Division of Sponsored Programs (DSP) staff review all applications prior to submission. Their review includes checking the budget, checking all sponsor formatting requirements (font, margin, pagination, etc.), making sure we didn’t miss any proposal elements, checking any cost share commitments for necessary approvals, and providing the institutional authorized signature. 

DSP is our final safeguard for catching any errors that may result in an application being disqualified. We need to give them time to perform their reviews. Please also know that last-minute submissions are very stressful on GSO and DSP staff and may not receive the same careful review as on-time submissions. DSP will try to submit applications that are routed late, but they reserve the right to review the applications as time allows and may retract applications with institutional or budget errors. Out of fairness to your colleagues, we respectfully ask that you abide by these deadlines to ensure that last-minute submissions are not taking time and attention away from PIs who are meeting the internal timelines or submitting well in advance. 

FYI: In FY23, DSP staff reviewed and submitted over 2,300 grant proposals, prepared over 700 outgoing subaward agreements, and negotiated over 2,400 funding agreements and amendments and 1,200 non-monetary agreements. They are busy!

All regular grant and contract applications for external funding must be routed to DSP. Applications that do not require an authorized signature or submission by an institution’s sponsored programs administration must also be routed to DSP.   

The few exceptions include:

1. Some preliminary applications, including letters of intent, that do not include a budget and do not require an authorized signature or submission by the institution’s sponsored programs office. 
2. Applications to foundations that only send funds directly to the individual.  In this case, CLAS requests that PIs still route their application to DSP so we have a record of the application.   

When in doubt, feel free to contact a member of the GSO pre-award team or email clas-gso@uiowa.edu for a quick response. 

Reminder: All applications being routed to DSP should be 100% complete and routed at least 5 business days prior to the sponsor deadline.

Facilities & Administrative (F&A) costs—also referred to as indirect costs or institutional overhead—are incurred for common or joint university objectives and, therefore, cannot be readily identified with a particular sponsored project, instructional activity, or institutional activity (2 CFR 200.1 “Indirect cost”). F&A costs are real costs that the institution incurs in support of the research being conducted. These costs include administrative expenses, physical plant operation and maintenance, utility costs, and depreciation or use allowance for buildings and equipment (Uniform Guidance: Appendix III to Part 200 - Indirect (F&A) Costs).

Standard F&A rates for federal grants and contracts are negotiated with the Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS). The University’s current F&A rate agreement for basic and applied research on campus is 55.5%. 

For the vast majority of applications, the F&A rate is applied to the Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC); on rare occasions, F&A is applied to the Total Direct Costs (TDC).

Visit DSP’s website for more information regarding F&A. 

Fringe benefits are allowances and services that employers provide to their employees as compensation in addition to regular salaries and wages (2 CFR 200.431(a)). These include items such as Social Security and University retirement programs, as well as life, health, and disability insurance. 

On July 1 of each year, the fringe benefits rates are adjusted. 

Current and projected fringe benefits rates can be found here.

Effort is the amount of time spent on work-related activities (instruction, research, patient care, administration, etc.) for which the University compensates the individual. 

Faculty time on sponsored projects is budgeted as a percentage of effort or by months of effort per budget period. Months of effort are usually designated as summer or academic year months, though some sponsors don’t require a distinction and may use calendar months.

The salary for most CLAS faculty is based on a 9-month academic year appointment (mid-August through mid-May) but paid over 12 months (July - June). One month of salary for either the summer or academic year is calculated as 1/9 of base pay. CLAS GSO staff usually calculate percentage of effort for faculty based on annualized salary.

Limited submission grant programs are those grant programs in which the sponsor has restricted the number of proposals a single institution may submit. UI applicants to limited submission programs are determined through an internal review process. 

If you encounter a sponsor solicitation that restricts the number of proposals that can be submitted by one institution, and it is not listed on the OVPR's limited submissions database, please notify staff in the OVPR or the GSO so we can make sure that it is added to their website. 

Visit the OVPR’s website for more information regarding limited submission opportunities. 

Budget justifications are significant because they carry the potential to influence what can and cannot be charged to a grant. Sponsors expect to see that you have thoughtfully developed a plan to utilize the requested funding. 

Costs that are not included in the budget justification can be deemed unallowable if the researcher tries to charge the cost to their grant at a later time. Researchers are advised to avoid vague language and specify their costs, including any potential purchases they might want to make later in the project. If the details of the purchase plans are unknown, the researcher should frame their plans in a way that accounts for and justifies possible future purchases, as failing to do so may result in denied requests later.

If a grant budget includes funding for a graduate student during the academic year, the relevant allocable tuition and fees must be budgeted as well.  If the sponsor does not allow tuition, GSP pre-award staff will request that the proposal PI identify a source of funding for the student tuition prior to the proposal submission.  Examples of alternative sources of funding for tuition include faculty startup funds, research release, or department support. 

The following are travel considerations that you should include and discuss in your budget justification: 

How many people do you expect will be traveling? Will only the PI be traveling, or will the entire team travel? Are there any to-be-named (TBN) travelers, and if so, how many? 

Will you be traveling domestically or internationally? Carefully review your sponsor’s guidelines to ensure that international travel is allowed and that you are aware of any restrictions or specific policies. Also consider whether unbudgeted travel will require prior sponsor approval at the post-award stage of your grant. 

Estimate your travel expenses as best as possible using federal and University per diem rates for domestic and international locations. If you have previously attended similar conferences or travel locations, use and reference those costs as a base for your estimations. Travel considerations may include conference registration fees, transportation (airfare, car rental, etc.), lodging, meals, etc. 

If travel locations or conferences are unknown, explain that you do not yet have this information and discuss your anticipated needs with as much detail as possible. Be sure to discuss how you arrived at your cost estimates. For example: XYZ Conference is held every year and rotates locations. We anticipate the conference location being disclosed at X date, and we estimate our total costs to be $X. The following is a breakdown of how we arrived at this estimate…

Division of Sponsored Programs information about budgets, including travel  

Per Diem Rates and UI Domestic Travel Policies

UI International Travel Policies

Issuing a subaward where UI is the lead organization will require increased administrative work and communication. For this reason, proposals including subawards should allow more time for proposal preparation. Generally, the GSO recommends adding one week to the preparation timeline for each subaward. For example: A submission without a subaward should reach out to the GSO 4 weeks before the sponsor deadline. A submission with 2 subawards should be in contact with the GSO 6 weeks before the sponsor deadline.  

When issuing a subaward, the University of Iowa is considered the prime institution and all funds, oversight, and reporting will flow through the UI and lead PI. 

The UI PI should work with the lead researcher at the subaward institution to settle on an appropriate budget limit for the subaward (either in total or per budget year). GSO pre-award staff are happy to gather all the necessary submission documents (budget, biosketches, scope of work, etc. as required) from the subaward institution(s) if provided the contact information and other key information well in advance of the proposal deadline. Keep in mind that other universities need sufficient time to meet their own internal routing deadlines before sharing their official budget documents with UI. 

PIs should consider the role and nature of collaboration with their subawardee to appropriately determine if a subaward is the most appropriate collaborative arrangement. Other arrangements such as a contractor, vendor, or joint collaboration, may be an option depending on the sponsor and specifics of the arrangement. GSO staff can advise on this matter.  

The Grant Accounting Office (GAO) is a central administrative department situated within the university’s Finance and Operations office. GAO provides post-award services across the university (DSP provides pre-award services). 

GAO’s post-award services include establishing spending accounts, monitoring spending and compliance, collecting payment from sponsors, processing invoices for subawards, preparing and submitting financial reports, and ensuring that PIs are meeting their budgeted effort requirements. 

Once your award has been funded, DSP will send you an email containing a link to access your Award Activation Authorization Notice (AAAN) and the Sponsor’s Notice of Award. The AAAN provides a summary of award information, important comments, contact information, and the research account number. The Sponsor Notice outlines the specific terms and conditions of the award. 

You can also review your award documents by using your UI credentials to directly access DSP Research Tracker, an internal platform that combines data on routing forms, grants, contracts, and outgoing subawards, in addition to other important information. 

Specific features of DSP Tracker include access to AAAN documents, final award documents, and subaward agreements; contact information for the DSP reviewer assigned to your project; routing forms/proposals and the status of their review; and links to GAO financial reporting pages. 

You can find your project in Tracker by searching your name or project title, or by the DSP item# or grant/program# identified in the AAAN. If you need help finding any information, reach out to your GSO post-award contact.

There are a number of factors that must be considered to determine if a cost is allowable on a grant. These factors include the source of funding, specific sponsor requirements, approved project budget, and university guidelines. See 2 CFR 200.403 for factors affecting allowability of costs on federal awards.

When in doubt, always ask your GSO post-award contact or email the GSO. 

Once your proposal has been awarded, DSP will accept the award on behalf of the University and initiate the Award Authorization Activation Notice (AAAN). GAO will then establish a spending account for your project and add the information to the AAAN. 

You may start spending on the award once you have received the AAAN, reached the agreed upon start date for your project, and obtained any IRB or related approval, as applicable. 

Reminder: The account should be used only for the purposes of the funding award for which the account was established. 

You may not charge any expenses accumulated prior to the agreed upon project start date to the sponsor agreement unless you have received written authorization from the sponsor. However, many sponsors allow pre-award spending up to 90 days prior to the official project start date. When it is certain that pre-award spending is allowed, and it is known that an award will be made effective on a specified date, you may reach out to your GSO post-award contact, who will help you request an Advance MFK, or an early spending account. 

Cost sharing refers to the portion of project costs that are not paid by federal funds or contributions from the sponsor (2 CFR 200.1 “Cost sharing”).

Visit the GAO’s website for more information regarding cost sharing. 

A cost transfer occurs when an expense is moved from one account to another after that expense has already been recorded in the financial accounting system. 

Visit the GAO’s website for more information regarding cost transfers. 

The process for revising a budget and the items you may reallocate are different depending on the sponsor and your specific award. If you need to reallocate items in your budget, you will first want to reach out to your GSO post-award contact to discuss the process and next steps. 

A no-cost extension (NCE) refers to when a project is extended for up to 12 months without additional funding from the sponsor. 

The process for requesting an NCE will differ depending on your sponsor and the specific award you are extending. Below are key guidelines for requesting an NCE under NIH and NSF. Regardless of your sponsor, however, you should first reach out to your GSO post-award contact and inform them of your intent to request an extension, as they will help ensure that you are following proper guidelines and remaining compliant with the terms of your award. 

NIH

For the first NCE request, you will work with your GSO post-award contact to email DSP and request an extension for up to 12 additional months. You must request the extension prior to the grant end date but no earlier than 90 days before that end date. DSP will file the extension in eRA Commons and issue a new AAAN. Reminder: all key personnel must maintain effort greater than zero during the extension period. 

For subsequent NCE requests, you will need prior approval from NIH. The process for requesting an additional NCE is similar to the process for the first request but requires you to include additional documents in your email to DSP. Subsequent requests must be made at least 30 days before the end of the project but no earlier than 90 days prior. 

NSF

For the first NCE request, you will prepare and fill out an NCE request form in Research.gov. While you should inform your GSO post-award contact of your intent to request an NCE, you will need to complete the form, as the GSO does not have access to this form in Research.gov. To find the form, navigate to Awards & Reporting à Notifications & Requests à Prepare New. Once you complete the form, DSP will receive a notification to review and submit the extension in Research.gov and will issue a new AAAN. You must request the extension at least ten days prior to the grant end date. 

For subsequent NCE requests, you will need NSF approval. The process for requesting an additional NCE is similar to the process for the first request but will require you to include more explanation as to why you need the NCE and how you will use your unobligated funds. Subsequent requests must be made at least 45 days prior to the grant end date. 

Disclaimer: Other federal agencies (e.g., Department of Energy (DOE)), will have different requirements for requesting an NCE. It is important to be aware of the guidelines put forth by your specific sponsor and grant program and to communicate with your GSO post-award contact to ensure that you are remaining compliant. 

Publication costs may be charged as a direct cost to an award if such a cost is allocable to the award and is allowed by the sponsor.  

Publications for research supported by grants must cite the funding source. Many federal agencies have specific instructions for how to reference their funding in publications. Failure to follow agency guidelines and provide proper credit in publications may result in an audit error.  

If more than one funding source supported the research, then the cost of publication must be allocated appropriately. For example, if the publication cites three funding sources, then the cost should be shared by those three sources. 

If one or more of the cited sources of funding represents a closed award, or an award that does not pay for publication fees, that portion of the publication cost may need to be charged to an administrative account. 

Uniform Guidance 2 CFR 200.463 defines visas as a recruiting cost.  

Short-term visas (as opposed to longer-term immigration visas) are generally an allowable cost and may be proposed as a direct cost because they are issued for a specific period and purpose and can be clearly identified as directly connected to work performed on a federal award. However, only the initial short-term visa cost may be charged as a recruiting cost. Short-term visa renewals are unallowable if the researcher is already on campus because the visa can no longer be considered a recruiting cost. 

For these costs to be directly charged to a federal award, they must:

(1) Be critical and necessary for the conduct of the project;

(2) Be allowable under the applicable cost principles;

(3) Be consistent with the recipient's or subrecipient's cost accounting practices and established written policy; and

(4) Meet the definition of “direct cost” as described in the applicable cost principles.

(2 CFR 200.463(d)) 

A short-term visa is defined as a temporary, non-immigrant visa such as, but not limited to J-1 Exchange Visitor or H-1B Temporary Working, as opposed to an immigrant or permanent residency visa.

A visa charge refers to the basic application and processing fees incurred in obtaining short-term, travel visas required for personnel.

Note that if the employee resigns within 12 months of recruitment, for reasons within his/her control, the associated visa costs, must be removed from the federal award.

See Uniform Guidance, 2 CFR 200 Appendix III.B.b.b.(2), which states: 

Items such as office supplies, postage, local telephone costs, and memberships must normally be treated as indirect (F&A) costs.

For many awards, the University gets reimbursed for the actual costs spent on an award. The University sends a bill, also referred to as an invoice or drawdown, to the sponsor showing those expenses, and then the funding is sent to us based on that invoice. Since the funds for federal awards are not sitting in a UI account waiting to be spent, any leftover funds at award closeout will stay with the federal government. 

Sponsors that send award funds directly to the University at the time of award will usually have written guidelines for the disposition of any unused grant funds at the end of the project period.