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Sponsored project proposals are supported by the Office of Research and Innovation. Sponsors provide critical detail in the RFPs, including the funding mechanism, PI eligibility, and requisite proposal elements.

PIs should work with the assigned research program officer to review sponsor requirements and access sponsor systems, which often require commonly requested information about WMU.  Some RFPs may require or recommend submission of an advance concept paper or pre-proposal via a separate system or method.  Read about timeline tips in the next panel.

Eligible PI/PDs must be mindful of the due date and time as well as the "7/5/2" internal deadlines.  If the funding opportunity has a limitation for the number of applicants or principal investigators, researchers need to follow the Manage Funding Agency-Imposed Limits on Submissions Procedure.  Note that ORI can help procure signatures required by an Authorized Organizational Representative, in accordance with WMU's policy on signature authority. 

RFPs for federal sponsors often require similar elements: budget and budget justification, abstract, technical narrative, personnel and collaborator information, site capacity, compliance, etc. It is imperative that all elements of the proposal demonstrate a good fit with the sponsor's objectives and program review criteria. All proposal elements must also comply with specifications of the RFP including content type, page limits, formatting, budget categories and more. Altogether the proposal needs to clearly convey how the project will meet the sponsor's needs.

The budget is the translation of the work plan into dollars and usually consists of a spreadsheet or table with the budget detailed as line items and a budget narrative (also known as a budget justification) that explains the various expenses. Preparing a budget can be very complex and should be started early in the grant process to avoid problems.  Funding requests must be reasonable, allocable and allowable. 

Consult a research program officer for assistance with the Excel templates included in the summary of links.

Senior and Other Personnel compensation must be attributable:
-institutional base salaries for faculty and staff (also see Research Staff Policy and Administrator Incentive Plan with calculator)
-graduate college rate schedule for research assistant appointments (also see ORI's Graduate Student Support on Externally-Funded Research Program)
-Campus and Student Employment Services procedures for hourly student wages
-Fringe benefits are also usually applicable for the rates in effect during the project period

Equipment valued above $5000 will need a sole source justification or the request will need to route through the procurement process. New equipment procurement can be costly and there are minimal funding opportunities that support equipment acquisition.  Check first to see if you can access existing equipment on campus or other facilities like the HPCHub. 

Travel can be reimbursed for authorized lodging, meals, ground or air travel, etc. Per diem rates can be retrieved from the .

Other Direct Costs such as materials and supplies, publication costs, consultants, computer services, and tuition must be well justified. 

Proposed subawards must be reviewed for scope of work and commitment.

 are those that cannot be readily connected to the work of a particular sponsored project. F&A costs include infrastructure and operational costs, depending on the location of the project or project category. Because these are general costs associated with the project, the federal government implemented a process to negotiate an F&A rate (see agreement) with the university. It is WMU’s policy that the full F&A costs be recovered on every proposal to the extent allowable by the sponsor. Under certain circumstances, researchers can request an F&A rate waiver.  The SRM Revenue Allocation Work Group F&A cost recoveries are: College 70%, Department 10%, Principal Investigator 10%, ORI 10%

Cost share as matching funds may be requested in the RFP.  It is the portion of the total project costs of a specific sponsored agreement that is borne by WMU rather than the sponsor. Cost share normally represents a reallocation of departmental or school resources to partially support an externally sponsored project.  Whether mandatory or voluntary, it must be approved internally following the Propose and Request Cost Share for Externally Funded Proposals Procedure.