Revisions to UFIRST Records

When a Department/College (Unit) approves a UFIRST record, they are certifying that the record is complete and the resources disclosed, including budget, time/effort, cost share, facilities, equipment, and any other obligations, are appropriate and will be provided to the project. If resources required to complete the project change after the initial proposal was approved, the Unit should approve the change. 

Revisions to Proposals after Internal Routing but Prior to Submission

Proposals should be submit-ready when they are approved by the Unit and arrive to “Core Office Review” state; however, adjustments may need to be made to a proposal after the Unit has approved but prior to Division of Sponsored Programs (DSP) submission to the sponsor. As the final reviewer in the proposal approval process, DSP will work with the Unit to attempt to correct any errors in the UFIRST SmartForms or submission documents, or to make changes to the proposal if needed. These changes may require additional Unit approval. 

Changes likely requiring re-approval:

Certain changes are likely to have significant impact on the Unit approvals already provided and may require re-approval prior to submission to the sponsor. If DSP determines during proposal review that re-approval is needed, DSP will confirm re-approval or clearance is obtained prior to submission.

Examples include but are not limited to:

1. 1. Changes to commitments of facilities and other resources in submission documents; added Unit requirements such as renovation or equipment purchase.
   2. Adding or removing UF key personnel; re-categorization of a UF person between key and non-key.
   3. Changes to the budget:
      1. Adjustments of more than 5% or $10,000 (whichever is less) from the Unit approved TOTAL proposal budget.
      2. Added or increased cost share.
      3. Changes to the level of effort (paid or unpaid) for any UF key person.
      4. Shift between categories that affect the F&A budget (moving from a category that does not incur F&A to one which does incur F&A or vice versa).
      5. Changes to the F&A rate or F&A base (other than incorrect selection of base which does not affect the calculated F&A costs).
   4. Variances between the UFIRST SmartForms and submission documents by more than 5% or $10,000 (whichever is less).

Scope of work changes:

Scope changes (e.g., adding or removing specific aims, adding or removing engagement of human subjects or use of animals, inclusion of global engagement not originally approved on Proposal Smartform Page 3.0) should be explicitly approved by the PI via email or ad hoc approval. 

Other adjustments to the proposal:

Some adjustments are not likely to have significant impact on the Unit approvals already provided and do not require Unit re-approval prior to submission to the sponsor. DSP may assist with making these adjustments in the UFIRST SmartForms if needed. 

Examples include but are not limited to:

1. 1. Title change.
   2. Start/end date discrepancy between the UFIRST SmartForms and submission documents.
   3. Non-UF personnel or third party collaborator missing from the UFIRST SmartForms.
   4. Senior/key personnel role update in the UFIRST SmartForms (e.g. Co-PI to Co-Investigator or Co-Investigator to Co-PI).
   5. Incorrect sponsor or prime sponsor in the UFIRST SmartForms.
   6. Missing or incorrect solicitation number and/or solicitation document in the UFIRST SmartForms.
   7. Minor changes to the budget:
      1. Adjustments to the budget that cause the TOTAL proposal budget to change by less than 5% or $10,000 (whichever is less).
      2. Variances between UFIRST Budget Workspace and submission documents (submission documents must be accurate but no change to UFIRST is necessary as long as no major change identified above has occurred).
      3. Shift between cost categories on the General Costs Page in the UFIRST Budget Workspace that incur the same F&A (e.g. Materials & Supplies, Other, Publications).

UFIRST process:

If the change requires update of significant or numerous fields within the UFIRST SmartForms or Budget Workspace, DSP may use the “Core Office Requests Changes” activity to return the proposal to “Draft” state to facilitate updates and re-approval. Once updates are complete, the Unit must use the “Submit for Review” activity to send the proposal back through the full approval process.

If the change requires re-approval but does not require update of significant fields within the UFIRST SmartForms or Budget Workspace, DSP may use the “Request Ad Hoc Review” activity to facilitate re-approval by the Unit. The highest-level approver who previously approved the proposal should be selected as the ad hoc reviewer.

If input from the Unit is needed before submission to the sponsor but the proposal does not need to be returned to “Draft” state (or DSP chooses not to return to “Draft” to protect the SmartForm data), DSP may use the “Core Office Requests Changes” activity to send the proposal to “Pending Proposal Team Response: Core Office Review” state. This state indicates there is action needed on behalf of the Unit but does not allow the Unit to edit the UFIRST SmartForms or Budget Workspace. When the Unit’s action is complete, the Unit must send the proposal back to DSP by using the “Respond to Core Office Change Request” activity. Approvals are not re-initiated. 

If a proposal is not submit-ready:

If a proposal is not submit-ready when it arrives to “Core Office Review” state, DSP may use the “Core Office Requests Changes” activity to return the proposal to “Draft” state. This activity may be used if the PI or Admin Contact requests the UFIRST proposal be returned for edits, or if the proposal is routed without submission documents attached or without granting DSP access to the proposal in the sponsor’s portal. The proposal must return to “Core Office Review” state through the UFIRST approval process before 9:00 a.m. the business day before the deadline to be considered submit-ready and meet UF’s Proposal Deadline Policy. 

Revisions to Proposals after Submission to the Sponsor, Agreements, and Awards

If resources required to complete the project change after the initial proposal was approved and submitted, the Unit should approve the change, whether it occurs after proposal submission, during agreement negotiation, or over the life of the award. Requests for approval will be triggered from the UFIRST record where the change occurs. 

Scope of Work Changes

The PI should approve scope of work changes, which include adding or removing specific aims; adding or removing engagement of human subjects or use of animals; inclusion of global engagement not originally approved (reference Proposal SmartForm Page 3.0, completed Agreement/Award Compliance Form). 

• In UFIRST Proposal module, click on “Request Ad Hoc Review”, select the PI in Q1.0 “Select Ad Hoc Reviewer”, and enter the details of the request. 
• In UFIRST Agreement and Award modules, trigger the Agreement/Award Compliance Form for re-completion by the PI. 

Other Changes

Approvers have been designated at the College level (xx000000) to approve other changes to UFIRST records. An ad hoc review request should be sent for the following types of changes: 

• Changes to facilities and other resources committed in proposal submission documents; added Unit requirements such as renovation or equipment purchase.
• Adding or removing UF key personnel, re-categorization of UF person between key and non-key; changes (increase or decrease) to the level of effort (paid or unpaid) for any UF key person by 25% or more. 
• Changes to the submitted budget by 15% or more (whether in Year 1 or in the overall budget); added or increased cost share; changes to the F&A rate or the F&A base. 

To send an ad hoc review request in UFIRST, click on “Request Ad Hoc Review”, enter the first two digits of the Submitting Department ID/Responsible Unit AD followed by 000000 as the “Review Unit” in Q1.0, and enter the details of the review request. UFIRST will automatically route the request to the designated Step 1 approvers at the College (xx000000) level. 

Resources:

Proposal Deadline Policy
UFIRST Admins and Approvers Table

Last updated 7/22/24