Successful eSubmission Prepare-Complete-Submit-Track-View

1. Successful eSubmissionPrepare-Complete-Submit-Track-View Sheri Cummins eRA Customer Relationship Manager – eSubmission Samuel Smith eRA Service Desk Manager Electronic Research Administration Office of Extramural Research National Institutes of Health June 2009

2. Electronic Submission Required • All small business grant applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov using the SF424 (R&R) form set • More than 20,000 unique small business electronic applications received since December 2005

3. Electronic Submission of Grant Applications at NIH PI PI AOR/SO Find and download announcement, instructions and form package. PI prepares application per institution guidelines and sends it to AOR for submission. Authorized Organization Rep (AOR) submits application to Grants.gov. eRA retrieves application from Grants.gov and checks it for compliance with application instructions. PI and AOR/Signing Official (SO) check submission status and view assembled application in eRA Commons.

4. Today’s eSubmission Topics • Prepare • Systems • Registration • Software • Plan • Find Opportunity • Download Instructions & Application Forms • Complete Application • Forms • Submit • Submit Application to Grants.gov

5. Today’s eSubmission Topics • Track • Track Application • Correct Any Errors • View • View Assembled Application in eRA Commons • Finding Help • Resources • Service Desks

6. By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail. -Benjamin Franklin Prepare

7. Two Separate, but Linked Systems • Grants.gov • Federal-wide portal to find and apply for Federal grant funding • Used by all 26 Federal grant-making agencies • eRA Commons • Agency system that allows applicants, grantees and Federal staff to share application/grant information • Used by NIH and a few other HHS divisions IMPORTANT: Each system has its own registration and validations requirements.

8. Prepare to Apply: Registration • Registration – Grants.gov • Applicant Organization only (one time) • Registration not required to find download opportunities • Designate E-Business Point of Contact (E-Biz POC) • Approves Authorized Organization Representatives (AORs) • Authority to legally bind the institution in grants administration matters START NOW!Can take 4 weeks; up to 8 weeks for newly established or foreign businesses http://www.grants.gov/applicants/get_registered.jsp

9. Prepare to Apply: Registration “Good Faith” Effort Start Commons registration 2+ weeks before deadline and you won’t be penalized if not completed due to NIH caused delay • Registration – eRA Commons • Applicant Organization • Designate a Signing Official (SO) • Overall responsibility for account administration • Registers or affiliates Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) • Maintains Institutional Profile Allow 4 weeks to complete http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/preparing.htm

10. Prepare to Apply: Registration • Registration - eRA Commons • Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) • SO creates account for the PD/PI or affiliatesexisting account with their organization • PD/PI gets one account for his/her entire career • Account may be affiliated with multiple organizations • PD/PI role can not be combined with any administrative roles on the same account • If same person is both SO and PD/PI, two separate accounts (one with each role) are required • Can have IAR (Internet Assisted Review) role if Reviewer • If PD/PI had previous NIH funding, but not a Commons account, make sure prior support is captured • PD/PI is responsible for maintaining their Personal Profile eRA Help Desk can assist with these tasks Allow 4 - 5 business days to complete

11. Registration • Tips for Success: • Start early – allow at least 4 weeks to complete • NIH 2-week “good faith effort” for Commons registration • Grants.gov & Commons registrations may be completed simultaneously once DUNS# is obtained • Update information in Central Contractor Registry (CCR) yearly to keep Grants.gov credentials active • Do not combine SO and PI roles on single Commons account • If PD/PI has a Commons account, affiliate them to your organization rather than creating new account • PIs should update their Commons profile prior to submitting (e.g., degree info used to determine Early Stage Investigator eligibility)

12. Obtain Software • Adobe Reader • Only specific Adobe Reader versionsare compatible with Grants.gov forms • PDF conversion program • Attachments must be converted to PDF • Grants.gov download software page • http://www.grants.gov/resources/download_software.jsp

13. Adobe Reader • Applications opened with an incompatible software (even if not saved) can become corrupted • Most attempts to use incompatible Adobe software are caught and a cautionary pop-up message presented

14. Make a Submission Plan • Internal organization considerations… • Submission method • Downloadable forms • System-to-System using XML data stream • Services of a commercial service providerhttp://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/sp.htm • Application preparation responsibilities • Sharing applications in progress • Internal review & approval process • Internal deadlines Administrators and PIs must work together!

15. Find Opportunity • ALL applications must be submitted in response to a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) • NIH simultaneously posts FOAs in: • NIH Small Business Program Web pagehttp://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/sbir.htm • NIH Guide for Grants & Contractshttp://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/index.html • Grants.gov Findhttp://grants.gov/applicants/find_grant_opportunities.jsp

16. Finding FOAs for Investigator –Initiated Research • NIH is committed to investigator-initiated research and we want your unsolicited applications! • “Parent” FOAs are available with generic packages • Parent announcements listed at: • http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/parent_announcements.htm • Apply using the Parent FOA for your chosen activity code

17. Finding Opportunities NIH Office of Extramural Researchhttp://grants.nih.gov/grants/oer.htm • Screen shot for Parent Annoucement NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts ParentAnnouncements Small Business (SBIR/STTR) page

18. Finding FOAs on Small Business Web site • Screen shot of Small Business page SBIR Parent PA-09-080 Follow link to announcement STTR Parent PA-09-081

19. Funding Opportunity Announcement - Notes • Carefully read and follow all FOA instructions.

20. Funding Opportunity Announcement - Notes • Key dates: • Release/Posted Date: package and instructions available for download; begin preparing application • Application Submission/Receipt/Due Date: applications must be submitted by 5:00 pm local time • Opening Date: systems begin accepting applications • Expiration Date: announcement closed

21. Funding Opportunity Announcement - Notes • Pay special attention to Section IV. Application and Submission Information • Includes FOA-specific submission instructions • Instructions in FOA supersede instructions in the application guide

22. Funding Opportunity Announcement - Notes • FOAs in the NIH Guide include button to download app from Grants.gov Apply for Grant Electronically button brings user to Grants.gov download page for specific opportunity.

23. Download Application Package Click download Verify information

24. Download Application Instructions Sign-up for Agency updates to FOA Download application instructions

25. Download Application Instructions • All FOAs link to the latest set of instructions Instructions available in Word and PDF formats Links to other handy resources

26. Application Guide • Read and follow application guide instructions • Agency-specific instructions are marked with the HHS logo

27. Download Application Package Download forms

28. Complete

29. SF424 (R&R) Data Set • NIH uses the SF424 Research & Related (R&R) data set • Owned and maintained by Grants.gov • Agencies combine form components to meet the data collection needs for an FOA • NIH applications include: • Federal-wide (R&R) components • Agency-specific (PHS 398) components

30. SF424 (R&R) Data Set • SF424 (R&R) Components include: • SF424 (R&R)—An application cover component • Research & Related Project/Performance Site Location • Research & Related Other Project Information • Research & Related Senior/Key Person (Expanded) • Research & Related Budget • R&R Subaward Budget Attachment Form • SBIR/STTR Information • NIH agency-specific components (titled PHS 398): • PHS 398 Cover Letter File • PHS 398 Cover Page Supplement • PHS 398 Research Plan • PHS 398 Checklist

31. Completing the Application • Tips for Success: • Follow FOA-specific guidelines (e.g., special attachments, specific section headings) • Follow application guide requirements • Follow guidelines for fonts, margins • Do not include headers or footers • Section headings as part of the text (i.e., Specific Aims, Background & Significance) are encouraged • Avoid 2-column format for text • Avoid “landscape” format

32. Grant Application Package Screen Save the package locally. *Application Form Screen - Top* Make sure you have the correct application package. FOA information is automatically populated and not editable. Mandatory Grants.gov fields highlighted yellow with red box.

33. Grant Application Package Screen Mandatory Documents must be completed prior to submission. Complete the SF424 (R&R) form first – info from this form populates fields in other forms in the package. *Application Form Screen - Bottom* See application guide to determine which Optional Documents you need to include.

34. Prepare Application Highlight form and use the arrow buttons to move forms to the Mandatory Documents for Submission box Highlight form in right box and click Open Form or use window scroll bars to access form

35. SF424 (R&R) Cover Use Application for first submission and Changed/Corrected for subsequent submissions to correct errors/warnings If New (box 8) Application (box 1), leave blank. If New box 8) Changed/ Corrected (box1), use initial Grants.gov tracking # Otherwise, use Institute and Serial number of prior application/grant App. DUNS = Grants.gov DUNS = Commons DUNS Contact email required by NIH See App. Guide for explanation of Application Type terminology

36. Application Type

37. SF424 (R&R) Cover * form cont.* NIH will assign CFDA post-submission Application Title PD/PI info carries throughout form

38. SF424 (R&R) Cover Manually entered See application guide for full list of NIH policies & certifications AOR Info.

39. Sr/Key Person Profile Expanded eRA Commons Username must be supplied in Credential field for everyone with PD/PI role – NIH required field Enter PI Commons Username Organization name must be supplied for all listed–NIH required field Enter Organization Name See app guide for format

40. R&R Budget Navigate through all budget pages Include effort > zero for all Sr/Key listed. Individual Sr/Key Persons listed in Section A Aggregate other Personnel in Section B

41. PHS 398 Research Plan All attachments must be in PDF format. Separate PDF attachments facilitate image bookmarking. Create in single document then split to ensure you stay within page limits Appendix material

42. Final Application Check • Avoid Grants.gov & eRA Commons Errors: • SF424 (R&R) cover • Does the DUNS number on your application match the DUNS used for Grants.gov & Commons registration? • Did you include the Contact Email address? • Did you provide correct Type of Application, Federal Identifier, and Type of Submission information? • Sr/Key Person Profile • Did you include Commons ID in Credential field for all PD/PIs? • Did you include Organization name for all Sr/Key?

43. Final Application Check • Avoid Grants.gov & eRA Commons Errors (cont.): • Did you include effort > 0 for all Sr/Key listed on the R&R Budget form? • Did you include all required attachments? • Are all your attachments in PDF format? • Are all attachment names 50 characters or less and use only letters, numbers and underscore (_)?

44. Submit early!! Leave a cushion for unforeseen issues. -Grants.gov & NIH Submit

45. Route Application to AOR • Your completed application must be routed to your institute’s Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) for Submission.

46. Submit Application The Check Package for Errors button only checks for Grants.gov errors. Must Submit application for it to go through the NIH validation process. NIH errors/warnings shown in the eRA Commons. • Save & Submit button will not become active until: • All G.g mandatory fields are completed • All Mandatory docs are moved to Mandatory Documents for Submission box • Application is Saved

47. Submit Enter Grants.gov username and password – you must be fully registered to successfully submit. Only the AOR can Submit application.

48. Submit Click Sign and Submit Application.

49. Submit Print/Save your Confirmation screen info Grants.gov Tracking # Date/Time Stamp - due 5 p.m. local time of the applicant org. on submission deadline date

50. Track – Grants.gov AORs can track application status at Grants.gov.