PROPOSAL SUBMISSION

 UNIVERSITY REVIEW AND APPROVAL

The PI must channel his/her proposal with a completed internal Proposal Approval Form through the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs.  This review and approval is required before the proposal is submitted to the sponsor.  The review will focus on the following:

• the substance of the proposal, including the academic appropriateness and desirability of the proposed research or other sponsored activity;
• commitments of faculty and staff time - not to exceed 100% effort;
• salary arrangements (i.e., provision for summer support or a distribution of effort supported during the academic year);
• requirements for space and facilities;
• the budget, especially a verification that all costs, including indirect costs, are provided for, that all needs are realistically estimated, that items included are in compliance with the policies of the University and the sponsor, and that cost sharing funds are available when indicated in the proposal; and
• the identification of special conditions requiring review, such as human subjects, animal subjects, biohazards, etc.

To process a proposal, the PI submits the proposal to the department chair for review and approval.  Once approved by the department chair, the proposal is submitted to the dean for review and approval.  Once these signatures have been obtained, the complete proposal with the approval form is submitted to the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs to assure compliance with university and sponsor policies for submission and for university endorsement.

A Proposal Approval Form is an internal tracking document, which is not submitted to the sponsor.  This form MUST accompany each proposal.  This form can be filled out electronically and downloaded by clicking MTSU Research Proposal Approval Form.  The staff in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs will provide assistance in preparing the form if requested.

When the proposed activity involves multiple departments, each department chair and dean must sign the Proposal Approval Form.

The signature of the authorized official is necessary to indicate university endorsement of and commitment to the project.  In many cases, this authorization certifies compliance with federal regulations.  In other cases, the authorization represents pre-acceptance of terms and conditions of the award.

All proposals must follow the normal university process described above regardless of size or format.

The Office of Research and Sponsored Programs will make the necessary number of copies as outlined in the proposal regulations.  The Office of Research and Sponsored Programs retains one copy in the official university file.  In addition, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs will duplicate and mail proposals.

The Office of Research and Sponsored Programs requires a minimum of five working days for proposal review.  Investigators are strongly advised to submit proposals to this office well in advance of the sponsor deadline to allow time for any necessary modifications or corrections.  When the review is completed, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs will notify the PI or department administrator of the status of the proposal.

To ensure timely proposal submission, the PI should be aware of what type of deadline the sponsor has indicated. For example, a receipt deadline is the date by which the sponsor must receive the proposal. A postmark deadline means that the proposal must be postmarked by that date, not necessarily received by the sponsor on that date.  In most instances, a proposal will not be considered if it misses the agency deadline.

If you are submitting the same proposal to two or more sponsors (multiple solicitations), make this fact apparent in the text of the proposal.  Each submission to an agency requires a separate Proposal Approval Form, and separate copies for the files.

Early involvement of the office of Research and Sponsored Programs in the proposal development process will facilitate timely submission to the funding source.