from your ideas… 1 … into our systems… …to advance medical discovery. interacting...

From your ideas…

1

…into our systems…

…to advance medical discovery.

Interacting Electronically with NIH

Megan ColumbusNIH Program Manager for Electronic Receipt of Grant Applications

Scarlett GibbeRA Customer Relationship Manager

2

Electronic Interaction Points

Learn About Grantsat NIH

Find Opportunities

Submit Application

Check SubmissionStatus

Download AppPackage

View AssembledApplication Image

Check ReviewAssignment

Submit Pre-AwardInformation

Check ReviewOutcome

Prepare/SubmitPost-Award

Reports

Closeout Grants

NIH Guide

NIH GrantWeb site

Grants.gov

eRACommons

3

Learn About Grants

eRA, Commons,eSubmission

POLICY

NIH GUIDE

FORMS & INSTRUCTIONS,SUBMISSION DATES

GLOSSARY, FAQS

INITIATIVES

GET CONECTED

http://grants.nih.gov/

BASICS

4

Electronic Submission Required!

Electronic submission via Grants.gov is now required for ALL competing grant

applications with the exception of Complex, Multi-project applications (Project/Centers)*

*These grant mechanisms will continue to use the paper PHS398 application process until a transition to electronic submission is scheduled, announced and implemented.

5

eSubmission Process

Prepare to Apply & Register

Find Opportunity and Download Application

Package

Submit, Track and View Application

Prepare Application

Submission Complete!

6

Two Systems Working Together

• Grants.gov – the Federal government’s single online portal to find and apply for Federal grant funding– Used by all 26 Federal grant-making agencies

• eRA Commons – electronic Research Administration system that allows applicants, grantees and Federal staff to access, share and transmit information related to their applications and grants – Used by NIH and a few other HHS components

IMPORTANT: Each system has its own registration

and validations requirements

7

Registration

Grants.gov• Applicant Organizations only • Designate E-Business Point of Contact (E-Biz P)

- Approves Authorized Organization Representatives (AORs) providing authority to submit applications

• No registration needed to find opportunities or download forms

eRA Commons• Applicant Organization & PD/PI• Designate Signing Official (SO)

- Registers or affiliates Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI)

Many organizations are already registered. Check with your Office of Sponsored Projects.

8

Registration

Tips for Success:1. Start early! The registration process can take up to 4

weeks (8 weeks or more for new or foreign businesses)2. Register for Grants.gov & Commons simultaneously once

DUNS# is obtained3. Update CCR information yearly to keep Grants.gov

credentials active 4. Do not combine SO and PI roles on single Commons

account5. If PD/PI has a Commons account, affiliate them to your

organization rather than creating new account6. PIs should update their Commons profile prior to

submitting (degree info used to determine Early Stage Investigator eligibility)

9

Make a Submission Plan

Internal organization considerations…• Submission method

- Downloadable forms- System-to-System using XML data stream- Services of a commercial service provider

http://grants.nih.gov/grants/ElectronicReceipt/system_testing.htm

• Application preparation responsibilities• Sharing applications in progress • Internal review & approval process• Internal deadlines

Administrators and PIs must work together!

10

Obtain Software

Grants.gov Download Software Web Page:http://www.grants.gov/resources/download_software.jsp

Adobe Reader• Only specific Adobe Reader versions

are compatible with Grants.gov forms

PDF conversion program• Attachments must be converted to PDF

11

eSubmission Process

Prepare to Apply & Register


Package

Submit, Track and View Application

Prepare Application


12

Find Opportunity & Download Package

• NIH posts Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) on:– NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts

http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/index.html• Announcements include button to download package

and instructions from Grants.gov

– Grants.gov

13

Investigator–Initiated Research

• All applications must be submitted in response to a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA)– Applicants can submit for funding opportunities

focused on specific programs/areas of science OR in response to a general “parent” announcement

– Applicants MUST use the application package specific to the FOA that they choose

14

Parent FOAsNIH Office of Extramural Research

http://grants.nih.gov/grants/oer.htm

Parent Announcements for Unsolicited Applications

15

Finding FOAs in NIH Guide

NIH Guide for Grants & Contractshttp://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/

Enter search string or click Advanced Search

16


Enter search parameters

Click Search

17


• Review list of FOAs matching your criteria and find FOA of interest

Click Announcement Number link to access FOA information

18

Announcement

• Read and follow announcement instructions

• Pay special attention to Section IV. Application and Submission Information– Includes any FOA-specific

submission instructions– Instructions in FOA trump

instructions in the application guide

19

Announcement Notes

• Pay attention to Key dates:– Release/Posted Date: package and instructions available for

download– Opening Date: application can be submitted– Expiration Date: announcement closed

20

Announcement Notes

• FOAs in the NIH Guide include button to download app from Grants.gov

Click download Verify information

Click Apply for Grant Electronically found within the NIH Guide announcement.

21

Download Package & Application Guide

Download application instructions and Application Package

Sign up for Agency updates to FOA

22

Application Guide

• Read and follow application guide instructions

• Agency-specific instructions are marked with the HHS logo

23

eSubmission Process

Prepare to Apply


Package

Submit Track and View Appilcation

Prepare Application


24

Grant Application Package Screen

Make sure you have the correct application

package.

FOA information is automatically populated

and not editable.

Save the package locally.

Mandatory Grants.gov fields highlighted yellow with red box.

*Application Form Screen - Top*

25

Grant Application Package ScreenMandatory Documents must be completed prior to submission.

*Application Form Screen - Bottom*

Complete the SF424 (R&R) form first – info from this form populates fields in other forms in the package.

See application guide to determine which Optional Documents you need to include.

Completing the Application

26

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

27

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?

28

Final Application Check

• Avoid Grants.gov & eRA Commons Errors (cont.):– Did you use the correct Budget form?– 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 (_)?

29

eSubmission Process

Prepare to Apply


Package

Submit, Track & View Application

Prepare Application


30

AOR - Submit Application

Check Package for Errors only checks Grants.gov errors.

Save & Submit button will not become active until:•All fields marked as mandatory on the forms are completed•All Mandatory Documents are moved to Mandatory Documents for Submission box and completed•The application is Saved

You MUST submit the application for it to go through the NIH validation process. NIH errors will be shown in the eRA Commons

31

Enter your Grants.gov username and password – you must be fully registered to successfully submit.

Only the AOR can submit application!


32


Click Sign and Submit Application button to record electronic signature and initiate submission process to Grants.gov

33


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

On-time Submission• On-time Submission

– All registrations must be completedprior to initial submission

– Submission must be accepted by Grants.gov with a timestamp on or before 5:00 p.m. local time of submitting organization on submission deadline date

– Errors/Warnings must be corrected within the error correction window

3535

Track Application

• AORs track application status at Grants.gov

• Signing Officials(SOs), Principal Investigators (PIs) and Assistants (ASSTs) track application status in the eRA Commons

Track – Grants.gov (AOR)

• Applicant interface

Grants.gov application status

3737

You’re not done yet!

Signing Officials (SOs), Principal Investigators (PIs) and Assistants (ASSTs) track application status

in the eRA Commons.

Track Your Application

• Applications are picked up by eRA Commons and checked against application and opportunity instructions

• Forms are owned by Grants.gov and used by many agencies, so NIH cannot build agency-specific business rules into the formProcessing result available in eRA Commons Status

• Processing result available in eRA Commons Status

• Email notifications sent to AOR/SO, PD/PI and contact emails listed on the SF424 (R&R) form

Accessing eRA Commons

• Go to: https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/ • Enter your Username and Password

UsernamePassword

4040

Check Status in Commons – PD/PI

Select Recent/Pending eSubmissions

Or provide Grants.gov tracking number from email notification

41

Status – eSub Errors/Warnings

Indicates eSubmission Error

Grants.gov Tracking # Grants.gov tracking #

and date are displayed followed by the list of errors/warnings for each submission attempt

42

Status – eSub Errors/Warnings

• Errors stop application processing and must be corrected

• Warnings do not stop application submission and are corrected at the discretion of the applicant

Helpful Links Avoiding Common Errors page:

http://grants.nih.gov/grants/ElectronicReceipt/avoiding_errors.htm

Full list of Commons Validationshttp://grants.nih.gov/grants/ElectronicReceipt/files/SF424RR_Validation.pdf

43

Error Correction Window

• NIH currently allows applicants to correct errors/warnings during the temporary “Error Correction Window” - Standard window: 2 business days after the

submission deadline- Initial submission made “on time”- All registrations completed before deadline- Proof of “on time” submission and description of

all changes documented in Cover Letter

AOR is expected to enforce that appilcation changes are restricted to those needed to fix indentified errors/warnings.

NIH may reject any application that includes additional changes.

44

Correcting eRA Errors/Warnings

Make changes to address error/warning messages in local copy of application

1. Select Changed/Corrected on SF424 (R&R) cover (box #1) Federal Identifier on SF424 (R&R) cover (box #4) is

a required field when Changed/Corrected is selected • If New is selected in box #8, use Grants.gov tracking

number for original submission• Otherwise, continue to use the Institute/Center and serial

number from original grant award (ex. CA123456)

2. Include cover letter if after submission deadline

3. AOR must submit the entire changed/corrected application to Grants.gov

4. Track submission through to CommonsNOTE: Reviewers do not see applicant errors/warnings.

45

View Application Image

Once an error-free application is received, the eRA system will:– Assemble the grant application image– Insert headers (PI name) & footers (page

numbers) on all pages– Generate Table of Contents and bookmark

important sections– Post the assembled application image in the PI’s

eRA Commons account

46

Application Viewing Window

• Applicants have two (2) business days to view the assembled application before it automatically moves forward to NIH for further processing

• SO can Reject application within viewing window to address Warnings (if within error correction window) or to address a system issue affecting the application image

– If Rejected after deadline for any other reason, application is subject to late policy

– PI will receive email notification if SO rejectsapplication

If you can’t VIEW it, we can’t REVIEW it!

47

Status – View Application Image

View Appendices and Cover Letter

Status is Pending Verification

Follow e-Application link to view assembledapplication image

Follow link to detailed status info

48

Status – e-Application

TIP: Carefully review the entire application.This is your first chance to view/print the same

application image that will be used by Reviewers!

49

Reject Application (SO)

Must have SO role

Select Recent/ Pending eSubmissions

Click Search

Enter Search Criteria

PIs: If the application image in the eRA Commons does not properly reflect the submitted material, work with your SO to reject the application!