Sending out a grant, federal or local, needs to follow steps. It's not something that you just write a proposal based on your great idea and send it out.
Today we sent out a grant application to DOD. This entry is a self-debriefing session to go through the process easier next time.
Actually, today was the due date. We worked on it last minute. How did it happen?
To write a grant, a Principal Investigator (PI) search announcements (local, federal, private, etc),, and find an announcement that he would have chance to get funded, which should match his qualification, skills, specialty, etc.
Then he read the announcement and get the details; how much funding and for how long, its scope, etc. That will define what he should do, collect, and prepare, to write the grant. Also he can determine whether he can be competitive, or has some weaknesses. He should drop an email to the grant's scientific officer and request advice on if his idea is a good match to the scope of the grant.
Eventually, he decide go or no-go.
Some grants require letter of intent (LOI) beforehand to submit the application. He needs to send LOI in time.
Once decided to go, he write it. Prepare all files following page number and formatting specifications, and collect all the documents needed, like letter of support (LOS) from co-investigator or from department chair. Quotes for cost will be needed for proper budgeting, too.
Although scientific contents of the proposal is important once the proposal is sent out, budget is the most important part for internal review. PIs are usually scientists with some "XYZ Professor" title, and accounting may not be their forte. That is why Office of Research Administration (ORA) people help us out. They will review proposal internally before it is approved to submit. They check all the files and see formatting and specifications are met for the granting agency and announcement.
The ORA people do not check scientific contents, though. Improving scientific contents and increasing his chance to get funded is grantsmanship game of the PI.
About one week before the due date, he needs to get all files ready. Typos and awkward writings should be weeded out by editing software and editor. Scientific contents should be honed with review, feedback and discussion with colleagues and/or co-investigators.
We have a departmental administrator who help us to set up grant applications. She also set up internal routing, based on the information PI provide (e.g., title, granting agency, fund requested, starting date, participants, effort %, patent information, etc).
Once the routing form is set up, it will be reviewed by PI, co-investigator, department administrator, deans office, and so on. It will take 2-3 days for the routing form to reach the ORA for their review.
The ORA requires a routing to arrive 3 business days before the due date. If the due is 7/21 Tuesday, ORA should receive the routing by 7/16 Thu evening.
......so this is the rough idea about the procedure to send out a grant.
This time, we initiated the routing on 7/13 Mon.,which was good.
The routing was reviewed by our department, as well as two other departments co-investigators belong, and reached ORA on 7/15, which was also good.
Then it got stuck. Somehow it was assigned to a vacationing officer and she did not come back until Monday. This is one of the reasons we got to work until last minute.
Lesson 1: next time we need to be more proactive to track the progress, even inside ORA.
This morning (Tuesday) an ORA officer let us know where to fix. Some are easy fix, others are involved in updated fringe rate, which will change salaries on personnel and thus require rework on the budget.
In particular, I was unfamiliar with accounting on cost-sharing and had it wrong. Fixing it took some time and re-approval by departmental reviewer. This is another point we will fix next time.
Lesson 2: Get the cost-sharing accounting right and make sure it is correct at the routing stage. Don't assume administrators correct it.
Then there was some undue stress. I was assuming the due time was Eastern time 5:00 pm (cst 4:00 pm). Naturally, as 4pm was approaching I was uneasy. Then they told me the due time is 11:59 pm eastern time.
Lesson 3: Check the due time.
Thankfully, after the review by the officer, the proposal was sent to the Associate Director (who has authority to submit) for final check, then the proposal was submitted on time.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
I heard the ORA is terribly busy place with high turnover, and I can see why. Especially around the due dates for federal grants (Feb, June, Oct), their reviewing would just be swamped. Still, sending out grant proposals is among few ways Universities make money from outside. ORA is an essential place. I appreciate their help.
I want to get the application process done easier for me and for them next time, with less fixing.
