Frequently Asked Questions
Submission Process
What
documents do I need to submit to ORSP as part of a complete proposal
package?
Is ORSP available to help me prepare my
proposal?
Do all proposals need to be submitted through
ORSP instead of directly to the sponsor? If so, why?
Can I charge administrative and clerical costs to my sponsored project?
What is UALR’s fringe benefits rate?
Who do I need to talk to about my
proposal/contract or future projects?
Can I sign as Authorizing Official on any
projects?
How long does it take to get a proposal
reviewed/approved?
How do I get an NSF PIN#?
How do I handle subcontracts in my budget?
I am in the process of submitting a proposal
through Grants.gov. It states that I am required to
register. What do I need to do to get registered?
Does PureEdge work for the Macs?
In addition to submitting my proposal, can I
search for funding on Grants.gov?
Can I submit my own proposal in Grants.gov?
How long does the Grants.gov submission
process take?
Who should I talk to if I need assistance or
to submit with Grants.gov?
How can I create PDF files to include in my
application?
Budget
What are indirect costs
(F&A)?
Can I charge rent for office space
to the
university?
What is the F&A negotiated rate and
will this vary by sponsor?
What is MTDC?
What is TDC?
When should I expect to get a grant
fund/account?
What is cost-sharing?
Can a
PI request more than two months salary for the summer from NSF?
What is
the definition of "person-months"?
How do
I calculate the
person-months per year committed to the project for completion of the
current and pending support section of the proposal?
Awards
My
program officer called and told
me my proposal was funded. May I begin my project now?
How do I find out who my Grants Manager is?
Why can’t I spend my grant money any way I
want?
When should I request a no-cost extension?
Other Questions
What is UALR's tax exempt status?
Can I receive funding from a sponsor who requires a 501(c)(3) status?
What is the difference between a grant and a
gift?
Submission Process
What documents do I need to submit to ORSP as part of a complete proposal package?
Please submit the UALR Internal Review and Coversheet. Also, please submit a complete copy of your project (narrative, budget and budget justification, appendices, letters of support, etc.).
Is ORSP available to help me prepare my proposal?
Yes, provided you start well ahead of the deadline date. We will review your narrative draft and help you prepare your budget.
Do all proposals need to be submitted through ORSP instead of directly to the sponsor? If so, why?
It is the university’s policy that all proposals go through our office for administrative and academic approvals regardless of the amount of the request. All proposals must be reviewed and signed by officials at the university prior to submission whether the sponsor requires it or not. Sponsors are aware of this.
Can I charge administrative and clerical costs to my sponsored project?
For federally sponsored projects, UALR must adhere to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-21, "Cost Principles for Educational Institutions." Therefore, the salaries of administrative and clerical staff, office supplies, postage, local telephone costs, and memberships should normally be treated as indirect costs. Direct charging of these types of costs may be appropriate in some circumstances.
What is UALR’s fringe benefits rate?
The fringe benefit rate suggested is 30%. Not all faculty and professional staff members will have the same rate, but this will assure that all fringes will be covered if their rate is higher than 26%.
Who do I need to talk to about my proposal/contract or future projects?
You can contact the Associate Director (Angela Willis) or Pre-Award Specialist (Bart Angel or Kaitlyn Simpson) if you have any questions concerning your proposal/contract or future projects.
Can I sign as Authorizing Official on any projects?
No. The Authorizing Official for the university is the Director of ORSP (Angela Willis) for all grants or the Vice Chancellor for Finance (Lucian Shockey) for all contracts.
How long does it take to get a proposal reviewed/approved?
The time required for review of a proposal varies with its length, complexity, accuracy, and the care taken in its preparation and prior review. It also depends upon the present workload in ORSP. To allow for necessary corrections, revisions, and for greater assurance that we will meet the sponsor deadline, allow at least five full working days for to review and submit your proposal. Some proposals that contain cost-sharing commitments, legal conditions, or compliance, may require additional lead-time.
How do I get an NSF PIN#?
We will generate a PIN number for faculty or professional staff members who wish to apply for an NSF grant. After accessing Fastlane for the first time, the faculty or professional staff may then sign on to Fastlane after that.
How do I handle having subcontracts in my proposal?
Each subcontract should be properly identified in your prime budget (usually under the line contractual). In addition, you should have a separate institutional approved, itemized budget and scope of work for each subcontract reflecting the approved overhead. We will help you with the appropriate subcontract. You should be aware that the federal agencies will require the same information of the subcontract's Principal Investigator as is required of yourself. Please note that UALR will access overhead on the first $25,000 of each subcontract. It is important when involving subcontracts in your budgets that you allow additional time for the paperwork to be processed at the subrecipient's home institution.
I am in the process of submitting a proposal through Grants.gov. It states that I am required to register. What do I need to do to get registered?
You don’t need to worry about registering. The University is already registered. All you are required to do is to make sure PureEdge (see http://grants.gov/DownloadViewer for more information) is downloaded onto your machine (so that you can view the forms on Grants.gov), and then find and download the application package that you are submitting.
Does PureEdge work for the Macs?
No. Non-windows users need to download Citrix (see http://grants.gov/MacSupport for more information). If you have problems downloading or working with this, you may need to contact Pre-Award Specialist Kaitlyn Simpson for her assistance.
In addition to submitting my proposal, can I search for funding on Grants.gov?
Yes. Grants.gov is designed to not only be a ‘one-stop’ submission system for federal agencies, but also a repository for federal funding announcements and grant opportunities. Simply click the “Find Grant Opportunities” tab and use the search parameters of your choosing. You can even subscribe to emails that will alert you to potential funding.
Can I submit my own proposal in Grants.gov?
No. Like NSF’s Fastlane system you will upload the documents into Grants.gov (via PureEdge, see above), but ORSP will be responsible for ‘pushing the button’, or the actual submitting of your proposal.
How long does the Grants.gov submission process take?
ORSP needs 3 days prior to the due date to review your proposal. Once review is complete and accurate document(s) are uploaded into Grants.gov the submission process usually takes 1-2 hours.
Who should I talk to if I need assistance or to submit with Grants.gov?
Angela Willis is the electronic submissions officer in ORSP. Specific questions regarding Grants.gov should be directed to her. If she is unavailable, contact Bart Angel.
How can I create PDF files to include in my application?
doPDF is an easy to use PDF converter. It is for both personal and commercial use. Once it is downloaded and installed, create PDF files by selecting the "Print" command from within your application text or spreadsheet application.
Budget
What are indirect costs (F&A)
Facilities and Administrative costs, commonly referred to as indirect costs, are charges not directly borne by the project. For example, costs associated with utilities and administration are indirectly charged.
Can I charge rent for office space to the university?
Indirect costs (also known as Facilities and Administration costs) are funds that come back to the university to cover overhead costs such as utilities, facilities, maintenance, etc. Sponsors generally recognize these costs. Only ORSP can negotiate F&A rates with the sponsors. The chancellor may return a portion of these funds to your college or department for discretionary uses.
What is the F&A negotiated rate and will this vary by sponsor?
UALR’s negotiated rate is 39% of the modified total direct cost (MTDC). The off-campus rate is 12%. Be careful not to get the new rate confused with the old rate which was based on salaries and wages.
What is MTDC?
Modified Total Direct Cost is the base on which F&A is applied which includes salary/wage costs, plus fringe benefits, materials, travel, other direct expenses (such as services), and the first $25,000 of a subcontract. However, it excludes equipment, tuition remission, scholarships, fellowship, and any part of a subcontract over $25,000.
What is TDC?
Total Direct Cost is the total cost of the project, not including indirect costs (F&A costs). It is also the base on which indirect costs are applied.
When should I expect to get a grant fund/account?
As soon as you receive electronic or written notification of your award, contact ORSP. Your Grants Manager will set up an account (fund) for you and then you can get started on your project.
What is cost-sharing?
Cost-sharing is the commitment of university resources to support part of the costs of a sponsored project. It may take the form of release time (faculty salary and fringe benefits) to engage in the project, the purchase of supplies and equipment, or the acceptance of a lower reimbursement for indirect costs. The amount required and types of costs that are eligible for cost-sharing vary among sponsors and grant programs. Cost-sharing is either mandatory or voluntary. When ORSP signs off on a proposal, the source of the funds to be used for cost-sharing must be clearly indicated on the internal routing coversheet.
Can a PI request more than two months salary for the summer from NSF?
Summer salary for faculty members on academic-year appointments is limited to no more than two-ninths of their regular academic-year salary. (Reference GPG Chapter II.C.2.g.(i))
What is the definition of "person-months"?
The term "person-months" refers to the effort (amount of time) that PI(s), faculty and other senior personnel will devote to a specific project. The effort is based on the organization's regular academic-year, summer or calendar-year. For example, if the regular schedule is 10 months and 30% effort will be devoted to the project, a total of 3 months should be listed in the academic or calendar-year block (10 months x 30% = 3 months). (Reference GPG Chapter II.C. 2.g.(i))
How do I calculate the person-months per year committed to the project for completion of the current and pending support section of the proposal?
Multiply the percentage of your effort associated with the project times the number of months of your appointment (i.e. 10% of a 9 month AY appointment equals .9 person months; 10% of a 12 month calendar appointment equals 1.2 months). Your employer may have internal policies and procedures that relate specifically to the type of appointment under which you are employed. You should, therefore, confirm with your sponsored projects office that this simplified methodology is consistent with the policy at your organization. Person months shown in the current and pending support section should usually equal the number of months on the NSF proposal budget.
Awards
My program officer called and told me my proposal was funded. May I begin my project now?
Grant and Contract and personnel funds are subject to the same purchasing restrictions as the rest of the university. It is important to check with the purchasing office in advance to make sure that you can be reimbursed for your purchases. This is particularly important if there are matching requirements, graduate students, or release time involved.
How do I find out who my Grants Manager is?
Please go to the Staff Directory to see which grants manager is assigned to your department of academic unit.
Why can’t I spend my grant money any way I want?
If you have access to Banner Finance screens, the following would be helpful. Otherwise, you may contact your Grants Manager.
When should I request a no-cost extension?
Individual sponsor requirements vary. First-time requests are generally due to the sponsor thirty (30) days prior to the current end date of the project. Any subsequent extension requests, if permitted, are due to the sponsor sixty (60) days prior to the extended end date of the project. Please allow a feasible amount of time for us to review and process your request.
Other Questions
What is UALR's tax exempt status? Can I receive funding from a sponsor who requires a 501(c)(3) status?
UALR is classified with an IRS coded tax exempt status of 170(c)(1), not 501(c)(3). If sponsors specifically require the organization to have a 501(c)(3) status, we may not be eligible to receive funding from them.
What is the difference between a grant and a gift?
Grants generally carry obligations for reporting of technical or financial activity the sponsor may require. They are intended to support specific projects and set objectives; periodic written reports are required; the accounting of funds received are separate from other award; and you must apply for and receive the award through ORSP to assure compliance with university and agency policies.
A gift normally requires no formal proposal or reporting; these funds can be combined with gifts of a similar nature for similar purposes and does not have to be in a separate fund (account)—and may be for a specific project or unrestricted institutional purposes.