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    REP Submission Instructions (Stimulus and Convergence)

    REP grant proposals are submitted though the OVPR Internal Funding Program and not through Sponsored Program Services.

    Note: The REP program guidelines have been updated for the FY22 competition year.  Please review the guidelines before submitting an application to note any changes.

    Annual REP Submission Due Date: 12/15

    Proposals must be submitted electronically through the UConn Quest Portal by 12/15 (or the following business day at 12PM, if the deadline falls on a weekend) and will require the following information:

    Proposal Package Components

    Please be sure to read all the guidelines thoroughly. Each item/section should be prepared, labeled, and ordered as indicated below.  Some information will need to be entered into a form on the application site.  Other documents will need to be uploaded.  See below for details.

    Faculty Applicant Information Form

    (some information may pre-populate into the form):

    • Submitting PI Name
    • Home Department
    • School/College
    • Email
    • Phone
    • Faculty/Academic Rank
    • Primary Employer
    • Question - is your position contingent on grant funding?

     REP Application Form:

    • REP Category: (1) Science, Engineering, Math, Technology, Social Science; or (2) Arts, Humanities, Business, Law, Engagement.  Form will also contain choices for applicants from UCH.
    • Project Type: Single PI or Multi-PI
    • Discipline (for reviewer selection purposes--please select the one that best represents the work you are proposing):
      • Note: there will be a large list of disciplines that are more relevant to applicants from Storrs.  See below for guidance for UCH applicants
        • Convergence applicants - select "medical research", unless there is a Storrs-based discipline that is a better match for your work
        • Stimulus applicants - select "UCH Stimulus"
    • Special Reviewer Expertise (optional): If your project requires reviewers to possess specific expertise within the context of your discipline (i.e. familiarity with a specialized approach or methodology), please specify.
    • Size of Team: 0-8
    • Key Personnel: Co-PIs, department affiliation, role on project
    • Project Title:
    • Project Abstract / Lay Summary: Succinctly state (for a non-specialist audience) the objectives, methods to be employed, and the significance of the proposed activity to the advancement of knowledge, pursuit of scholarly activity, or contribution to creative work.
    • Future Funding and/or Activities: The applicant should specify where extramural grant proposals will be submitted and/or the high level disciplinary accomplishments that will result from this REP funding.
    • Results from prior OVPR-funded projects: If you've received funding in the past from OVPR internal seed grants or commercialization grants, please give a brief account of the outcomes of those projects and any research products generated.
    • Keywords: List 4-5 keywords relevant to project

    Project Plan (PDF upload):

    The Project Plan should be 3-5 pages in length (12-pt font and 1” margins). The Project Plan should address each of the areas below in sufficient detail using the headings provided. Proposals should be written in straightforward language, keeping in mind that reviewers will possess general content knowledge but not necessarily specific expertise in the area of study. Proposals should avoid the use of technical or discipline-specific jargon. Acronyms that are not universally understood should be spelled out the first time they are used.

    • Significance/Importance: Provide a clear and compelling rationale for why the proposed project, scholarly activity, or creative work matters. Indicate how the proposed project will advance knowledge, address an important scientific or scholarly problem, demonstrate intellectual or creative significance, and/or benefit society in meaningful ways. If applicable, include hypotheses to be tested, specific goals/aims, and relevant background/information or preliminary data in support of the project.
    • Approach and Timeline: Describe the plan for carrying out the proposed activities, including research design, work plan, and methodological approach.  Describe the timeline projected for completing this work.  If funding is requested for more than one year, provide a rationale and justification for the request.
    • Innovation/Novelty: Outline the ways in which this project’s proposed work is new/innovative in its approach, methods, or techniques in comparison to previous work in the field.
    • Feasibility and Resources: Explain the feasibility of the work proposed, describing the availability of necessary resources and other factors that may impact the completion of the project.
    • Investigators/Collaborators: Describe how the PI and/or collaborators are well-suited to carry out the proposed project. For Multi-PI proposals, indicate how the project brings together individuals from different disciplines and how the collaboration will advance the proposed project. For single PI proposals, indicate how the proposed work enhances and/or advances the PI’s scholarship or creative products.
    • Impact and Outcomes: Indicate the value or impact of the proposed project, once complete? How does the project reflect institutional, state, national, and/or global priorities? In what ways will the results of this work be transformative within its discipline and beyond? What broader societal benefits does it promise? What is your plan / mechanism for assessing the project’s success and evaluating outcomes? For Multi-PI, interdisciplinary proposals, indicate the external funding opportunity that will be targeted as a result of the REP.
    • Resubmissions: If the proposal is a resubmission from a previous internal or external grant competition, Summarize the feedback received and provide responses to reviewers’ comments. Indicate how and where the reviewers’ comments were addressed. Full text of reviewer comments must be included as an appendix if the project has been previously submitted to external sponsors.

    Proposed Budget (excel upload):

    List and justify each budget item. You should use the Budget Template provided (see budget prep information below) to list the items and their respective costs. Please provide a justification for each budget item in the appropriate column in the spreadsheet. If additional space is needed, you may include a budget justification document as an appendix.

    Biosketches/CVs (PDF upload, single document):

    Please include biosketches/CVs (formatted as appropriate for your field) for all PIs/Co-PIs.  Include your most recent publications or those most relevant to the work proposed.  Also include current/pending support from external sponsors and UConn sources (including start-up funding). This may be appended to the end of the CV/biosketch or integrated within it, if your discipline’s format already provides space for current/pending.

    Appendices (PDF upload, single document):

    Past reviewer comments and extra budget justifications may be included as appendices. Additional information may be included when it is truly essential for adequate peer review of the proposal.

    Budget Preparation

    Instructions:

    1. Download and save budget template to your computer.
    2. In the first cell, fill in the budget number and year
      • Budget Year 1 – FY XX
    3. Note that all fields with green backgrounds are editable. Fields with white backgrounds are locked.
    4. Categories with a blue background are for personnel costs related to the Storrs/Regional campuses. Categories with a peach background are for personnel costs related to UConn Health. Appropriate fringe rates for each campus will apply.
    5. The spreadsheet is constructed to automatically compute some values based on your inputs. Dropdown boxes will allow you to select graduate students of different levels and will fill in the correct stipend. You will also be able to specify the percentage of each team member's time that will be charged to the project. Fringe rates will automatically calculate for most salary types.
    6. For each budget line that you enter, please enter a justification in column G. Be as specific as possible, listing each travel site, pieces of equipment, services, etc. Justification for each budget item should answer the question: “Why is this specific person/item necessary for the proposed project?” See categories of support for allowable and unallowable costs.
    7. Subtotals for categories and the total for the year will calculate automatically
    8. If you are requesting a multi-year budget (a rare exception that requires justification), fill out the template again for the additional year(s), making appropriate changes to the first cell and the filename so each year will be properly labeled.

    Detailed guidelines for each budget category:

    1. Personnel Salaries and Wages: List all personnel, including the names and roles that will be devoted to the project.
      • Senior Personnel. REP funds cannot be used for salary. Indicate in justification whether PIs have departmental research time available or address how time commitment required by the project will be handled. Specific effort commitments not required.
      • Graduate Research Assistants-Academic Year. If required for the project, you may request funds for a graduate research assistantship. Please please use the dropdown menu to indicate to select the grad student's base salary. In the next column, record the student’s effort percentage on this project.
      • Graduate Research Assistants-Summer. You may request up to $2000 per student per annum.
      • Postdocs. Postdoc stipends should follow the NIH NRSA stipend levels. You may enter the base salary of each postdoc and record the postdoc’s effort percentage on this project.
      • Student Labor. Undergraduate student labor is paid on an hourly basis, plus fringe benefits. Please refer to the student employment website for levels of experience and compensation. Please enter the total amount you are budgeting for all undergraduate student labor costs
      • Summer Fellowships. Storrs/regional campus faculty members on nine-month appointments may receive salary during the summer months. A maximum of $3,000 per annum (plus fringe) may be requested for single PI proposals and $5,000 (plus fringe) for Multi-PI proposals. The request for summer funds must be carefully justified. For more information, contact the OVPR.
      • Course Buy Outs. Course buyout may be requested for Storrs/regional campus faculty, but the PI must explain why release time is vital to the project. Faculty requesting funds for course buy-outs must include a statement of support from the department head. For more information, contact the OVPR.
    2. Fringe Benefits:The fringe benefit rate should reflect the current rate schedule for the employment category being proposed. Please refer to the SPS fringe rate tables. Fringe rates will automatically compute on the template for all salary lines except for other 1 and 2.
    3. Other Direct Costs
      • Equipment: Equipment is defined as tangible, non-expendable, personal property having an anticipated life of one year or more with a unit acquisition cost of $5,000 or greater. Equipment includes, but is not limited to, furnishings, scientific apparatus, machinery, library volumes, artwork, motor vehicles, boats and livestock. You will need to identify the individual pieces of equipment requested, the importance to the project, and why existing equipment does not suffice. Please include price quotation(s) from the vendor. Although matching funds are not required, such matches are strongly recommended when the cost of the equipment exceeds $5,000. Valid documentation of any match must be included.
      • Travel (Transportation and Per Diem): Include any travel that is necessary to conduct the research (in support of specific project aims), not travel to present the results of research or travel to explore future funding opportunities. Travel costs are classified as those expenses for transportation, lodging, subsistence, and related items incurred by employees who are traveling on official University business. All travel costs included in REP budgets must be well-justified in relation to project goals. All University travel procedures and processes must be followed.
      • Materials & Supplies. Materials & Supplies are any consumable not falling into the category of equipment, as defined above. These costs should be project-specific, reasonable and based on actual or historical use. It is not necessary to break down each individual item, but a general description and amount by general classification should be provided (e.g. glassware, test tubes, or chemicals).
      • Participant Support Costs. Indicate incentives, travel, and other subsistence costs necessary for the project.
      • Animals/Animal Care. Animal costs should reflect the type of animal, the number of animals and the unit cost per animal. Per Diem costs should list the number of days of Per Diem.
      • Contractual Services. Explain and justify all fees and charges for specialized services, such as library access fees, laboratory analysis fees, consultant fees, subject fees, etc.
    4. Unallowable Costs:The following items cannot be requested: clerical or administrative personnel salaries, including personnel whose primary purpose is to explore funding sources and/or prepare grant applications; service/maintenance contracts on equipment; laboratory renovations, or other infrastructure renovations; institutional memberships in professional organizations; travel to professional meetings to present the results of the research; travel to explore extramural funding opportunities; costs associated with the publication of results of the research, including page charges, purchase of reprints, or journal costs.