Preliminary Planning
Before beginning to write a proposal, it is important to create a clear plan and timeline. The following information provides guidance on some of the steps you should take.
Contact Pre-Award Early
With at least 30 days’ notice, the the Office of Sponsored Programs and Research (OSPR) can support various aspects of the proposal development phase, including budget development and proposal/project narrative editing, culminating in the successful submission of a proposal.
Contact the pre-award team early in the proposal preparation process to notify them of intent to apply and to begin to discuss support and resource needs.
Planning Stage
The pre-award team will work with you on the following:
- Determining eligibility, both for the individual faculty member and the institution.
- Determining sponsor priorities, mission, and past award amounts.
- Consider contacting the sponsor program officer/contact to assess the fit of your project with the funding source.
- Assess the project’s needs as they relate to the proposal.
- Do you have the necessary partnerships and/or can they be formed before the deadline?
- Determine project evaluation needs.
- Review the evaluation criteria, the review process, and particular role of the peer reviewers within the specific sponsoring organization.