September 18, 2002

From: Beth Burnside, Vice Chancellor for Research
To: UC Berkeley Deans, Chairs, Directors, and Principal Investigators
Re: A Request for Your Cooperation in Meeting Proposal Submission Deadlines

University of California policy requires that all faculty or other academic employees who receive any part of their salary through the University, or whose activities use any University resources or facilities, must submit their proposals through the Sponsored Projects Office (SPO). SPO is responsible for conducting a review to ensure that all proposals are consistent with university policy and thus can be accepted if awarded.

The Sponsored Projects Office requests that proposals be delivered to that office at least 10 working days prior to an agency deadline. However, the reality is that more and more proposals appear at SPO the day they are due at the agency. This does not allow enough time to review proposals for compliance with agency guidelines and University and campus policies. Even more problematic, such a short turnaround does not allow principal investigators enough time to make critical changes, obtain necessary letters of support, and/or obtain official approvals for matching funds etc.

With the advent of electronic proposal submission and the increased regulatory burden following upon the tragedy of September 11, the work of the staff in the Sponsored Projects Office has become increasingly more complex, time-consuming, and crucial in assuring that research can be done in an open and free environment. In order to certify that promises made in proposals can be honored, the Sponsored Projects Office needs sufficient time to do an adequate review. Therefore, I am asking that all proposals be in the Sponsored Projects Office at least two (2) full working days prior to the date it is due at the agency. Proposals received after this time will risk not being forwarded to the agency due to lack of time or risk being withdrawn from competition if University and campus policies are not met.

The Sponsored Projects Office has published a Quick Guide on Proposal Review and Submission available on the web at http://www.spo.berkeley.edu/guide/submitquick.html. This guide calls attention to some of the particular issues that may cause problems when proposals are being submitted at the last minute. It also alerts you to the concerns that SPO must consider prior to the release of a proposal from the Berkeley campus, so you can be as prepared as possible to facilitate submission.

If you have any questions regarding this request please contact Joyce Freedman, Director of the Sponsored Projects Office or me.