The Center for Research and Scholarship (CFRS) provides support and assistance throughout the proposal development and award process to ensure high quality, accurate and prompt grant submission and successful post-award management.
CFRS is the school of nursing office authorized to submit grant proposals on behalf of school researchers. CFRS is also responsible for obtaining university approval of all proposals through Sparta, the CWRU grants management system. All proposals must be routed through Sparta and approved by the CWRU central Office of Research Technology and Management prior to submission to the funding organization.
Grant Development & Application Timeline
Where are you in the process?
12 Weeks Out | 8 Weeks Out | 6 Weeks Out | 4 Weeks Out | 2 Weeks Out | 1 Week Out
Let CFRS guide you through the process of grant development and submission with this recommended timeline.
12 Weeks Out: PI notifies CFRS of intent to submit
- PI meets Research Dean to discuss:
- idea/specific aims
- resources
- timeline
- statistician and data management needs
- study section
- CFRS schedules meeting with PI to discuss funder requirements, budget, and submission timeline.
- CFRS drafts initial budget
- PI schedules with editor
8 Weeks Out: PI continues writing application
- PI continues to work with mentor and research team to refine application.
- PI and Research Dean schedule Peer Review.
- CFRS requests confirmation of research team effort approval from outside departments as needed.
- CFRS updates supporting documents/templates and sends to PI for tailoring to grant. (e.g. biosketches, facilities and other resources) [Include link to biosketch templates here]
- CFRS provides letter of support drafts/templates to PI.
- CFRS requests necessary documents from research team including subaward documentation.
- Meet with statistician.
- Meet with data manager to discuss resource sharing and data management needs.
6 Weeks Out: Research strategy/other documents sent to FPB peer reviewers
- PI works with CFRS to finalize and obtain supporting documents.
- Peer review is held.
- PI revises based on peer review.
4 Weeks Out: PI sends grant to editor and finalizes budget
- PI revises based on editor feedback.
- PI makes final revisions.
- CFRS works with PI to finalize budget.
2 Weeks Out: PI finalizes all proposal documents
- CFRS sends budget, justification, and draft specific aims to Research Dean. CFRS receives budget approval from FPB finance office.
- CFRS finalizes subaward documentation.
- PI sends final research plan, specific aims, and abstract to Research Dean for review.
- CFRS proofreads/assures accuracy and compliance of final budget justification, biosketches and facilities/other resources. Checks all documents for compliance.
1 Week Out: Quality Control check by CFRS staff and PI
- PI submits all final application materials to CFRS at least 24 hours in advance to the Quality Control (QC) submission meeting.
- QC meeting with PI and CFRS.
- Sparta/university internal routing.
- Submission to funding organization.
- Celebrate!
What can we help you with?
Budget Development | Templates & Samples | Commonly Requested Info
Biosketch Guidelines | NIH Grant Writing Resources
Any remaining questions?
The Center for Research and Scholarship works closely with investigators to develop the budget and budget justification for proposed federal and foundation projects. A fundamental component of a proposal, the budget and justification describe in detailed financial terms how a project will be conducted and includes specific information on personnel and grant activities and expenses.
While budget formatting can differ between federal agencies and among foundations, the basic elements are similar. In developing a proposal budget, the following broad categories can help investigators identify and plan for project expenses:
- Key Personnel
- Other Personnel (e.g. Project Director, Research Assistant, Interventionists, Expert)
- Equipment (equipment that costs $5,000 or more)
- Travel
- Materials and Supplies
- Publication
- Consultant Costs
- Computer services (reserving computing time on supercomputers, specialized software)
- Participant Incentives
- Lab fees
- Hospital Research fees (credentialing fees, coverage analysis)
CFRS can provide templates and sample documents that can be tailored to fit your proposal or guide you in developing your own. Available templates and sample documents include:
- Facilities and Other Resources
- Letter of Support
- Letter of Access
- Consultant Letter
- Resource Sharing Plan
- Human Subjects
- Data Safety and Monitoring Plan
Contact CFRS Staff for Templates
Commonly Requested Information
NIH grants and many foundation grants require a NIH biosketch for senior/key personnel involved with a proposed project. The biosketch is a summary of an individual's education, accomplishments and qualifications, tailored for a specific role on a proposed project. The current NIH biosketch format was updated in September 2017. It is important to use the most current biosketch format.
- Biosketches are limited to 5 pages
- The Contributions to Science section can include up to 4 peer-reviewed publications for each contribution.
- Applicants can include a link to a full list of their published work as found in a "publicly available digital database" such as My Bibliography.
NIH has an electronic system to help researchers create and easily update their biosketches. The system, SciENv, links with My Bibliography, making it easy to tailor your biosketch to different grant applications and save these different versions within SciENv.
For investigators who do not wish to use SciENv, the following links are to biosketch formats, instructions, and samples:
Non-Fellowship (General) format
Postdoctoral Fellowship sample
What comes next?
CFRS helps researchers manage grants from the beginning of their investigation through the completion of the project.
CFRS will assist with
- Understanding the Notice of Award
- Establishing and monitoring grant budget
- Subcontracts
- Research compliance
- Progress reports
- No-cost time extensions
- Grant close-out
- Facilitate/connect you with appropriate services in marketing such as publications, advertising and electronic media for study recruitment.
If you would like assistance, please complete our CFRS Service Request Form.