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Proposal Preparation

College resources for pre-award proposal preparation are provided here. Contact our office if you need further assistance. Additional information is available from the Office of Sponsored Programs and Regulatory Compiance (SPARCS), with important selected links provided in the right column of this page.

Carefully follow the procedures required by the funding agency and allow adequate time for college and university review.  The College Research Office (CRO) requires four (4) business days to process proposals and highly recommends seven (7) business days for proposals being submitted through Grants.gov

Click here for Policy on Proposal Processing

Since a Research Associate does not meet the eligibility criteria to serve as PI/Co-PI on a proposal application and since this category of employee is not listed among the usual exceptions per the University's guidelines, it is recommended an email be prepared and sent to Dr. John Gilligan, Special Advisor to the Dean of Engineering for Graduate Programs & Research (carbon copy both Pat Hayes and Rosette Tavolacci) requesting an exception to the standard policy. The justification should explain as to why making this exception would be to the best interest of the College/Department as well as best serving the proposed activity. If Dr. Gilligan agrees with making the exception he would route the request to our Associate Vice-Chancellor for Research for final approval.

Salary Ranges for Graduate Research Assistants and Post-doctoral Students*

New Travel Subsistence rates effective July 1, 2011:

Please note that the per diem rate for subsistence meal allowances has increased, while the per diem rate for lodging has decreased. Please use these new rates in all proposal budgets from this point forward. These new rates will be updated to the SPARCS budgeting website; but you may also access Finance and Business' memo online at: http://ncsu.edu/3d-memos/info.php/2011-2012/ until said update has been made. Most Respectfully, Martina L. Krzywicki, CRA; Contract Negotiator, Sponsored Programs & Regulatory Compliance Services

NIH: eRA Commons ID/Password:

is an online interface where grant applicants, grantees and federal staff at NIH and grantor agencies can access and share administrative information relating to research grants. Faculty who wish to apply for this funding with NIH must have a current/valid User ID. Please contact Rosette Tavolacci with a CC to Pat Hayes with any eRA Commons requests. Please be sure and let us know of any prior NIH support. We would need the IC and Serial number of said support. Common errors at it concerns NIH applications via Grants.gov

    • 03/09/09: OMB:  Recovery Act Implementation-Improving grants.gov and Other Critical Systems
    • 03/12/09: COE-ORA:  Proposal Submission Policy Change
    • 03/24/09: NIH: eRA Commons ID/Password: is an online interface where grant applicants, grantees and federal staff at NIH and grantor agencies can access and share administrative information relating to research grants. Faculty who wish to apply for this funding with NIH must have a current/valid User ID. Please contact Rosette Tavolacci with a CC to Pat Hayes with any eRA Commons requests. Please be sure and let us know of any prior NIH support. We would need the IC and Serial number of said support. Common errors at it concerns NIH applications via Grants.gov
    • Overview of eRA Services for Grant Applicants/Grantees: Applicants track the status of their submitted grant application through the Status module, a secure web interface in the eRA Commons. Through this system, applicants can monitor their applications through the submission process to assignment to study section through review to award. The functions available to a user are based on the ‘role’ associated with their eRA Commons account.
    • 04/08/09: Identifying of American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Funding:  When preparing a PINS record be sure to capture the information relative to the Stimulus Funding or American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) source of funding. If applicable, we need to be sure the one question in PINS has responded 'yes' and that we include the CFDA Number (xx.xxx) as well. On a weekly basis our SPARCS office reports funding received from this source to UNC-GA and it is critical that we report accurate and timely information.

    • NSF Data Management Plan: Beginning January 18, 2011, proposals submitted to NSF must include a supplementary document of no more than two pages labeled Data Management Plan. This supplementary document should describe how the proposal will conform to NSF policy on the dissemination and sharing of research results. See Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) Chapter II.C.2.j for full policy implementation.

Additional information on export controls may be found at  http://www.ncsu.edu/sparcs/export/index.php.

Centers and Institutes

Internal Form / Budget Template:

  • Pre-Award Request form* In the event that the University is unable to fully negotiate and execute this proposal and make an official award through Sponsored Programs and Regulatory Compliance Services (SPARCS), the Department will retain sole responsibility for all costs incurred under this Pre-Award project set-up. Additionally, should the official project begin date create unallowable costs, the previously designated unit will also be responsible for payment of these costs from other appropriate funding sources.

    • As a reminder, when one requests for a Pre-Award Contract and Grant account in addition to the financial risks there may be risks associated with export controls identified within the sponsor's terms and conditions and made available to us at the time of award notification. For example, if the sponsor prohibits for us to employ the services of a foreign national on a research project, we may not be aware of such restrictions until after the award is received and the terms and conditions are reviewed/approved by the University. Therefore, it is recommended that we consider these potential risks, in addition to the financial risk, and proceed with caution at the time the Pre-Award Contract and Grant account is established.

  • Percent of Time & Effort to Person Months - Interactive Conversion Table (Excel spreadsheet)

    Chart: 3 & 9 Month Appointment: Calculating Person Months

  • National Science Foundation (NSF) Macro Driven Excel Budget Template
  • SPARCS NCSU Budget Templates: Budget and Budget Justification

* PDF documents require the Adobe Acrobat plug-in

 

Sponsored Programs & Regulatory Compliance

Community of Science (COS): search the world's most comprehensive funding resource, with more than 25,000 records representing nearly 400,000 opportunities, worth over $33 billion. End User Training

National Science Foundation (NSF)

Grants.gov

Note: before creating a proposal with Adobe or PureEdge, you will want to make sure you have the most current version available < click here >

 

 

 

  Rosette J. Tavolacci, CRA

  Assistant Director

  515-7011

  Email