Grant Support Reference Guide

Grant Support provided by the BRBC Grant Specialist

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Pre-award for both Internal and External Competitions

  • Assistance with budget preparation and review to meet sponsor and departmental/college guidelines
  • Assistance with completion of the NuRamp (the University’s internal system) including the routing of the appropriate documents and notification to OSP for their second/final review
  • Collection and review of ancillary documents (when the Office of Proposal Development is not involved)
  • Primary contact for communication with subawards, if applicable, and the collection of the required subaward documents (when the Office of Proposal Development is not involved)
  • When appropriate, assistance with completion of application within the sponsor’s site and coordination with OSP on final submission

BRBC asks that they be notified as soon as it is known that you will be submitting a proposal.  If they are not notified at least 3 weeks prior to submission deadline there may be a possibility that they will not be able to assist. This time frame will allow for the ability to plan accordingly and allow for a more thorough review of all material by both the Grant Specialist and OSP (when applicable).  Sponsored Programs/The University requires their review of budgetary information prior to submission to any external sponsor. 

Post-award

  • Periodic review of grant expenses and personnel allocations to ensure budget/project is on track
  • Personnel allocations to the project when requested
  • Assist with no-cost extensions or budget reallocations when needed
  • Communications with the PI when projects are within 90-60-30 days prior to its expiration to ensure posting of final expenses and proper close-out of the award 
  • Grant Specialist will work with the PI and OSP to have the project closed out 30-days post expiration to allow OSP time for closing and reporting per Sponsor requirements. Some sponsors may require a quicker turnaround.

The Office of Proposal Development 

Their Office’s mission is to increase UNL faculty and staff success in securing funding. While the BRBC Grant Specialist focuses on budget needs and routing, Proposal Development focuses more so on the narrative and provides more thorough review of additional documents required for submission. They should be contacted as early as possible to provide as much support and guidance as possible. Proposal Development is also a resource to find/connect with areas of interest for funding. View the The Office of Proposal Development website. 

Office of Sponsored Programs

OSP is the final reviewers of proposals prior to submission. They have extensive in-depth knowledge of Sponsor guidelines and requirements. Proposals for external funding must be approved by their office PRIOR to submitting. OSP is the Signature Authority on proposals, and nothing should be submitted to Sponsors without the approval of the University. OSP also works on award negotiations and award setup. OSP contacts will work closely with Grant Specialist on management and closing of grants. 

PI Responsibilities:

Pre-award:

  • PI’s are responsible for working with applicable project key personnel to complete the required proposal documents. Proposal Development is a resource for assistance with these documents. 
  • Notify the BRBC Pre-award Grant Specialist as soon as possible, at least three weeks is required, prior to the sponsor’s deadline. Grant Specialist will assist with budget documents, NuRamp routing, and application completion when applicable. 
  • OSP requests two weeks prior to submission deadline for routing of budget information in NuRamp in order to allow for thorough review and adequate management of workload. 
  • Have any external request for funds approved by OSP prior to submitting to the sponsor. You should not be submitting to the sponsor and hoping to seek approval after-the-fact.


During Award Period:

  • Ensure all responsible parties are aware of award. i.e., College’s Dean’s Office and BRBC Post-award Grant Specialist. This is more of an issue with Internal Awards only communicated to the PI. 
  • Inform BRBC when you have personnel working on the grant that should be paid from the grant, and attest to PVS statements on this salary, or any salary match. 
  • Apply all applicable charges directly to the grant cost object. Moving expenses around is a red flag for auditors.
  • Spend according to the proposed budget. Funds should be spent throughout the award period. Keep on track with the spending and avoid end of the grant purchases. Large amounts of spending in the last few months of a grant is an audit issue. 
  • REVIEW YOUR SAP INDEX REPORTS to ensure accuracy of expenses posting and personnel being paid. Communicate with your grant specialist if you see any expense that has posted incorrectly. 
  • Communicate with your co-PI’s and Leads on Sub-awards to verify project is on track and they are spending accordingly. 
  • Provide progress reports to the sponsor per the sponsor’s guidelines.  


Grant Closing:

  • Work with your grant specialist to reallocate personnel paid on the grant. 
  • Work with your grant specialist to verify all expenses have posted so that the WBS can be locked for final invoicing. OSP’s expectation is to have all grants locked to be closed-out within 30 days of its expiration date.
  • Provide reporting to the sponsor per the sponsor’s guidelines.  

Grant Resources and Training Sites