KUMC Research Institute
Sponsored Programs Administration (SPA) http://www2.kumc.edu/researchinstitute/spa/
How to complete an on-line NIH grant application?
January 25, 2008
What is Grants.gov
• Grants.gov is the Federal government’s solution for a "one stop shop" for finding and applying for funding. It provides a consistent electronic submission process for all agencies.
• Grants.gov has already or will replace federal agency-specific proposal submission systems that have been using in recent years, most notably NSF's FastLane, DOE's IIPS, and DOD’s CDMRP.
Transition Dates-NIH planned transition dates of mechanisms for e-submission using the SF424 (R&R) -Transitions on hold:• Career Development (all Ks)• Fellowship (F)• Training (T&D), D71/U2R• Complex-Project/Center (P), G12,
M01,R10/U10, U01, U54, U56, S06,
Prepare to Apply• Registration -Only the applicant organization needs to register with Grants.gov -PI does not need to register with Grants.gov -PI must register in eRA Commons
• Obtain Software - PureEdge viewer - Adobe Reader 8.1.1
Terminology• An “FOA” is a Funding Opportunity
Announcement. This is the Grants.gov term for all requests for application (formerly RFP/RFA).
• The SF424 (R&R) is the set of standard forms used across all agencies. This stands for Standard Form 424 (Research & Related).
Find FOA• Search funding opportunities -NIH Guide for grants and contracts -Grants.gov (grants offered by the 26 federal grant-making agencies)• Download application package
-Download Opportunity Instructions and applications, save the files to your PC.-Sign-up to receive notifications of changes
to the application package.
Find FOA• Each application package will include all of
the forms required for that particular solicitation. You must use the application package that is specific to the solicitation you are responding to.
• Read the application instructions! The FOA will indicate which forms are required and which are optional.
Filename• When you download, rename the file as
follows:PI last name first initial agency acronym due date.xfd
(i.e. Smith P NIH 06-05-07.xfd)• If you had more than one file with the
same name, just add a relevant date (06-05-07) to maintain unique naming.
SF424 (R&R)
• SF424 (R&R) Standard Forms include: – R&R Application cover component – R&R Project/Performance Site Location (s) – R&R Other Project Information – R&R Senior/Key Person – R&R Budget – R&R Personal Data – R&R Subaward Budget Attachment Form
Application Completed• You will upload the completed file to SPA
Drop Box. An email will be sent to SPA to notify us that the application is there.
• The Grant Specialists will review your application and give you feedbacks for changes needed.
• SPA will submit the application. (by 5:00 p.m. local time of applicant organization)
Internal Proposal Review and Submission Timeline
• 12 business days prior to agency deadline - A hard copy of the draft proposal (completed forms and draft research plan) and an internal routing checklist must be provided to the SPA office for initial proposal review and feedback.
• 7 business days prior to agency deadline - Review feedback will have been sent to the PI. PI will then make suggested changes.
• 3 business days prior to agency deadline - An e-copy of the FINAL proposal package must be provided to SPA office for final proposal review and submission.
Validation Process
SPA receives at least four e-mails regarding each submission:
– First confirms receipt by Grants.gov. – Second confirms validation by Grants.gov. – Third confirms receipt by Sponsor. – Subsequent emails from Sponsor regarding
tracking through the Sponsor’s system (e.g. NIH Commons) or contact information.
Validation-Common Errors/Warrings
• Invalid or Missing eRA Commons Username
• Missing Organization Name for Senior/Key Person
• Senior/Key Person Effort on SF424 R&R Budget Form Must be More Than zero
Common Warnings:• Role of Co-PD/PI not used by NIH • No degrees submitted for PD/PI
Validation-Common Errors/Warrings
PDF issues: • NIH only accepts attachments in PureEdge or
PDF format. • Avoid scanning text documents to produce the
required PDFs.• Only use standard characters in file names:
A through Z, a through z, and 0 through 9, Hyphen (-), underscore ( _ ). Don’t use spaces, special characters, or long file names.
• Do not include any information in the header or footer area of the attachments.
NIH Parent Announcements• Parent Announcements (For Unsolicited or
Investigator-Initiated Applications • R01-Research Project Grant (PA-07-070)• R03-NIH Small Research Grant Program
(PA-06-180)• R21-NIH Exploratory/Developmental (PA-06-181)
Useful Information
• Information often requested on grant applications
• NIH planned transition dates of mechanisms for e-submission using SF424
• Avoiding Common Errors• SPA staff - Grant Specialists• Example of SF424 (R&R)