Proposal Preparation Resources

Proposal Preparation Resources

General

The following are internal forms, grant systems, Mississippi State University information, and budget information to assist you in preparing your proposal.

Proposal Forms

Policies and Procedures

  • Research Policies and Procedures: Proper administration of sponsored project funds includes policies set forth by sponsors and policies, procedures, and guidance set forth by Mississippi State University.
  • Limited Submissions Notices: External funding agencies such as the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Energy, etc., often limit the number of proposal submissions that a university may submit. This information is always provided in the agency announcement. To make sure that Mississippi State University provides an equal opportunity to all researchers pertaining to a limited submission, it is necessary that a process be in place to insure an equal opportunity. Therefore, all limited submissions are required to go through the Office of Research and Economic Development (ORED) before being submitted to OSP.

Internal Grant System

All requests to OSP for proposal and award assistance should be initiated through the Service Request Portal. Please contact one of the College’s grant and contract specialists to initiate the ticket.

External Grant Systems

Cayuse 424 is an electronic research administration system that serves as a proposal development tool and submission portal to Grants.gov. Cayuse 424 is a convenient, user-friendly interface that provides auto-filling of university and faculty profiles, and interactive error checking as the proposal is being developed.

OSP has compiled general information you may need in writing your grant proposal. Information such as the University Unique Entity Identifier (UEI), EIN, and Institutional representatives can be found on the OSP home page on the bottom left corner.

Listed below are several tools to help you prepare your grant or project budget.

Listed below are several resources for on-campus trainings.

  • ORED Seminar Series: Seminars offered both in the fall and spring. Topics include: IRB, Project Evaluation, Writing Tips, etc.
  • Library Workshops: Workshops are scheduled throughout the semester and taught by MSU knowledgeable faculty and staff. Topics include: Research tools and methods, Citation management, Copyright, etc.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH)

The following are NIH-specific documents that will aid you in the application process.

Proposal Development Resources from NIH

  • NIH Office of Extramural Research: NIH’s Central Resource for grants and Funding Information.
  • Standard NIH Deadlines: NIH application cycles and their relationship to due dates, review and council dates, and earliest possible start dates.
  • NIH Grants Policy Statement: The NIH Grants Policy Statement (NIHGPS) makes available, in a single document, the policy requirements that serve as the terms and conditions of NIH grant awards.
  • NIH Forms-H: Guidance developed and maintained by NIH for preparing and submitting applications via Grants.gov to NIH and other PHS agencies using the SF424 (R&R).

NIH eRA Commons and Grants.gov (Cayuse): What You Need to Know

Resources from NIH

  • NIH Email Alert System: Provides notices of new publications about funding programs and other NIH business.
  • Information for Researchers: Provides resources for NIH funding, grant process, etc. for researchers.
  • Previously Awarded Grants and Contracts: Searchable database of previous grants and contracts funded by NIH and publications associated with NIH funding. It also has matchmaker tool, which allows you to enter abstracts or other scientific text and Matchmaker will return lists of similar projects from RePORTER or program officials associated with those projects. A summary of funding information of NIH Institutes/Centers for Active Projects.
  • News & Events: A listing of NIH related news, virtual learning, and in-person training events.
  • Active Funding Opportunities

The National Science Foundation (NSF)

The following are NSF-specific documents that will aid you in the application process.

NSF Grant Submission Checklist

Components of a Typical NSF Proposal

Proposal Development Resources from NSF

•    Account Management: create or manage NSF account.
•    NSF ID Lookup page: find your NSF account
•    Password Retrieval Page: find forgotten password for your NSF account
•    Research.gov Homepage   
•    Proposal Preparation and Submission Page: video tutorials, FAQs, and how-to- guides.
•    Access Share: learn how to give OSP administrative access.
•    FAQS: frequently asked questions NSF powerpoint 

USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)

The following are NIFA-specific documents that will aid you in the application process.

NIFA Grant Submission Checklist

  • NIFA Grant Submission Checklist.

Components of a Typical NIFA Proposal

Proposal Development Resources from NIFA

  • Regulations and Guidelines: Resources are provided to NIFA’s partners and award recipient to support their adherence to federal regulations governing program performance.
  • NIFA FAQsThis list of FAQs covers questions about eligibility and general submission.
  • NIFA RFAs: NIFA’s RFAs’ anticipated publication dates (This list is not all inclusive).