Research, Innovation & Impact

Selection for limited submissions is competitive.

Interested applicants must follow these instructions:

1. Read the sponsor’s guidelines and consider the most important review criteria.

2. Draft a letter of intent (LOI) that is a maximum of three pages and includes:

   1. A description of your proposed project that focuses on the most important criteria, including objectives; methods; outcomes; and the project’s impact on your discipline, the university or the community.

   2. A budget estimate that includes anticipated amounts and sources of cost-match commitments.

   3. A statement addressing how your revised proposal includes sponsor feedback (if you were selected as an MU applicant for this opportunity in the past, but your submission was unfunded).

   4. The names of three MU reviewers qualified to edit your LOI. Please avoid listing reviewers with whom you might have a conflict of interest, such as co-investigators on other proposals, faculty mentors and those with financial interests.

   5. References that support your data and claims (optional). An LOI slightly longer than the three-page limit will be accepted if references are included.

3. Collect biosketches or curriculum vitaes (CVs) for all investigators listed on the proposal.

4. Locate the funding opportunity on MU InfoReady to begin your application. All uploaded documents must be in PDF format. After you submit the required materials, an administrator will review your application for errors. If accepted, you will be notified. If your application is rejected, we will include corrections needed for resubmission.

5. If the number of LOIs received for a posted funding opportunity does not exceed the sponsor's limit, a competition will not be required. In that case, we will notify you when your proposal is cleared to proceed. Staff in the Office of Foundation Relations may need to review private foundation proposals before they can proceed.

6. If the number of LOIs received exceeds the sponsor's limit, we will recruit faculty to serve as reviewers. If the sponsor is a private foundation, the review panel will include a representative from the Office of Foundation Relations. Reviewers consider all application materials and rank them following strict criteria. (Limited submission review criteria link) We will notify you with the results of the review.

7. If selected, there are some caveats:

   1. Selection does not mean that you will receive cost-match commitments.

   2. Normal processing procedures used by your department, division and the office of Sponsored Program Administration apply. c. If you decide not to proceed with a proposal, notify us as soon as possible so an alternate application can be approved.

8. If the internal deadline passes and all of the sponsor’s allowed slots have not been filled, additional applications will be reviewed in the order received. These opportunities are listed in MU InfoReady and only require an application to obtain approval — LOIs and CVs are not necessary.

9. When we are alerted to a limited submission opportunity without enough time to announce or administer the above procedures, the first applicant will be selected. The timeframe for this selection is generally less than two weeks before the sponsor’s deadline.