Proposal Preparation

The Sponsored Project Administration Pre-Award team assists faculty with proposal preparation. Here's a general guide on how to work with the team through this process.

Proposal Submission

The Pre-Award Sponsored Project Team will provide you with full-scale proposal assistance. We work closely with the PI or designated staff to produce and submit the most compelling proposal. We work in partnership with the Office of Contract and Grant Administration (OCGA) to provide support for development of large, complex, multidisciplinary research proposals.

OCGA is responsible for contract and grant management for UC San Diego and their role includes:

1. Review, endorsement and submission of proposals
2. Negotiation and acceptance of contract and grant agreements
3. Interpretation of guidelines
4. Promotion of compliance with sponsor and University policies

Recommended Submission Schedule

Here is a general timeline of the recommended submission schedule.

60 Days Before Deadline

Provide to your Research Administrator:

• Agency name
• Link to funding opportunity, special announcements or forms
• Title of proposal
• Identify start date, number of years and due date of proposal
• Budget; identify target annual budget amount and provide list of personnel working on grant, materials and supplies, equipment (vendor quotes are usually not required), travel, other expenses (including publication costs, animal costs, campus services)
• If proposal includes subcontracts, provide contact information for each site

45 Days Before Deadline

Provide to your Research Administrator:

• A rough draft of the proposal (including references, bibliographies, biosketches, as required by funding agency)
• Animal, human subjects, radioactive materials, recombinant DNA, biohazard approvals or protocol application numbers and effective date
• Budget justification
• Letters of collaboration (if applicable)
• Review draft proposal

30 Business Days Before Deadline

Submit draft documents to Research Administrator for compilation into application package and submission to OCGA for review:

• Draft application review includes finalized budget, budget justification, administrative documents (e.g., facilities, equipment, biosketches, resource sharing plan, etc.) and draft science
• Research Administrator will upload documents into application package for OCGA review and inform you of any changes, corrections or suggestions
• Complete PI certification in Kuali record COI certification in Kuali COI

14 Business Days Before Deadline

Review entire proposal for submission. Provide final version of required documents to Research Administrator.

5 Business Days Before Deadline

Final proposal is due to OCGA by 8:00 a.m. Final documents are due to your Research Administrator by noon on the business day prior to the agency's published deadline.

Day of Deadline

Confirm proposal has been submitted. Review submitted application online if applicable.

After Submission

Inform Research Administrator as soon as an award or a declination of a proposal has been received.

Additional items to consider:

• UC San Diego standard business hours are 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
• Submit as early as possible to avoid last minute system issues or delays, particularly during peak submission periods.
• Stay by a phone or email until submission is confirmed in case any unexpected issues arise.