms.
• Confirm the sponsor's deadline.
• Obtain and complete the Proposal Routing Form (PRF).
  - What is the PRF?
• Prepare copies, if necessary.
• Route the PRF.
• Deliver to SPA in time to meet deadline.
• Undergo SPA reviews.
• SPA submits the proposal to the sponsor.
• What to do after the proposal has been submitted.

The PI must get these approvals before any research begins. Human Subject and Animal Care review committee meeting dates and deadlines are available at http://www.research.umn.edu/subjects/. Note that the IRB and IACUC are expected to verify that applications for review and approval "match" the grant application submitted to the funding agency. Therefore full grant applications must be provided with the IRB or IACUC initial application form.

• Human subjects (IRB) or live vertebrate animals (IACUC): contact Research Subjects' Protection Programs (RSPP) at (612) 626-5654, or check their Web site at http://www.research.umn.edu/subjects/.  

• Recombinant DNA, infectious agents or biological toxins: contact the Institutional Biosafety Committee at (612) 626-5621, or check their website at http://www.research.umn.edu/ibc/about/.
   
  
• Departments or colleges may also have their own approval requirements, for example some department heads will not sign the PRF until a "chemical hygiene plan" has been submitted.
   
  
• Cost sharing, matching, or in-kind: refer to University's policy on Offering Cost Sharing, Matching, and In-Kind Contributions on Sponsored Projects

• Receipt date: The proposal has to be received by the sponsor before the close of business on the day specified. (The most common type of deadline).
   
• Postmark date (sometimes referred to as the closing date): The proposal must have a dated postmark from the U.S. Postal Service on the date specified; or, if a private carrier such as Federal Express is used, the proposal must be in the carrier's hands on the date.

• To provide basic information regarding the project for the department head, dean, and central administrator.
• To act as a checklist to ensure that all compliance obligations have been considered and met, or are pending.

• new proposals
• continuations
• renewals
• supplements
• preliminary proposals (if institutional endorsement is required)
• significant revisions (revisions with more than a 25% change in budget, changes in PI or key personnel effort, or changes in cost sharing).

Prepare a copy for SPA along with the number of copies requested by the sponsor, and any additional copies required by the department head or dean. SPA will not copy proposals for submission to the sponsor.
 
Paper PRF

• One copy for SPA, and one each for the PI, department head, and dean/director.
  
• Multiple submissions - the same proposal submitted to several sponsors:
  Concurrent submission: only prepare one PRF form noting all sponsors.
   
  Nonconcurrent submission: a new PRF form must be prepared each time the proposal is submitted.

Attachments
Information from any subcontractors, e.g., budget, scope of work, authorizations, including statement of Intent to Collaborate.
 
F&A (Indirect) cost waivers; see the procedure for Requesting Facilities & Administrative (Indirect) Cost Waivers.
 
Routing the PRF
The PRF is set up to be routed electronically. Because campus mail can take several days, SPA recommends hand-delivery of the proposal to the appropriate offices.
 
The PRF form, along with the completed proposal, should be reviewed first by the unit administrator or accountant. These staff members should be well informed about University and sponsor regulations and can often point out possible errors before the proposal is reviewed by SPA. 

Multiple departments or colleges
Since involvement in a sponsored project requires personnel time and departmental space and resources, all department heads and deans of any individual who will contribute in a substantive way to the project, whether paid or not, must review and sign the PRF.

All research projects by University faculty and staff to be conducted at Fairview performance sites or involving Fairview resources must be arranged with Fairview Health Services prior to study initiation. Pricing and other information can be obtained directly from Fairview Research Administration at http://www.fairview.org/Research/.
 
The local review and approval process for the PRF
 1. The principal investigator.
    The PI is required to sign the PRF. Through this signature the PI certifies:

• the accuracy of the information on the PRF,
• that the PI assumes responsibility for the proposal's technical content,
• that the PI agrees to project commitments within the specified time and budget,
• the accuracy of the budget and use of correct rates, and
• compliance with sponsor, government, and University regulations.

2. The responsible department head.
    This person certifies that:

• the applicant is eligible to be a principal investigator,
• the categorical budget is adequate relative to project scope and its justification is appropriate,
• on-campus space is available or off-campus space is available if necessary,
• cost sharing is appropriate or matching is available, and
• conflict on interest issues have been addressed.

3. The responsible dean or director.
    This official reviews and approves the Proposal Routing Form when:

• departments from other colleges are involved,
• off-campus space is requested,
• there is a request to reduce or waive indirect costs,
• there is a request to modify on-campus space,
• there is a request to the dean's office to provide matching funds or additional resources,
• the PI is a unit head or other individual reporting directly to the dean,
• it is deemed necessary and prudent by the dean's office.

4. If appropriate, the responsible vice president will review and approve:

• proposals involving recominant DNA research, infectious agents, narcotic agents or biological toxins (with the Department of Environmental Health and Safety)
• matching fund commitments,
• use of off-campus space, and
• requests for indirect cost rate reduction or waivers.

 

Delivery to SPA

Electronic proposals
In most cases, principal investigators or department administrators will submit nonfederal electronic applications. However, all electronic proposals still must be reviewed by SPA prior to submission. A complete proposal package for an electronic submission should include the following:
E-mail completed electronic applications to proposal@umn.edu with the Proposal Routing Form (PRF) number, PI last name, and sponsoring agency.
Fax PRFs with ink signatures to 612.624.4843. Those with electronically signed PRFs do not need to fax the PRF to SPA.
Some nonfederal sponsors may require a signed paper copy of the application in addition to an electronic one. Deliver the signed paper copy to SPA for submission to the sponsor.

After SPA grant administrators complete their review of the proposal, they will send an email notification to the PI and department contact (individual listed on the PRF), which authorizes submission.

 

Paper proposals
Paper proposals should be hand delivered or sent by courier to SPA. Since there is no guarantee of timely delivery, SPA does not recommend use of campus or U.S. mail for proposals, especially those with urgent deadlines.
 
If a proposal is sent via campus mail, it should be in a separate envelope addressed to SPA Proposal Receiving so that it can be processed immediately. If the proposal is to be delivered directly to a particular grant administrator, attach a note inside the envelope. SPA's mail room staff do not open any envelope marked "personal" or "confidential." In addition, if a proposal is addressed to a grant administrator, it may miss the deadline if the recipient is out of the office or does not open mail immediately.

 
SPA deadline
Because processing time through departmental, collegiate, and SPA offices varies considerably, it is the PI's responsibility to allow sufficient time for review. SPA would like to receive the proposals at least three working days before the deadline -more if at all possible.

Note: On-time proposal delivery is different for Grants.gov proposals requiring electronic submission as opposed to other proposals that must be mailed or submitted to the funding agency. The following identify the requirements for each type of submission:

Electronic submissions to Grants.gov: To be considered on-time, proposals requiring electronic submissions must be delivered to SPA at least 5 working days before the proposal must be submitted to Grants.gov. See the How to Apply page on the SPA Web site for details on how to get your Grants.gov proposal to SPA. For example, if your NIH grant is due to NIH on Thursday, it is due to SPA by 9 a.m. on the Friday the week before.

Other electronic submissions: To be considered on-time, proposals requiring electronic submissions must be delivered to SPA by 24 hours before the proposal must be submitted to the funding agency. See the How to Apply page on the SPA Web site for details on how to get your electronic proposal to SPA. For example, if your NSF grant is due to NSF in Fastlane on Thursday, it is due to SPA by 5 p.m. on Wednesday.

Courier or mail submissions: To be considered on-time, proposals requiring mailing must be delivered to SPA by 24 hours before the proposal must be mailed. For example, if the proposal is due to the sponsor on Friday, SPA needs to receive it by 5 p.m. on the previous Wednesday, to ship it by Thursday. Local courier submissions are sent out by 10 a.m. to local sponsors meaning that the proposal is due at SPA by 10 a.m. the day before.

Note that proposals being delivered outside the continential United States will take extra time. For example, Federal Express requires a minimum of two days to deliver proposals to Alaska, Hawaii, and Europe.
 
Meeting the deadline is important for several reasons:

It allows grant administrators enough time to do a thorough review to catch any errors that might be embarrassing to the PI or the University, or that might affect the proposal's success.
 
For proposals submitted electronically, it gives an important cushion of time in case of technical problems.

If the proposal is delivered after the deadline, the applicant will have to arrange for delivery. In addition, SPA cannot guarantee that late proposals will be processed in time to meet the sponsor's deadline.
 
What happens at SPA
Upon receiving a proposal and PRF, SPA Proposal Receiving:

• logs it into the proposal database,
• assigns it a proposal number with an internal review sheet,
• checks the proposal and the PRF for proper signatures and for sufficient number of copies
• checks PI eligibility, and
• forwards it to a grant administrator for review.

Note: If one or more signatures are missing from the proposal or PRF, and if time permits, SPA personnel will return it for proper signatures. If time does not permit, verbal concurrence of the missing signatures or e-mail approval must be provided. Once notified, the PI or unit administrator is responsible for follow-through.
 
SPA may conduct a final review of all proposals. SPA staff review the PRF to ensure that:

• correct signatures have been obtained,
• the proposal agrees with the PRF in terms of space, animals, human subjects, or cost sharing/matching commitments,
• the proposal generally conforms to University policies and sponsor requirements,
• equipment conforms to University definitions, and
• appropriate increases for future years have been included in the budget.

SPA staff will not make programmatic judgements. Grant administrators will try to resolve, through telephone contact with PIs or their designees, all questions which arise. If the proposal was submitted in time, staff members will try to make required changes in SPA's offices. If time does not permit changes before mailing, the proposal will be subject to recall or change.
 
Preparation of a proposal which meets sponsor requirements and is consistent with University policies is the PI's responsibility. In situations requiring major changes in a proposal or where time does not permit SPA to make necessary changes, the task must fall upon the PI and department staff.

NSF: These proposals are both signed and sent electronically through Fastlane.

SPA Submits the Proposal to the Sponsor
When the proposal has been approved SPA will attach a card that states that the proposal has been officially approved on behalf of the Regents of the University of Minnesota, the name of the SPA grant administrator responsible for the award, and the name of the person who should be contacted regarding administrative or budgetary matters. The proposal itself will be signed on behalf of the Regents of the University by the Associate Vice President for Research (or designee), indicating that the proposal constitutes an official offer by the University to conduct the proposed project. When necessary, SPA will prepare a more formal transmittal letter to accompany the proposal. In addition, if PIs wish to accompany a proposal with a personal cover letter, they are encouraged to do so.

Mailing the proposal
If the proposal arrives at SPA by the deadline, SPA will package, provide postage, and mail the proposal. SPA cannot, of course, guarantee delivery to the sponsor. When PIs intend either to mail or deliver proposals themselves, SPA should be informed at the time the proposals reach the SPA office. If the proposal was delivered to SPA after the deadline, the PI must arrange for packaging and mailing the proposal. PIs will be called when proposals are ready to be picked up.

After the proposal has been submitted
SPA will return a transmittal memo to the PI, indicating when the proposal was transmitted, accompanied by copies of any pages that SPA corrected. SPA then files the proposal to await award notification.

Lead times for sponsors
Expect the review period to be six to twelve months.
 
Review time for private foundations, business, and industry may be somewhat shorter-three to six months.
 
If there has been no communication from the sponsor for a longer-than-expected period (normally if a proposal has not passed preliminary review there will be a notification), contact the appropriate SPA grant administrator to see if the sponsor should be contacted.
 
Revisions
Sponsors commonly request programmatic or budgetary revisions during their review and approval process. Any revision must be submitted through SPA and must be accompanied by a Proposal Routing Form. This formality is necessary to ensure that department and collegiate officials are kept informed and that information in University databases is kept current.
 
Rejections
If a proposal is rejected and notification is sent to SPA, the PI will be notified immediately. If it is sent directly to the PI or department or if the PI withdraws the application, notify SPA immediately so that University records may be kept current. SPA will remove a rejected proposal from its current files and hold it for a period of two years, after which time the file is destroyed.
 
Many sponsors allow an appeal; refer to "Rejections" in section 2.3 for further information.