Register for Submission Portals

Are you new to submitting proposals at ISU? Then you’ll need to register for the ISU proposal system and other submission portals. Start the registration process at least 15 business days prior to the proposal deadline.

Register for the following systems through OSPA’s Registration Portal:

• Liquid Office - ISU’s electronic routing system, which uses the Goldsheet Form to route the proposals from the PI to the Office of Sponsored Programs Administration (OSPA).
• Cayuse - For federal submissions via Grants.gov.
• NIH eRA Commons - an online interface between NIH and applicant organizations for sharing administrative information relating to research grants.

OSPA generally responds to registration requests within one business day.

For the following agencies, researchers initiate the registration process and then OSPA completes the process.

• DOE EERE
• GrantSolutions
  • Complete Part 1 of the Grant Recipient User Account Request Form and send to your CARES Team Coordinator
  • Coordinator will review and send to OSPA and they will finish the process.
• JUSTGrants
• NASA NSPIRES
• Research.gov  NSF requires users to self-register for access to Research.gov (NSF’s Proposal and Award Portal) and then request an affiliation with Iowa State University.
• USDA ezFedGrants
  • The CARES Team can provide guidance on setting up your account.

The following are identification enrollments required by some organizations:

• E-Authentication
  • A USDA eAuthentication account provides USDA employees/contractors secure access to multiple USDA applications, websites, programs, and benefits they are authorized to use for work purposes. 
  • Currently, the following USDA systems require users to have an eAuth account:
    • ezFedGrants
    • NRS (NIFA Reporting System)
    • Other systems may require use of eAuth in the future
  • The CARES Team can provide guidance on setting up your eAuth account.

• Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID) 
  • Provides a persistent digital identifier that you own and control, and that distinguishes you from every other researcher.
  • Currently, NIH requires ORCID registration for some fellowship applications.
  • Additional organizations may require an ORCID ID.

For the following submission portals, the researcher completes the registration process.

• Foundation for Food and Ag Research (FFAR), Grants Management System
• National Fish & Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), EasyGrants Portal
• National Pork Board
• Proposal Central for non-profits
• Russel Sage Foundation
• USDA SARE

Plan to Submit Proposal with Sufficient Time

For proposals of less than $2 million:

• Your CARES Team Coordinator needs to submit your Goldsheet at least 7 business days prior to the day of submission.
• Proposal must arrive at OSPA at least 4 business days prior to the day of submission.

For proposals of $2 million or more:

• Your CARES Team Coordinator needs to submit your Goldsheet at least 15 business days prior to the day of submission.
• Proposals must arrive at OSPA at least 10 business days prior to the day of submission.

The earlier you begin working with your CARES Team Coordinator, the more assistance they will be able to provide. Last minutes requests may only receive a minimum of assistance due to lack of available time. We're typically working on several proposals at once.

Contact your CARES Team Coordinator by filling out the CARES PreAward Support Initiation Form. If you don’t yet know all the details, just enter your best guess and we’ll update the information as we move through the proposal process.