Proposal submission: Required or Recommend Changes

If components of the application need revision, ORA or ORS will provide review comments to the investigator and/or grants administrator, and will communicate this information as either Required Changes or Recommended Changes and return the record to the Business Unit for changes. 

Required Changes 

Required Changes are revisions that must take place prior to submission to the sponsor. Submission of an application may be withheld if ORA or ORS receives the application 5 business days or less from the submission deadline, or if certain fundamental elements are incorrect: 

  1. FOA instructions or Duke/Sponsor policy not met 

  2. Major issues with Budget or Budget Justification 

  3. Irreconcilable Conflicts of Interest or Commitment 

  4. Work that Cannot Be Carried Out by Duke 

  5. Issues of Budgetary, Commitment or Scientific Overlap 

 

Recommended Changes 

Recommended Changes are revisions that are suggested by ORA or ORS based on lessons learned from reviewer feedback of previous submissions that, if not addressed, may impact the success of submission, the risk of sponsor rejection, the funding success of the application, or may seriously delay the processing of a resulting award.  We highly recommend these changes be made, along with any Required Changes. 

Examples of Recommended Changes: 

  • Strengthening travel justification by including names, conference, and other travel details. 

  • Project roles be consistent with sponsor guidelines. E.g. using research associate instead of graduate student 

  • Facilities document should be concise  

The investigator is responsible for all changes to an application. The investigator or their delegate is encouraged to contact ORA or ORS about review comments if clarification is needed. 

In all cases, ORA and ORS reserve the right to require changes not listed above based on the specific review, the sponsor requirements, and changes to institutional policy.