Proposal Submission: Pre-Proposals and Letters of Intent
There are many federal, municipal, and foundational sponsors that leverage proposals/applications (Pre-Apps) and letters of intent (LOIs) to streamline their application process. These are submitted often month before the application due date to the Program Officer (PO) or Grants Manager (GM) who oversee the funding mechanism and are used by them as screening tools for applications that would best address the specific goals of the funding announcement. Whether or not the Pre-App or LOI is submitted directly to the sponsor or via an Authorized Signing Official, it is imperative that you alert your SOMOGC Grants Administrator of your PI's interest in submitting. This allows for a streamlined full application process should your PI's Pre-App/LOI be accepted and they receive a request to submit a full application.
If the Pre-App or LOI requests a budget (in any form) or institutional approval, it must be submitted with an ePRF. Please use the "Letter of Intent/Pre Proposal" option when initiating ePRF.
Letters of Intent
LOIs are much shorter than a full application and are meant to provide the sponsor with a concise description of your proposed project. This, in turn, allows the sponsor to review an applicant's proposed projects and let them know early if your specific aims are responsive to the funding announcement. This is meant as a time-saving measure for applicants as if will prevent you from potentially wasting time putting together an application to submit for an announcement that that does not fit and will not be funded. Upon favorable review of your LOI, the PI will be contacted by the sponsor staff that they have been selected to submit a full application for the award.
There are major sponsors, such as the NIH, who strongly suggest that applicants submit an LOI but its receipt is neither required nor binding, and it will not affect your score during peer review. Despite this, there are many benefits to either submitting an LOI to these sponsors ore directly contacting the PO/GM:
- Letters of Intent are often used to anticipate the volume incoming applications and identify any unique expertise that needs to be included on a peer review panel.
- Contact a program officer early in your grant application preparation process, about 10 to 12 weeks before applying (6 weeks for prior approval), can help determine whether your proposed idea is responsive to your chosen funding opportunity announcement (FOA)
- The program officer can recommend a different FOA that better suits your idea, if needed
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The PO can alert you to any unique application requirements
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A good resource that explains why LOIs are strongly recommended for NIH applications can be found on the NIAID website.
Pre-Applications
Pre-Apps are very similar to LOIs but are slightly more in depth. There are some sponsors, such as the DoD's Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), who require them prior to an applicant being approved for submission of a full application. These Pre-Apps usually require a more detailed project description and other sections such as a list of proposed key personnel and a generalized proposed budget.
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Proposal Submission: Pre-Proposals and Letters of Intent