Center Sign-off and Review Process

The Office of Sponsored Research (OSR) is located at the Center's Lake Union site on the sixth floor of the Yale Building (823 Yale Avenue N).

For grants, investigators are strongly encouraged to consult with OSR and their Division Director or Administrator to obtain assistance with the proposal and its budget BEFORE the proposal is finalized. We also strongly recommend that investigators check with the sponsoring agency's program official about their plans to submit an application especially for special awards such as program project grants, awards in response to requests for application etc. It is important when planning an application to request this consultation at least a month before the sponsor deadline to insure that sufficient time is available to provide assistance.

For contract proposals, investigators are strongly encouraged to contact their OSR specialist as soon as possible.

Center Sign-off Process

Applications submitted for Center sign-off go through the following review steps. The number of days noted indicates the minimum amount of time it takes to go through each step. Note that the minimum amount of time required is eight business days from the time it is received in the Division office. The actual review may take longer depending on the availability of staff, the number of applications being processed and the issues that might need to be addressed regarding your application. Please be sure to provide enough time for the sign-off process when planning the preparation of your application. OSR recommends that you begin the sign-off process at least 15 working days prior to the sponsor’s deadline for grants; 20 days for subawards (note that additional time may be required for PHS Program Head review and approval).  Please allow additional time for large and/or complex grant and contract mechanisms.

University of Washington Sign-off Process 

For more about UW sign-off requirements, see the University of Washington Sign-off Process for more information.

Electronic Submission of Grant Applications

When an application requires electronic submission by the institution (e.g. Grants.gov, NSF FastLane, NIH Commons for eSNAP, etc.), please follow the following procedure:

• Complete the Center sign-off process as you would for any other application.
• Only when sign-off is complete, transmit the final electronic copy of the application to your OSR review specialist. Your OSR review specialist will guide you through the process.

Click here for more information on Center grant and subaward timelines for electronic submission.

Center Review Process

One (two, if required by Division) copy of the completed proposal must be received in the Office of Sponsored Research, along with a completed Attachment A.

This must include the following:

• Attachment A:  accurate & complete, with all required signatures, including all PSDF/COI forms, JIT IRB/IACUC letter and any other required documentation
• FINAL detailed budget (including subaward budget(s), if applicable), even if not required by sponsor
• FINAL completed face page with required signatures
• Any other documents that require Mark Boyer’s signature, flagged
• Application guidelines or instructions (with the exception of NIH eSNAP or parent FOAs for investigator initiated awards)
• Application, marked “draft” if not final
• Application specific forms, if applicable (Grants: SF424, eSNAP, etc; Contracts: SF2043, Contract Budget Template, etc.)
• Any other required components, such as biosketches, abstracts, other support, checklist, etc.
• LOIs & consultant agreements, if applicable
• Subawardee IRB/IACUC approval documents, if applicable

OSR review is conducted on a first come first serve basis and applications are assigned to the next available specialist to ensure an even distribution of the application workload. Please note that this may not be the specialist that typically supports the PI.  Assignment to a specific specialist can only be accommodated if there is a unique situation that requires that specialist's personal review. Such assignments must be approved by OSR management prior to receipt of the application.  Internal pilot/development projects and supplemental applications should be assigned to the specialist that supports the parent award; please note this on the top of Attachment A.

Once the application has been logged in to OSR’s database, the pre-award administrator (as indicated on Attachment A) will receive email notification from Grants Mail of which OSR specialist will review your application. 

Full Review versus Expedited Review

For both Full and Expedited Review, OSR will conduct the following review of Attachment A and related areas:

1. Correct F&A rate applied
2. Any unrecovered F&A is approved
3. Any unsupported salary is documented, and the source confirmed
4. PI is devoting measurable effort
5. Staff assignments identified, eligibility confirmed
6. Any subawards/subcontracts have been identified
7. Subrecipient IRB/IACUC information included**
8. Note the IRO/IACUC status
9. COI/PSDFs are included for all covered individuals
10. All appropriate signatures are applied to Attachment A (including multi-PI assurances, if applicable)

Full review will cover the items listed below, if the application is received by OSR in a timely manner. In the event of time constraints, your OSR reviewer will note that an expedited review was completed. An expedited review may or may not cover the items below, based on time constraints. OSR makes every effort to review each application as thoroughly and completely as possible, whether a full or an expedited review is conducted.

1. Review application guidelines, RFA, application instructions, etc.
2. Review budget and justification (e.g. salary cap used appropriately, correct fringe benefits rates applied, annual inflation is appropriate, budget totals correctly, costs appropriately justified)
3. All required sections of the application are included (e.g. biosketches, abstracts, etc.)
4. Formatting requirements are met
5. Correct organizational info is listed, if applicable (DUNS number, EIN, etc.)
6. Other support (if included) does not exceed 12 person months
7. Subrecipient information is included, if applicable (e.g. Letters of Intent, subaward detailed budget, subaward IRB/IACUC information** is included)
8. OSR will review your application based on specific requirements or instructions of the grant/contract program. For example, for NIH Grants.gov, OSR will check that the PI Commons user-id included. For NIH non-competing applications, OSR will estimate the unobligated balance for the current year, and confirm the committed level for upcoming year. For fellowship programs OSR will confirm that any minimum required levels of effort are addressed.

**Please note that if a subrecipient will be working with human or animal subjects, a Protection of Human Subjects: Assurance Identification/Certification/Declaration of Exemption form (formerly 310 form) or a human subjects assurance form should be signed by their IRO and included with the proposal.  In the case of Just-in-Time, documentation will be requested at the point of award and subaward issuance. For non-competing proposals, this information is requested in order to expedite the subaward set-up process.

After the application is reviewed, the specialist will email the review notes; once all items requiring follow up are addressed, the specialist will route to the second level reviewer for final sign-off.  After the second level reviewer signs off on the application, it will be routed for Authorized Signing Official signature if necessary.  The pre-award administrator will be contacted for pick-up or courier delivery.  Please note, that electronic applications submitted by OSR (eSNAP, SF424, etc) must receive final OSR approval PRIOR to upload or routing.  You will be notified when Center signoff is complete.

A single-sided final copy of the application including any attachments or appendices must be submitted to OSR within 10 days after the application due date.

Who Signs Applications?

The Hutchinson Center Director has delegated the authority to sign applications on behalf of the Center to the Director, Office of Sponsored Research. This signoff is completed when all approvals have been obtained and OSR review is complete. Please direct any questions about application sign-off to OSR at 667-4868 or via e-mail at Grants Mail.

How are Paper Applications Sent to an Agency?

When the grant proposal has been signed on behalf of the Center, the original signed pages will be returned to the pre-award administrator designated on Attachment A to be copied and mailed to the funding agency. Do not make changes to the face page, budget, checklist, or any pages signed by the Center after OSR approval of the application.

In the case of a contract proposal, after it has been signed off by the Center, the complete proposal will be returned to the pre-award administrator for copying, collating, and submitting to the funding Agency.

This page was last modified 04.28.09