91��Ԫ

How to Apply

These are instructions for past grant cycles. New guidelines will be posted when the UGP becomes available again.��

Table of Contents

• Important Dates
• Applicant Eligibility
• Submission Process
• Proposal Components
• Review Process & Selection Criteria

Past Grant Cycle Dates

UGP proposals were due February 25, 2025.

Project Start Date Range for 2025 awards: May 1 - June 30, 2025

Project End Date Range for 2025 awards: April 30 - June 29, 2026

Note that the review committee will consider start and end dates outside of these ranges if necessary to complete the proposed work. The applicant must provide a clear justification if their proposed start and end dates fall outside of these ranges.��

Applicant Eligibility

Applicant eligibility requirements may change and will be posted prior to the next UGP grant cycle.

Submission Process

This section and links will be updated when the UGP is available again.��

Proposals must be submitted via UM's Grants Management System (Cayuse).

1. Applicants should work with their Departmental Research Administrator (DRA) to create a proposal record in Cayuse following the guidance in the UGP and in OSP’s Business Processes document.
2. Provide a project title in this format: “[PILast]: UM; UGP [ShortTitle]”. This is required. The common naming convention is what allows us to identify your proposal as a UGP submission. Without it, your proposal may not be properly identified or reviewed. NOTE: The ShortTitle should be approximately 35 characters; a longer title can be entered in the Cayuse record.
3. Note "91��Ԫ" as the sponsor.
4. Choose a project start date that falls between May 1 and June 30, 2025. Choose a project end date that falls within the range of April 30 to June 29, 2026.��See note above under "Important Dates" if your proposed dates fall outside of this range.
5. Attach the proposal components to the Cayuse proposal record. Use the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) naming conventions for all attachments. Refer to the GMS (Cayuse) Resources for guidance and work with your OSP pre-award specialist as needed.
6. Once the proposal record is complete with all required files attached, assign a Task to your OSP pre-award specialist by 11:59 pm (MT) on the deadline date. Late proposals will not be accepted.
   1. To assign a Task, navigate to the Task tab in your proposal record and click the “+ New Task” button
   2. In the “Assign To” field, enter your pre-award specialist’s name
   3. Enter the deadline date in the “Due” field
   4. In the “Task” field, enter “UGP 2025: ProposalType” (ProposalType will be Small, Seed, Career, or GRP)

Proposal Components

This section and links will be updated when the UGP is available again.��

Attach the following components to the Cayuse proposal record. For all attachments, use a font size of 11 point and margins no smaller than 1”. Documents can be single spaced.

1. UGP Cover Page. Use the . (example only) 
2. Scope of Work. Limited to five pages, excluding bibliography. Avoid technical jargon and make certain the terminology and concepts are understandable to those who work outside the applicant's specialty field. Address each of the following sections in your proposal. Refer to the review criteria in the Review Process & Criteria section below for full detail on each of these sections.
   1. Significance and Potential Impact
   2. Project Plan and Approach
   3. Evaluation/Outcomes (Measures of Success)
   4. Applicant Capacity for Project Success
   5. Future Plans
   6. International Strategy (Only required for GRP proposals.)
   7. Bibliography (excluded from page limit)
3. Proposal Budget. Work with your DRA to prepare a line item budget for the project (UM Cost Estimation Tool/budget excel template).
   1. Allowable Costs:
      1. materials and supplies
      2. travel (includes per diem and lodging)
      3. student support (directly benefiting the proposed project)
      4. human subject payment
      5. salary (Research assistant salary is an acceptable request. To be considered for funding, faculty salary must have a compelling justification.)
      6. other costs justified by the nature of the project
   2. Unallowable Costs:
      1. dissertation research support
      2. F&A recovery (In the Cayuse proposal record, indicate that the proposal does not use UM’s current F&A rate. For the F&A Rate type, select “Documented Sponsor Policy.” See p 12 of business processes.)
4. Budget Narrative/Justification. Limited to one page. Include a brief description of each line item included in the budget. Explain the purpose of each line item and how you arrived at the dollar total for each.
5. Report on Past UGP Support. Applicants must indicate all years they have received UGP support in the past and include the most recent final report.
6. Justification for Career Enhancement application from senior faculty. Only required for senior faculty (Associate or Full Professors) applying for a Career Enhancement Grant. Limited to one page. Describe how the proposed work deviates significantly from your prior work. We will only consider applications where the work is truly distinct from prior research and scholarship. We will not consider applications that merely represent a minor shift in focus or priorities.
7. Chair Letter. Only required for junior faculty. Include a letter from your Chair or a senior colleague demonstrating their support for your proposal.
8. Letters of Collaboration.��Optional for all, encouraged for GRP proposals. Applicants may include letters from collaborators indicating their commitment to the project.

Review Process & Selection Criteria

Proposals for all UGP grants will be evaluated by ad hoc reviewers who will be appointed by the University Research and Creativity Committee (URCC), as well as by the URCC committee members.��The URCC will make funding recommendations to the Vice President for Research and Creative Scholarship. It is anticipated that applicants will be advised of final funding decisions in April 2025. For general questions about proposal review contact 2025 URCC Chair Fernando Sánchez (Fernando.Sanchez@mso.umt.edu).

The committee will use the following review criteria to assess proposals.

1. Significance and Potential Impact. The significance and potential impact of the project for the relevant field is clearly demonstrated. The URCC will consider:
   1. The potential contribution of the proposed project to increased knowledge or understanding within the relevant field.
   2. The likelihood that the proposed project will result in improvements to teaching, practice, or research.
2. Project Plan and Approach. The soundness of the project plan, approach, and, if applicable, research methodology is thoroughly addressed. Additionally, the extent to which the application includes a workplan that describes the project timeline, milestones, and the proposed strategy for implementing and managing the project.��For research projects only, the URCC will also assess:
   1. Plans to address weaknesses in the rigor of prior research that serves as the key support for the proposed project
   2. The extent to which the project is innovative
   3. Strategies to ensure a robust and unbiased approach, as appropriate for the work proposed
   4. Feasibility and risk management
   5. If using human subjects, the protection of human subjects from research risks.
   6. If using human subjects, inclusion or exclusion of individuals of all ages (including children and older adults), justified in terms of the scientific goals and research strategy proposed
   7. Plans for the proper, humane care and use of animals in compliance with UM's Animal Use Protocol
   8. Potential for inclusion of students and/or trainees.
   9. Plans for future papers, exhibits, performances, presentation, or other similar research and creative outputs.
   10. Whether the applicant has submitted a proposal to an external sponsor for this project that was not funded, and the likelihood that a UGP grant would support the resubmission of a stronger proposal. Examples include gathering additional preliminary data, adding a collaborator with specific expertise, or piloting a project to assess feasibility.

3. Evaluation/Outcomes (Measures of Success). The plans to evaluate project results, including deliverables (presentations, performances, publications, etc.), key dependent measures/outcomes, and reach to the community or relevant field, are appropriate, feasible, and clearly described.
4. Applicant Capacity for Project Success. The URCC will consider:
   1. Whether qualifications, expertise, and relevant accomplishments of the PI demonstrates capacity to carry out the activities for which support is requested. May include a description of relevant publications, performances, exhibitions, etc.
   2. The extent to which the bibliography demonstrates the applicant’s familiarity with the literature related to the proposal.
   3. How closely the proposal adheres to the posted UGP instructions and addresses the review criteria.
   4. For prior UGP awardees, whether the previous award had the intended results and whether the applicant submitted all required reports.
5. Future Plans. The URCC will consider
   1. For all applicants, plans for future papers, exhibits, performances, presentations, or other similar outputs.
   2. For research-focused Small Grants, all Seed Grants, and all GRP Grants, the proposal includes a timeline, interim milestones, and plans for developing and submitting a subsequent extramural grant application
6. International Strategy. Only required for GRP proposals. The project activities take place outside the US and the proposal narrative describes:
   1. The extent to which the PI will collaborate with international institutions, with particular emphasis on UM’s existing Global Partner Institutions
   2. How the proposed activity promotes UM’s international research and creative scholarship activities
7. Budget. The proposed budget is reasonable in relation to the objectives, the complexity of the proposed activities, and the anticipated results.