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Submission checklist

Navigating institutional and funder requirements can be confusing and time consuming.

These checklists will help you avoid missing important steps that might delay or prevent you submitting your proposal.

Generic research grants checklist

Pre-submission

  • Have a good idea / find a suitable call (either can come first!).
  • Identify a faculty, theme or RIS staff member as a research support contact point and send them an email. Some schools also offer dedicated support.
  • Check and double check the eligibility criteria and remit of the call.
  • Check the University doesn’t have specific demand management processes in place for the call.
  • Contact your Faculty Research and Innovation Office to work out a timeline for submission, note deadlines for submission, peer review, costings, sign-off etc.
  • Check the application form requirements (including any extra boxes, tick boxes and required attachments). With many online applications there can be hidden sections.
  • Check the availability of senior staff (HoS, Pro-Dean for Research etc) if required to sign off proposals internally or provide letters of support.
  • Write your proposal as early as possible.
  • Familiarise yourself with ED&I so you can embed this in to your proposal.
  • Obtain letters of support if necessary.
  • If you propose to purchase new equipment, worth over £10k, you may be required to secure matched funding (usually between 10 and 50% of the equipment cost depending upon the scheme you are applying to).  There are several ways to do this, see more about equipment funding.
  • If a proposal is likely to have unusual contractual obligations or conditions, contact the RIS contracts team. This includes working in countries with high risks of corruption or economic sanctions, working with companies likely to want intellectual property rights or confidentiality, etc.
  • If your research proposal is in a high-risk area and you are planning to export goods, technology, software or information that is controlled by the UK or US governments, you might need an export licence. Familiarise yourself with Export Controls and contact trustedresearch@leeds.ac.uk for assistance.
  • If the funder requires match funding (non-capital match funding) you will be required to secure match funding, see more about central institutional match funding for grant applications.
  • Finalise costings with the Faculty Research and Innovation Office (FRIO).
  • Submit your proposal for school, faculty or university level peer review. In highly unusual cases, peer review may not be necessary but generally the University expects proposals to have been assessed by academic peers. Always factor in enough time to receive comments and make the necessary changes.
  • Submit your proposal to the FRIO for final checks at least 24 hours before the funder deadline. FRIOs will give faculty and call- specific guidance. This will happen automatically through the Je-s system for UKRI applications but FRIOs should see applications to all funders.

Post-submission

  • Check funder guidance on timescales for post-submission feedback, PI reviewer responses, interview etc.
  • Regularly check for funder requests. If you’re not going to be working or in regular email contact for significant periods after submission it would be sensible to either inform the funder or set up forwarding to a Co-I.

Fellowship/ECR Checklist

Pre-submission

  • Have a good idea and find the appropriate fellowship / Early Career Researchers scheme.
  • Check and double check the eligibility criteria and remit of the scheme, particularly how a funder defines career stages. Look at previous recipients of the fellowship to gauge whether your current research and track record would be competitive.
  • Early Career fellowship applicants should identify a senior academic at the University who is willing to act as a mentor. For some schemes this is a formal requirement.
  • Check the internal deadlines for expressions of interest, training etc. For many Early Career fellowship schemes the University runs a mandatory selection and support process. If the scheme you wish to apply for is not mentioned then check with the relevant Faculty Research and Innovation Office (FRIO) or email r-idevelopment@leeds.ac.uk.
  • You can also access dedicated support on career development from Organisational Development and Professional Learning.
  • If required, fill out and submit internal forms and attend the training sessions.
  • Contact your FRIO to work out a timeline for submission, note deadlines for submission, costings, sign-off etc. Training and peer review for some fellowship schemes will happen at an institutional level but schools and faculties may still have mandatory systems and deadlines..
  • Check the application form requirements (including any extra boxes, tick boxes and required attachments).
  • Check the availability of senior staff (HoS, Pro-Dean for Research, Pro-VC etc) if required to sign off proposals internally or provide letters of support/ mentor statements. You may also need to have a conversation about covering your current workload as most fellowships require you to commit most or all of your working time.
  • Write your proposal as early as possible.
  • Familiarise yourself with ED&I so you can embed this in to your proposal.
  • Obtain letters of support if necessary.
  • If a proposal is likely to have unusual contractual obligations or conditions, contact the RIS contracts team. This includes working in countries with high risks of corruption or economic sanctions, working with companies likely to want intellectual property rights or confidentiality etc.
  • If your research proposal is in a high-risk area and you are planning to export goods, technology, software or information that is controlled by the UK or US governments, you might need an export licence. Familiarise yourself with Export Controls and contact trustedresearch@leeds.ac.uk for assistance.
  • Finalise costings with the FRIO.
  • Submit your proposal for school, faculty or university level peer review. You should always factor in enough time to receive comments and make the necessary changes.
  • Submit your proposal to the FRIO for final checks. This will happen automatically through the Je-S system for RCUK applications but FRIOs should see applications to all funders. FRIOs will give faculty and call-specific guidance. You should submit to FRIOs at least 24 hours before the funder deadline.

Post-submission

  • Check funder guidance on timescale for post-submission feedback, PI reviewer responses, interview etc.
  • Regularly check for funder requests. If you’re not going to be working or in regular email contact for significant periods after submission it would be sensible to either inform the funder or set up forwarding to a Co-I.
  • Many, but not all, fellowship schemes include an interview stage. For fellowships that involve an institutional selection and training process, interview preparation will almost always be automatically available but all fellowship candidates can access interview training and request mock-interviews with experienced staff. It is best to get in touch as early as possible.

Useful links for specific schemes / calls

The links below are to Sharepoint information pages and only accessible to UoL staff and students.