Standard Track

Identification and Communication

LS opportunities are actively identified through internet searches, web services, opportunities shared by faculty, and historical opportunities. These opportunities are communicated using the following methods.

1. Announcement in The Limited Submission Newsletter (click to subscribe) is sent to subscribers on Wednesdays and will identify each opportunity with one of the four designations below. Anyone, including students and staff, may Subscribe. New faculty/staff are not automatically subscribed to this newsletter.
2. Posting on the Limited Submissions Table.
3. Direct communication, if applicable, with the Deans, Center/Institute Directors, Associate/Assistant Deans for Research, and Faculty.

Limited Submission Opportunities Designations

LS opportunities will be designated as Standard, Recurring, Open, or Quick Turn-Around.

• Standard: a designation for newly identified opportunities with adequate time to conduct an internal competition. This designation requires more than 8 weeks between the identification of the LS opportunity and the sponsor’s deadline to allow adequate time to conduct an internal review while providing the selected team(s) enough time to prepare a competitive proposal. Internal proposals are typically due 10 business days from the announcement in the Limited Submission Newsletter.
• Recurring: a designation for identified recurring LS opportunities that will be posted 6-8 months before the sponsor deadline. Starting the LS process early allows Colleges, Departments, and individual teams time to build their teams and prepare a more robust Internal Proposal and provide the approved teams more time to develop stronger proposals. Internal proposals are typically due 6 weeks from the announcement in the Limited Submission Newsletter.
• Open: a designation for LS opportunities whose internal deadline has passed and the number of available seats has not been exceeded. Approvals will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis by the LST. An eligible principal investigator (PI) must email limitedsubmissions@tamu.edu requesting approval.
• Quick Turn-Around: a designation for LS opportunities if there are less than 8 weeks between identification and the sponsor’s, which does not allow adequate time to conduct an internal review and provide the selected team(s) enough time to prepare a competitive proposal. These LS opportunities are either opportunities that the LST was not able to identify through traditional methods or opportunities where the sponsor imposed a short turnaround from posting to response. Approvals will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis by the LST. An eligible principal investigator (PI) must submit their application through the InfoReady platform.

Research Community Identified Opportunities

The LST identifies as many LS opportunities as possible; however, not every opportunity can be identified due to the sheer volume from government and foundation opportunities available. Anyone wishing to apply to a limited submission not listed on the Limited Submissions Website should email limitedsubmissions@tamu.edu. The LST will review the RFP guidelines and determine how to proceed with one of the following steps.

1. If there are more than 8 weeks between the identification of the LS opportunity and the sponsor’s deadline, a “Standard” designation will be applied to that LS opportunity and follow the abovementioned process.
2. If there are less than 8 weeks between the identification of the LS opportunity and the sponsor’s deadline, the requestor will automatically receive a “ticket.” If additional seats remain, the LS opportunity will be designated as “Quick Turn-Around” and communicated through the abovementioned methods.

The LST identifies as many LS opportunities as possible; however, not every opportunity can be identified due to the sheer volume of government and foundation opportunities available. Anyone wishing to apply to a limited submission not listed in the Limited Submission Table can request an opportunity to be added using the Texas A&M Limited Submission Request Form.

Campus Response

Notice of Intent

A Notice of Intent (NOI) will ONLY utilize through InfoReady for opportunities identified as a “Quick Turn-Around.” These opportunities are identified less than 8 weeks before the sponsor deadline and will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. The submitted NOI time stamp will determine which teams have the approval to submit. NOIs will remain open “until filled.”

Internal Proposal

InfoReady will be utilized for Internal Proposal applications for LS opportunities identified as “Standard” or “Recurring.” The internal proposal comprises form information and uploadable PDF documents detailed in Table 1. The intention is to collect information to ensure a quality internal review. Internal proposals are due “2 weeks” from the announcement in the Limited Submission Newsletter.

Internal Proposal Requirements

InfoReady Form Information	Uploadable PDF documents
Indication of type/track (if applicable)	3-page description
PI and Co-PI Information (Name, College/School, Department)	References (no page limit)
Proposal Type (New, Resubmission, Renewal)	Biosketch (PI and Co-PIs)
Submitting A&M Institutions (TAMU, TEES, AgriLife, HSC, Galveston)	Rough Budget (no justification required)
Cost Share Acknowledgement	Sponsor Feedback (if resubmission)
	Plan to address reviewer comments (if resubmission)

Internal Review and Nomination

Not all internal proposals must be reviewed depending on the number of seats available and the interest on campus. The following describes the process for each scenario.

Scenario 1: No Internal Competition

When the number of internal proposals received does not exceed the number of seats available to A&M, an internal review competition will not be conducted, and the LST will grant immediate approval(s) or “ticket(s).”

Scenario 2: Internal Competition

When the number of internal proposals received exceeds the number of seats available to A&M, an internal review competition will be conducted. Each PI will have at least one reviewer from within their college/school, typically consisting of Research Deans and/or ad hoc committee member(s) assigned by the Research Deans. The committee will consist of at least two reviewers, although three or more are preferred. When additional reviewers are needed, reviewers from our Internal Limited Submission Database with relevant expertise will be assigned to provide a broader review. Internal proposals will be reviewed and ranked using the following criteria,

• The relevance or “match” between the proposed project and the program requirements,
• The impact or “significance” of the proposed project,
• Responsiveness to review comments from a previous submission, if applicable, and
• Any other factors relevant as appropriate to the funding program

Ideally, proposals will be reviewed, and applicants will be notified within “2 weeks”; however, in some ‘cases (large quantity of applicants or large/complex pre-proposals), additional review and notification time may be required. Reviewers are encouraged to provide comments for each proposal reviewed; however, this is only sometimes possible due to the volume of internal review competitions.

Communication with PI/Teams

Rankings will be consolidated from each reviewer, and all applicants will be informed of the outcome via email, including reviewer comments if available. Transparency is an essential value for our Limited Submissions Process, so selected applicants will be publicly noted on the Limited Submissions Table by indicating the submitting institution (TAMU, TEES, AgriLife, HSC, Galveston) followed by first initial and last name.

In some high-profile or nationally competitive programs where publicly identifying the PI/Team would be a strategic disadvantage, the PI/Team will not be publicly added to the Limited Submissions Table until after the sponsor’s deadline has passed and the status will be indicated as “Confidential” until after the sponsor’s deadline.

Only applicants listed on the Limited Submissions Table are approved or have “tickets” to submit to the sponsor.

Communication with SRS or Foundation

The LST closely communicates with SRS and the Foundation Office to ensure that only approved teams can submit. During the initial approval email, SRS or the Foundation is copied, and they will quickly have a proposal administrator contact the PI to initiate the Maestro record and assist the teams with budget and submission.

PI/Team Failure to Submit

Limited submission opportunities are very competitive and important to A&M. It is understandable that unexpected circumstances influence the PI/team’s decision not to submit. In these circumstances, the LST must be notified immediately of the team’s withdrawal of approval to submit to the approved LS opportunity via email at limitedsubmissions@tamu.edu. The earlier you inform the LST, the earlier we can assign the next highest-ranked team or reopen the opportunity to campus.

The LST tracks all limited submission applications through Maestro to ensure all approved teams submit their proposal to the sponsor. Failure to notify the LST will be shared with the review committee when the PI applies for future LS opportunities, which may influence the proposal rankings of the review committee.

Pre-Proposal/Proposal Development Support

The RDS proposal development team supports campus-wide proposal development, prioritizing larger and more complex proposals. Resources are limited, and only some proposals can be supported; however, we encourage teams to seek College/School or Department level Research Development Officers for support.