Q: What is the required timeline for a proposal submission?
A: A&S’s proposal deadline policy is here: Policies & Processes | A&S Research Administration (virginia.edu)
The administrative components of a proposal must be completed and available for review by 8 a.m. no less than seven (7) full business days before the sponsor due date. The technical components of the proposal must be complete and the proposal ready for submission by 8 a.m. no less than three (3) full business days before the sponsor due date.
Administrative components include the proposal budget, budget justification, biosketch, subaward budgets/justifications, facilities/equipment statement etc. Technical components include the proposal scope of work, research strategy, project summary, data management plan, references, and subaward scope of work.
Q: Who can help me submit a proposal?
A: A&S pre-award research administrators have departmental portfolios. You can find your assigned pre-award research administrator here: Meet the Team | A&S Research Administration (virginia.edu)
Q: If I'm a PI working across schools or in different department and centers, where do I submit my proposal?
A: A&S' policy is that PIs must submit their proposal through their home department.
Q: I need to submit a letter of intent (LOI), not a full proposal. Can a PI submit LOIs without an A&S pre-award administrator?
A: Pre-award research administrators must review any LOI that includes a budget or financial estimate of how much proposed work will cost.
Q: How do I know if my proposal or fellowship should be submitted through the pre-award research administration team?
A: If your future award will be an agreement between UVA and the sponsor, the proposal must be submitted through the A&S pre-award team. Please contact your pre-award administrator to help make the determination how the proposal will be submitted.
Q: Can a new hire faculty member submit a grant through UVA before their start date?
A: There are two options for submission in this case:
Option 1:
- PI must have a signed offer letter and start date
- PI has a UVA email ID (required to set them up in Huron for proposal submission)
- The date of the proposed work in the proposal must start on or after the offer letter start date
- The pre-award research administrator at A&S will need a copy of the offer letter for OSP
Option 2:
- PI must have a signed offer letter and start date
- PI doesn’t have a UVA email ID. In this case the chair of their department must agree to be the named PI in Huron and have it transferred to the new PI after they start/have their email ID. The new PI will still be named PI on formal proposal submission documents but we need some record of the submission in Huron which is why we use the department chair stand in (with their permission)
- The date of the proposed work in the proposal must start on or after the offer letter start date
- The pre-award research administrator at A&S will need a copy of the offer letter for OSP
Essentially, if the PI’s proposed work in the grant application starts on or after the signed offer letter start date the newly hired faculty member can submit their proposal through UVA.
Q: Who is eligible to a PI on a proposal?
A: A&S adheres to UVA’s policy on PI eligibility here: https://uvapolicy.virginia.edu/policy/RES-011#Exceptions_to_PI_Eligibility_Requirements
Q: What if I don’t have a title that is eligible to be named as a PI on a proposal submitted through UVA?
A: Please contact your pre-award research administrator, they can work with you to complete a PI waiver request
Q: What is a NICRA?
NICRA stands for Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement. This agreement outlines indirect cost rates and fringe benefits that are agreed upon between UVA and the United States federal government.
Q: What is fringe and do I need to include it on my proposal budget?
A. Fringe refers to non-wage expenses that are paid by an employer to benefit employees (for example: health insurance, paid time off, workman’s compensation etc.) Fringe rates are negotiated annually (and appear on UVA's NICRA) so they may change each year. Budgets must include fringe unless the sponsor disallows or limits the rate at which it may be budgeted.
Q: What is IC or IDC? Do I need to include it on my proposal budget?
IC or IDC refers to indirect costs. It’s also known as F&A (facilities & administration) or you may hear it referred to as overhead. Indirect costs are costs incurred to support grant implementation but are not directly charged to a grant (for example: some types of space maintenance, costs related to property, central staff support, etc.) Some sponsors may limit the amount of IDC we can include on a proposal budget. A&S will adhere to sponsor requirements regarding IDC. UVA’s current indirect cost rates are here: https://research.virginia.edu/office-sponsored-programs/fa-rates
Q: How do apply an “on-grounds” vs. “off-grounds” IDC rate?
A: A&S adheres to UVA’s policy on the use of IDC rates: https://uvapolicy.virginia.edu/policy/fin-009 The off-grounds rate will be budgeted where more than 50% of effort will be conducted in or on land, buildings or other space not owned by UVA. Most grants use the on-grounds rate. Even when experimental aspects of research or project implementation are completed off-grounds, PI and supported staff locations generally means that on grounds rates must be used. The A&S pre-award research administrator will work with the PI to help determine the appropriate rate application and work with the PI to gather any backup documentation required by UVA to justify the IDC rate.
Q: The sponsor doesn't require a detailed budget for the proposal submission, do I need to make a detailed budget anyways?
A: Yes, UVA requires a detailed internal budget to ensure we are compliant with all UVA and sponsor policies.
Q: Can I budget a lower indirect cost rate on my proposal?
A: No, we are required to adhere to either UVA’s negotiated rates with the federal government and/or sponsor requirements. If the sponsor requires a specific indirect cost rate, your pre-award administrator will use the required rate in the proposal budget and include relevant supporting documentation (usually notification of a sponsor rate requirement) in Huron for our records.
Q: My sponsor requires cost share, how do I add cost share into my proposal budget?
A: A&S’s cost share policy is here: Policies & Processes | A&S Research Administration (virginia.edu). Please work with your A&S pre-award research administrator to adhere to the cost share policy.
Q: Can I voluntarily add in cost share for my proposal budget if the sponsor does not require cost share?
A: No, we adhere to sponsor guidelines and requirements for cost share.
Q: My sponsor came back to me with some budget/administrative questions about my proposal/I know I'm going to get a Just in Time request. Who can help me with these types of requests?
Please reach out the pre-award research administrator who assisted with your proposal. They can assist in the preparation and submission of these documents.
Q: I just received a new fellowship/grant/contract/subaward. What should I do now?
A: Congratulations! Please reach out to your department’s post-award administrator. Post-award department assignments can be found here: Meet the Team | A&S Research Administration (virginia.edu)