Electronic Research Administration (ERA)

Many external sponsors (government and private) are converting to computer-based systems for funding notification, grant submission, and administration of awards. This process is called Electronic Research Administration (ERA).  Campus-wide ERA systems are administered centrally by the Office of the Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer.

Electronic Grant Submissions:

A growing number of government agencies and private organizations have developed online electronic grant submission programs in addition to or as a replacement for traditional hard copy grant submission. Following is a matrix of various electronic grant submission services used at Oklahoma State University with links to more detailed information and help documentation regarding their specific systems. If you are interested in submitting a proposal using one of the below programs, please contact Cindy Schaefer for instructions on how to proceed.**

**PLEASE NOTE: In accordance with OSU policy, all proposals must be submitted through college research offices, following proper routing procedures before electronic submission.

National Science Foundation NSF Fastlane - NSF FastLane is an interactive web-based system created by NSF to conduct all aspects of electronic business pertaining to research. Individuals sign on to the system and send/receive their transactions directly to/from NSF. These transactions represent a wide range of activities including Award Search, Proposal Preparation, Proposal Review, Status Reports, Project Reporting, and Post Award Notifications and Requests. In compliance with the President's Management Agenda, in Fiscal Year 2006, NSF has identified 98 specific programs that will either authorize, or require, use of Grants.gov (see below) to prepare and submit proposals to NSF.

• FastLane - Click here to read more information about Fastlane or to request a Fastlane user name and password.

Grants.gov - The charter of Grants.gov, one of 24 President's Management Agenda E-Government initiatives, is to provide a simple, unified electronic storefront for interactions between grant applicants and the Federal agencies that manage grant funds. There are 26 Federal grant-making agencies and over 900 individual grant programs that award over $350 billion in grants each year. Grants.gov provides:

• A single source for finding grant opportunities.
• A standardized manner of locating and learning more about funding opportunities.
• A single, secure and reliable source for applying for Federal grants online.
• A simplified grant application process with reduction of paperwork.
• A unified interface for all agencies to announce their grant opportunities, and for all grant applicants to find and apply for those opportunities.

Grants.gov Resources:

• Getting Started with Grants.gov
• Steps to Sign Up with Grants.gov

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) NSPIRES - NSPIRES is the NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System. This web-based system supports the entire lifecycle of NASA research solicitation and awards, from the release of solicitation announcements through the peer review and selection process, to awards management and publication of research results The system is intended to facilitate conducting of research business with NASA for the science and technology research community. NASA's new system, NSPIRES, is a complete redesign of SYS-EYFUS, and includes many enhancements. Beginning on February 18, 2005, NASA is requiring use of the NSPIRES system for the upload of select proposal documents. Additionally, Grants.gov (see above) can be used to prepare and submit proposals in response to most NASA Research Announcement (NRA) and Cooperative Agreement Notice (CAN) programs. Proposal submission for NASA Announcement of Opportunity (AO) programs must be submitted through the NSPIRES system and are not available for submission via Grants.gov.

Research administrators who wish to register with NSPIRES for grants management privileges should go to the following URL: http://nspires.nasaprs.com/external/.  Simply click "Getting an Account" in the menu on the lefthand side of the screen and you will be taken through the registration process. After your electronic registration is submitted, permissions will be granted within the system by OSU's Electronic Point of Contact (EPOC), Cindy Schaefer.

All NSPIRES proposal submission must be done using the VPRTT administrative user name and password within the NSPIRES system. Upon completion of your proposal packet, contact Cindy Schaefer for the administrative user name and password.

NSPIRES-Grants.gov Help Page

National Institutes of Health (NIH) eRA Commons - eRA Commons is the NIH electronic research administration system that allows applicants/grantees to electronically receive and transmit application and award information. NIH is currently in the process of transitioning to exclusive use of Grants.gov (see above) for electronic submission of NIH proposals. A timeline concerning the transition to exclusive use of Grants.gov is available online. NOTE: PIs must be registered in eRA Commons before electronic submission of grant applications through Grants.gov.

To register with eRA Commons (necessary for both PIs and research administrators), contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

• NIH Electronic Submissions Help Site
• Electronic Submission FAQs
• NIH Submission Via Grants.gov (help document developed by the A&S Research Office)

Department of Education (DOE) e-GRANTS - The U. S. Department of Education (ED) is transitioning to Grants.gov, a Web site that allows organizations and individuals to find and apply for grants electronically from all Federal grant-making agencies and is encouraging all applicants to register with Grants.gov now at http://www.grants.gov. In addition, the Department has changed its policy and procedural requirements for permitting applicants under certain circumstances to submit paper applications for those competitions that otherwise require the electronic submission of applications through Grants.gov or e-Application. The application notice for each competition is the final authority for that competition and specifies whether electronic applications are mandatory or voluntary and whether applicants are to submit them through Grants.gov or ED's e-Application system. For additional information on these new policies, please go to http://www.ed.gov/policy/fund/guid/gposbul/esubmitpolicysummary.html.

9 Steps to Prepare an e-GRANTS e-Application

Oklahoma Arts Council - Yearly grant applications must be submitted to the OAC via their E-Grant system. We have an organizational level registration for OSU and the password is changed yearly. Contact Cindy Schaefer ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) for more information on submitting to the OAC.

Department of Energy (DOE) - The Department of Energy, including the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), will implement the Strategic Integrated Procurement Enterprise System (STRIPES) during fiscal years 2008 and 2009. As a result, the Department will begin using FedConnect, which is hosted by Compusearch, as the communications portal for its potential and actual contractor and financial assistance recipient communities (entities) beginning in March 2008. FedConnect will replace the Department's current Industry Interactive Procurement System (IIPS). In order to do business with the Department, all current and potential acquisition and financial assistance awardees must be registered with Compusearch's FedConnect portal.

Notices and solicitations, required by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), will continue to be sent to FedBizOpps (FBO), with additional information available to interested entities on Compusearch's FedConnect portal. Similarly, funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) that must be published on Grants.gov will continue to be transmitted there also, with additional information provided at the FedConnect portal. The FedConnect portal will be used throughout the lifecycle of the Department's acquisition and financial assistance instruments from the presolicitation/planning phase to award close-out.

In order to search for and respond to opportunities in FedConnect, individuals must be registered as Vendor Representatives under Oklahoma State University in the FedConnect system. Potential users should begin the registration process at: https://www.fedconnect.net/FedConnect/PublicUserRegistration.aspx. Individual registrations will be approved centrally through the FedConnect Vendor Administrator account. Passwords can also be re-set through the central Vendor Administrator account. Contact Cindy Schaefer ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) with any questions concerning account registration or having your password re-set.

FedConnect Ready, Set, Go! Help Document

Altum proposalCENTRAL - proposalCENTRAL is a web-based grant management solution for government, non-profit, and private grant-making organizations to simplify their operations by receiving and reviewing grant applications online. From this single website, over ten thousand applicants and reviewers interact electronically with the grant-makers that are members of proposalCENTRAL. ProposalCENTRAL has 20 participating grantmaking organizations, including The American Lung Association, USIDNET, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, the American Cancer Society, the Lance Armstrong Foundation, and others. 140 grant programs are offerred online via proposalCENTRAL.

proposalCENTRAL User Registration - Click here and follow online instructions to register to submit proposals electronically through proposalCENTRAL. No further permissions from an OSU authorizing official will be necessary. As soon as you register, you will be authorized to submit proposals electronically via proposalCENTRAL. (Please note, however, that all proposals should be submitted by OSU college research offices and must be routed in accordance with the OSU routing policy before they can be submitted electronically.)

• How to Register as Proposal Central User
• How to Create an Application Using proposalCENTRAL
• Grantee Instructions to Access Award Information
• Altum Grant Management System FAQs

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) CSREES - CSREES offers three types of funding opportunities: competitive grants, formula-funded grants, and special line-item grants. CSREES' funding opportunities are considered federal financial assistance. Consequently, all CSREES awards are governed by the appropriate federal and agency-specific regulations, such as OMB Circulars and the Code of Federal Regulations.

• CSREES FAQs
• Applying for a Grant
• Grant Management

Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) Bids - The Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Chemical and Biological Directorate (DTRA-CB) performs the role of the Joint Science and Technology Office for Chemical and Biological Defense (JSTO-CBD) to manage the Science and Technology (S&T) portion of the CBDP. The DTRA Bids website accepts electronic proposal submissions for solicitations focused on the S&T needs for chemical and biological defense. Proposals for applied research (6.2) and advanced technology development (6.3) are being sought to identify viable solutions to technology gaps in the Physical Science and Technology area, which includes: Detection; Modeling & Simulation/Battlespace (MSB); Protection; Decontamination; and Threat Agent Science.

• OSU submitters should contact Cindy Schaefer ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) for access to the administrative log-in, which is necessary to download solicitations or submit proposals. Registration is organization level only. PI registration is not required.

Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) BAA Submission - The Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction Basic Research (CWMDBR) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) is a statement from the Defence Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) for the purpose of soliciting proposals from universities, colleges, and other degree granting academic institutions. The objective is to sucessfully support the advancement of fundamental knowledge and understanding of the sciences with an emphasis on exploring new and innovative research for combating or countering WMD. This site serves as the submission site for CWMDBR BAA.

• OSU submitters should contact Cindy Schaefer ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) for access to the administrative log-in, which is necessary to submit proposals. Registration is organization level only. PI registration is not required.

Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) eReceipt - eReceipt is the electronic proposal submissions system for the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs--a part of the Department of Defense.

• College research staff must register as "Contract Representatives" in the eReceipt system in order to submit proposals. Register with eReceipt at: https://cdmrp.org/Register/. Contact Cindy Schaefer ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) for copies of the Certifications and Representations documents necessary for Contract Representative account set-up.
• PIs must also register int he CDMRP eReceipt system as "Applicants." PIs can register with eReceipt at: https://cdmrp.org/Register/.
• CDMRP User Guide
• CDMRP FAQs

DHS Defense Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO) - Various systems are used for the electronic submission of proposals to the Department of Homeland Security Defense Nuclear Detection Office.

• OSU submitters should contact Cindy Schaefer  ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) for access to the administrative log-in, which is necessary to submit proposals through DNDO Solicitation. Registration is at the organization level only. PI registration is not required.