Proposal Submission Deadlines

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Last Updated: Jul 29, 2026, 11:29 AM

Staff members in the Office of Sponsored Projects Administration collaborate closely with Principal Investigators to navigate the complexities of securing sponsored research funding. While it is primarily the responsibility of the PI to ascertain that the proposal meets the specific requirements of a given request for proposals (RFP), OSPA staff work hard to ensure proposals meet university, sponsor, state and federal requirements and to transmit complete proposal packages via various sponsor submission portals/mechanisms.

Submitting proposal information according to the timeline described below enables OSPA staff to thoroughly vet applications, check components against solicitation/RFP requirements and confirm the upload of many required files via the appropriate sponsor-required mechanisms. In addition, adherence to the timeline allows for the proper management of any compliance concerns (human subjects research, export controls, etc.).

Note: Our office cannot guarantee submission unless all required documents are received in the office three business days prior to the submission deadline.

Proposal Submission Deadlines

Proposal Overview Steps
Deadline Proposal Document

As soon as possible (at least three weeks prior to sponsor deadline)

10 business days
  • Budget, including cost sharei
  • Budget justification
  • Brief description of work
  • Subaward budget (draft)i
  • Cost share commitment formi,ii

Five business days
  • Approved cost share commitment formi,ii
  • Full subaward packagei
    • Letter of commitment signed by authorized signature authority
    • Finalized budget and budget justification, in the sponsor-required format
    • Statement of work
    • Any other sponsor-required documents
  • Senior personnel documents (biosketch, current and pending support, etc.)
  • Completed budget in sponsor-required format/portal

Three business days
  • Approved proposal checklist
  • FCOI for all SIU personneli
  • Project description (narrative)/Specific aims/Research strategyiii
  • Remaining sponsor-required documents in required format/portal in final format

One business day (8 a.m. the day before sponsor deadline)
  • Finalized, full proposal in sponsor-required format/portal
  • Submission of IRB/IACUC/IBC applications (if applicable)

i If applicable. Includes completion of required trainings. Please refer to Training Resources. 

ii More information on cost share commitments.

iii The project description/specific aims/research strategy are the only proposal components that may be in non-final status three full business days prior to the sponsor deadline. Although this draft may be replaced until 8 a.m. the business day prior to the sponsor deadline, all RFP-mandated narrative components must be in place in order for OSPA staff to begin their review.

OSPA staff strive to vet and submit all proposals for which they receive full application materials. However, even if OSPA staff workload permits submission of full proposal materials received after the three-day deadline, the PI incurs the following risks:

The proposal may not be submitted if OSPA workloads do not allow time for required internal review (i.e. budget rates, required approvals, etc.). Priority is given to applications submitted three full business days prior to the sponsor deadline.

In the event that the sponsor wants to fund a proposal that was submitted to OSPA after the three-day deadline, OSPA reserves the right to review and request changes prior to acceptance of an award or to decline the award if the budget or other commitments contained in the proposal do not conform to SIU requirements. It is the responsibility of the PI to make any necessary changes.