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Bio Sketch and Other Support

Common Proposal Components


Recently many sponsors have changed the content, format, and timing requirements for submitting information related to researcher current, pending, and other support. When applying for or receiving external funding, researchers must familiarize themselves with new and evolving requirements relating to outside interests and current, pending, and other support disclosures.

Note the disclosure of current, pending, and other support is not the same process as the Outside Interest Disclosure (OID) that is required internally. More information about OID can be found on the Office of Institutional Compliance’s Outside Interest Disclosure page. Questions related to the internal Outside Interest disclosure requirements should be directed to the Office of Institutional Compliance.

Each sponsor establishes their own guidelines for content, format, and timing requirements related to current, pending, and other support information. Below is guidance that has been issued by some sponsors. Researchers should ensure they are aware of the sponsor requirements for each proposal submitted.


Bio Sketches


A Biographical sketch (Bio Sketch)/CV is a document typically included for all senior/key personnel at the time of proposal submission, or with a change in PI during an award highlighting their professional and academic history.

The document typically includes information such as work experience, honors and awards, scholarships and funding the subject has been awarded, and publications of work. Each Sponsor has their own set of instructions and requirements that must be followed when submitting the CV as part of the proposal. Many non-federal sponsors direct PIs to use NIH format when submitting bio sketches.  


Current and Pending Support


Current and Pending Support, also known as Other Support, is a form typically used by federal sponsors to request information for the PI(s) and Key Personnel’s current and pending research projects. Most federal agencies require Current & Pending Support documents to be submitted with the proposal or just before an award is issued (during Just in Time (JIT) process), and if awarded, they may require any changes to be disclosed in progress reports. 

The format of this requirement varies by sponsor. It is the responsibility of the Investigator/Key Personnel to make sure that all research projects and affiliations are fully disclosed and that the document is completed in its entirety.

National Science Foundation (NSF)

NSF’s Grantee Standards includes the foundation’s Conflict of Interest Policies. NSF maintain a resource page for Biographical Sketch.

NSF require disclosure of Collaborators and Other Affiliations, and Current and Pending Support and provide full instructions at these links. They also provide a disclosure table to summarize what types of disclosures are included on various forms to the new sub header for National Science Foundation (NSF) under Current and Pending Support

National Institutes of Health (NIH)
  • Information on other active and pending support may be requested (often as part of Just-in-Time procedures for grant applications or in progress reports) to ensure there is no scientific, budgetary, or commitment overlap. “Other Support” is sometimes referred to as “current and pending support” or “active and pending support.”
  • NIH maintains a website with full instructions, templates, samples and FAQs related to Other Support..
    Effective 1/25/2022, NIH require the use of the revised Other Support template.

Highlights of key changes include:

  • NIH’s new template separates Project/Proposal support from In-Kind contributions. Support should be grouped together based on their “Status” and reported in the order of Active, Pending or Completed during the past three years, (from top to bottom).
  • Completed support does not need to be reported for In-kind contributions.
  • Primary Place of Performance has been added
  • Provide the Total Award Amount (including Indirect Costs)
  • Person Months must be provided per budget period for the project: 
    • Year (YYYY) Person Months (##.##)
      • [enter year 1]
      • [enter year 2]
      • [enter year 3]
      • [enter year 4]
      • [enter year 5]
  • Signature line for the PD/PI or other senior/key personnel to certify the form- Signature must be completed as “digital signature” using software such as Adobe’s Digitally Sign option which “locks” the file after signature ( not “fill and sign”). “Wet” Ink or typed signatures are not acceptable. See Pre-Award’s guide to completing digital signature requirement for further information.

 Required certification text:

I, PD/PI or other key/senior personnel, certify that the statements herein are true, complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge, and accept the obligation to comply with Public Health Services terms and conditions if a grant is awarded as the result of this application. I am aware that any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements or claims may subject me to criminal, civil, or administrative penalties.

JUST-IN-TIME (JIT)
NIH and other federal sponsors will request Just-In-Time (JIT) information at the time when a pending project is under consideration for funding. JIT is time-sensitive information that isn’t usually submitted as part of an initial application. For applications that are associated with the NIH, the JIT process generally requires current Other Support information for key personnel, IRB approval/Human Subjects Research Education Certification (if applicable), IACUC approval (if applicable), Institutional Certification regarding human genomic data (if applicable), and responses to reviewers/summary statements (if applicable). The sponsor’s official may request additional information or clarifications that are more specific to the project under consideration. The NIH will send an automated message to applicants whose proposals receive impact scores of 30 or less. If funding is likely, a NIH funding center staff member such as the Grants Management Specialist (GMS) will send an email directly to the applicant with a description of the JIT items required for their review. OSP recommends that applicants respond to the latter request – a direct request from the GMS. JIT requests do not guarantee that a proposal will be funded. If a PI receives a JIT request directly from a NIH staff member, failure to submit the requested information on time can significantly delay chances of being funded. Note that the Notice of Award is the only official confirmation of funding. JIT information must be up to date, and if a funding decision is not made within the time of the initial JIT request (typically 120 days), applicants may be asked to resubmit JIT information. For NIH applications, JIT information is submitted through the JIT module in eRA Commons. Other federal sponsors such as NSF and DOD will require similar information if they are considering a project for funding. These sponsors will also provide a detailed request and instructions for submission. Additionally, changes in other support of key personnel active and pending projects may also be required for Research Performance Progress Reporting (RPPR) prior to the award of a competitive project segment.
Department of Defense (DOD/CDMRP)

There are multiple units within DOD, so different formats may be required depending on which unit a proposal is submitting to- Investigators should confirm the specific requirements within their funding opportunity announcement. 

For submissions to CDMRP, DOD provide a suggested biographical sketch format which is available as a Word document on the “Funding Opportunities & Forms” web page in eBRAP

Instructions for the CDMRP applications can be found on pages 16 and 17 of the current DOD General Application Instructions.

DOD provides a resource page identifying suggested templates for many of their proposal documents. 

New Requirement Added IN FY22 General Application Guide:

Certification Regarding Disclosure of Funding Sources. The proposing entity must comply with Section 223(a) of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, which requires that the PI, Partnering PIs (if applicable), and all key personnel:

Certify that the current and pending support provided on the application is current, accurate, and complete;
Agree to update such disclosure at the request of the agency prior to the award of support and at any subsequent time the agency determines appropriate during the term of the award; and
Have been made aware of the requirements under Section 223(a)(1) of this Act.

False, fictitious, or fraudulent statements or claims may result in criminal, civil, or administrative penalties (U.S. Code, Title 218, Section 1001).

DOD requires full disclosure of current and pending support from domestic and non-domestic sources. Full instructions can be found on page 31 of the current DOD General Application Instructions.

Suggested text for certification:

I, PD/PI or other senior/key personnel, certify that the statements herein are true, complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge, agree to update such disclosure at the request of the agency prior to the award of support and at any subsequent time the agency determines appropriate during the term of the award and accept the obligation to comply with Section 223(a) of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. I am aware that any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements or claims may subject me to criminal, civil, or administrative penalties.

*Signature:

Date:

 


Current and Pending Support Report Tool


This Current and Pending Support report is a tool that quickly compiles proposal and project data from Cayuse SP. This data can be used to complete the current and pending forms required by many sponsors. Note: The information included in the report reflects data from Cayuse SP. Be advised each sponsor has requirements for what current, pending, and other support information must be disclosed. The information in this report may not provide all information required by a sponsor. Additional information may be available from departmental business office as they have access to additional data that may be required by the sponsor but is not stored in Cayuse. Principal Investigators should ensure they are aware of the requirements for each proposal submitted.

Additional Information 

ORCID: Federal regulations are shifting to persistent identifiers of which ORCID is a preferred method. Additional information and resources for ORCID are provided by UT Libraries.

SciENcv: Several sponsors are requiring biosketch and/or current and pending information to be formatted using SciENcv.

Aug 8, 2023