The College of Engineering (COE) has a highly productive research enterprise based on
proposals, new awards, and research expenditures.

Roles and Responsibilities.

• The primary role of the COE’s Office of Research Administration (ORA) is to ensure that proposals are compliant with university, federal, state, college, and sponsor policies.
• Research administrators in ORA are professionals who seek to provide faculty with a consistent level of service, including timely responses to proposals submitted in accordance with the COE’s pre-award timeline.
• NC State’s Office of Sponsored Programs and Regulatory Compliance Services (SPARCS) assists with proposals that require terms, conditions, and special negotiations, as well as submissions in some cases.
• Departments are responsible for submitting accurate, timely proposals to meet deadlines.

The COE aligns its standards with those set by the university, and we especially require a good budget estimate, a clear budget justification, and timely, accurate proposal submissions.

8 Full Business Day / 2 Full Business Day Standard Pre-Award Timeline Policy (“8/2 Policy”)

• Eight (8) full business days prior to the sponsor due date:

The PI or department administrator should initiate the PINS (or PD) record eight (8) days before the sponsor’s deadline. Once the record is initiated, the PINS (or PD) record is added to the college workflow by assigning it to a college consultant. Remember that the pre-award team is deadline-driven; therefore, PINS assignments are based on the college consultant’s workload.

The minimum proposal record in PINS (or PD) must be released to COE ORA for review. Notwithstanding the sponsor’s guidance, PINS (or PD) must contain:

• RFP/FOA/NOFO (and/or sponsor communication, if/when applicable);
• Budget Breakdown (mirroring WRS with account codes)* — free of errors;
• Budget narrative justification* — free of errors;
  • *Required by CRO and SPARCS, even when the sponsor does not require it. Exception: Letter of Intent (LOI)/Pre-proposal
• Cost share documentation (if applicable);
• Documentation for F&A when it deviates from the federally negotiated rates (if applicable):
  • Familiar sources for lower F&A documentation:
    • Solicitation
    • Sponsor website, including FAQs
    • An official letter on letterhead from someone with proper authority with the sponsor, i.e. president, CEO
    • NC State’s Pre-approved Justification Codes
    • Indirect Cost Waiver Guidance
• Any representation or certification forms and other administrative documents that require college or university signatures or input;
• Subaward documents (if applicable); and
• ORI Limited Submission endorsement and/or sponsor’s invitation to submit a full proposal (if applicable)

Some benefits to initiating a complete PINS (or PD) eight (8) days before the deadline include:

• Allowing the college to identify and prepare for heavy submission deadlines.
• It provides time for the college research office to address any PI- or department-specific complex or unique questions
• Respond appropriately to the sponsor’s potentially problematic terms and conditions, and
• Review the provided information and offer feedback (or a “preliminary review”).
• It allows time for the PI and department to make necessary revisions and for the college to engage other offices when required.

Two (2) full business days prior to the sponsor due date:

• The COE ORA must receive the final proposal with permission for the college/university’s Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) to sign and/or submit; and
• PINS (or PD) record is at the college level.
• Proposals will be submitted when the university is open and during the COE ORA business hours: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm ET.

When the college receives the final proposal with the appropriate permission to submit it, it allows sufficient time for both the college consultants and the AOR to complete their final review. Often, they must offer recommendations based on their final reviews. Therefore, submitting a proposal two (2) full business days before the sponsor’s due date will give the PI and department time to make any final revisions, including addressing any unexpected errors that arise during or after submission. Submitting early also helps mitigate potential sluggishness in sponsor or university systems that may occur at the deadline.

Rush Proposal Policy:

• Any proposal that does not adhere to the standard pre-award timeline policy is a “rush proposal”.
• Rush proposals require a pre-approved exception.
• Exceptions will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
• COE ORA will have delegated authority to approve rush requests when there are compelling reasons for automatic exceptions (e.g., short window between proposal announcement and submission deadline – please see below). Otherwise, approval will be required from the PI’s Department Head (DH) or Center Director (CD), and the Associate Dean for Research and Infrastructure (ADRI).
• Requests for rush approval should be submitted as soon as the rush situation has been identified.
• COE ORA will provide an online form to request a “rush proposal” exception, which will route to the PI’s department head or center director and the ADRI.

The following applies to all rush proposals:

• The department or center/PI is fully responsible for any problems (submission errors) or financial & administrative issues that may result from not following the 8/2 Policy.
• Proposals that do not follow the 8/2 Policy will not receive a thorough review; therefore, the college cannot guarantee a successful or proper submission.
• PINS (PD) records/proposals that do not follow the 8/2 Policy will not be moved ahead of those that follow the policy.
• Proposals will be submitted when the university is open and during ORA business hours: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm ET.

Process for Rush Requests:

Effective June 1, 2026, the COE Office of Research Administration (COE ORA) will require the use of the Rush Intake Form. The rush request intake form should be completed immediately for a proposal that meets the college’s rush policy, meaning either when a PINS (or PD) record is initiated less than eight (8) full business days or when the final proposal is released with permission to submit or requesting an Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) signature with less than two (2) full business days.

The PI must initiate and complete the Rush Request.

List of Automatic Exceptions to the Rush Policy Delegated by the ADRI to COE ORA

If the rush request meets the criteria for an automatic exception, COE ORA will approve it under delegated authority. Otherwise, rush requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis by the PI’s department head or center director (DH/CD) and the ADRI.

Automatic Exceptions are available for a short time-window between the documented first publication or notice of an opportunity and the proposal deadline, such as:

• ​An RFP/RFA/FOA/NOFO that is issued less than 10 full business days prior to the proposal deadline;
• ​An invitation to join a team as a sub-awardee; or
• ​An invitation from a program manager with end-of-year funding available.

Suitable documentation must be provided, such as an email inviting proposal submission.

Case-by-Case Rush Requests

Requests that are inconsistent with the letter and spirit of the automatic exceptions will be elevated to the PI’s department head or center director and to the ADRI on a case- by-case basis. These requests must be approved by both the DH/CD and the ADRI.

The PI should recognize that the DH/CD and the ADRI may not be immediately available when this form is submitted and should allow a reasonable amount of time for them to receive and respond to the form.

For case-by-case requests, the PI is asked to provide a “Brief explanation of the rush request.” This explanation should briefly identify:

• The factors beyond the PI’s control that led to the rush;l and
• What can be done in the future to prevent the rush?

If approved, the conditions of approval will typically include the following:

• The PI and dept accept risks associated with the lack of ability of COE and SPARCS to conduct a full review;
• The PI understands that timely proposal submission is not guaranteed in a rush situation and that research administrators have regular business hours that end at 5:00 pm ET;
• The PI and dept should be prepared to respond promptly to any queries from COE or SPARCS.
• Approval of a particular rush request does not imply or guarantee approval of similar requests in the future; and
• Additional conditions that are pertinent to the specific request.

If you have questions about the pre-award process, please contact Pat Hayes, Director of the Office of Research Administration, at phayes@ncsu.edu, or Laurinda Perez, Assistant Director of the Office of Research Administration, at preaward-coe@ncsu.edu.

If you have questions or concerns about this policy, please feel free to contact H. Christopher Frey, Associate Dean for Research and Infrastructure (ADRI) at frey@ncsu.edu.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Sometimes, the college office (not the PI or Department) must engage the SPARCS office. The purpose may include reviewing the sponsor’s terms and conditions and requesting signed forms for which the college lacks delegation. In these instances, SPARCS has a Prompt Policy allowing them time to review and respond appropriately.

Lead time for SPARCS review:

A request to review the terms and conditions will be forwarded to SPS@ncsu.edu as soon as the college recognizes the need or completes PINS (or PD), whichever occurs first, and no later than two (2) business days before the deadline.

Request to sign any sponsor documents. SPARCS must receive a completed PINS (or PD) within one (1) business day (24 hours).

If signatures are requested by the deadline, SPARCS must receive a completed PINS (or PD) and be notified by email (sps@ncsu.edu) by the college AOR, who will include the Director of Sponsored Research and the Associate Dean for Research (ADR). The College of Engineering will include the College Director of Research Administration, Principal Investigator (PI), the Department Head, and the department research administrator.

These types of requests should occur rarely. Please understand that SPARCS cannot guarantee it can meet the PI’s proposal submission turnaround requirement, so it would be advisable for the PI or department to request a time extension from the sponsor.

For other campus offices, such as Environmental Health & Public Safety (EHPS) or the Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO), SPARCS requires ‘additional’ lead time. The College of Research Administration follows the above SPARCS policy for terms and conditions. Therefore, the college will engage other campus offices as soon as the need is recognized, but no earlier than two (2) full business days.

When PINS (or PD) includes agreements (not under FDP) that require SPARCS review and signature, keep in mind that they are not eligible for rush processing. Therefore, the PI or department will need to request a time extension from the sponsor.

SPARCS Timely Proposal Submission Policy

SPARCS RUSH Agreement Processing Policy