Research Resources

Welcome to the Research Resources page. This page is maintained by the Associate Dean for Research office. Please suggest additions or notify us of outdated materials.

Looking for more help? Penn State provides a directory of research support offices.

Research Support Offices

Developing Your Proposal (College of IST)

The College of IST's research proposal development process involves identifying a sponsor, notifying the Office of Research Administration via a Proposal Information Form, and collaborating with staff to build budgets and meet deadlines. All proposals require institutional approval via an Internal Approval Form (IAF) before submission to ensure compliance and technical feasibility.

Follow the steps below to prepare your proposal.

The federal government uses two primary platforms for funding opportunities and applications. Faculty submitting grants must register in these systems, allow research administration staff access, and then use these systems as portals to complete the documents required for proposal submission.

Grants.gov is the government‑wide portal for finding and applying to federal discretionary grant opportunities. It serves as the official single point of entry for most federal agencies.
Research.gov is used primarily by the NSF and other research‑focused agencies to manage proposal submissions and awards.

Once you've registered for one of the funding platforms, complete the proposal submissions form at least four weeks prior to the proposal deadline.

Within the College of IST, proposal preparation is managed by the Office of Research Administration. After submission, proposal development typically continues via email with the research administration staff.

The intent form collects preliminary information such as:

Number of collaborators
Student involvement
Anticipated budget categories and expenses

Research administration staff will:

Prepare a draft budget in SIMS
Email the budget to you for review
Make revisions upon request (e.g., adjusting costs across categories)

Here is an example budget, depicting the elements that Research Admin staff would provide to a faculty member developing a proposal. This is for illustrative purposes only.

Some cost items might include:

Graduate Student Costs (IST, 2025–2026)
- Includes pre‑ and post‑comprehensive exam tuition charges and summer rates.
- IST standard appointment is half‑time; minimum is Grade 14.
- Additional stipend guidance
Computing Infrastructure Costs (ICDS/ROAR)
- You can also consult the college's IT Strategic Partner.

Some federal proposals require college‑level documents. Common examples include the following:

Excellent proposals often edit these documents to be specific to their proposal. Reviewers can be annoyed by irrelevant information in these documents.

Many federal proposals require Biographical Sketches created using SciENcv. Review the section below to learn how to prepare these materials.

Additional Resources

Most federal agencies, including NSF and NIH, now require Biographical Sketches to be created in SciENcv (Science Experts Network Curriculum Vitae). SciENcv produces an agency‑compliant PDF that must be uploaded with the proposal.

Access SciENcv (hosted by the National Library of Medicine and accessed via My NCBI)
1. Visit the SciENcv website.
2. Log in using NSF Research.gov, NIH eRA Commons, ORCID, or another supported sign‑in method.
3. Review the SciENcv frequently asked questions for more information.
Create a New Biographical Sketch
1. Once logged in, select "Create New Document."
2. Choose the appropriate format:
  1. NSF Biographical Sketch (NSF proposals)
  2. NIH Biographical Sketch – Common Form (NIH proposals, required for due dates on or after Jan 25, 2026)
3. Start with a blank document or import from an existing SciENcv document.
Complete Required Sections
1. SciENcv guides users through the required sections, which vary slightly by agency but generally include:
2. NSF Biographical Sketch sections:
  1. Identifying Information
  2. Professional Preparation
  3. Appointments and Positions
  4. Products (Synergistic Activities are now submitted as a separate document)
3. NIH Biographical Sketch (Common Form):
  1. Professional Preparation
  2. Appointments and Positions
  3. Products
  4. Contributions to Science (with defined limits)
  5. Supplement sections as applicable
4. SciENcv will flag incomplete sections and formatting issues automatically.
Link ORCID and Publications (Recommended/Required)
1. Investigators may link ORCID, eRA Commons, and My Bibliography to populate publications and professional history.
2. For NIH, linking ORCID to both SciENcv and eRA Commons is required for senior/key personnel.
Certify and Download the PDF
1. Each individual must certify their own Biographical Sketch in SciENcv.
2. Download the agency‑compliant PDF generated by the system.
3. Upload the PDF to Research.gov or Grants.gov as part of the proposal submission.

SciENcv is mandatory for NSF and NIH Biographical Sketches.
Do not upload Word or manually formatted PDFs.
Each senior/key person must prepare and certify their own document.
Including extra or non‑requested information may result in proposal rejection without review (NSF).
Current and Pending (Other) Support is also prepared in SciENcv (same as above).
SciENcv profiles can be linked to ORCID and citation files:
- Linking an ORCID account to SciENcv (NCBI)
- Linking ORCID iD and SciENcv (UCLA OCGA)

A Statement of Work (SOW) is a document that clearly defines the scope, tasks, deliverables, and timeline of work to be performed under a sponsored project or agreement.

Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) – Statements of Work

: Federal sponsors require researchers to complete a number of research security and compliance trainings. Be sure your required trainings are current well before proposal submission.

Penn State Research Security (Office for Research Protections/Research Support)

At Penn State, myResearch is the primary portal for managing research activity.

myFunds (myResearch Financials) is the financial module within myResearch.
myFunds connects directly to SIMBA to show real‑time financial data.
Principal Investigators, Co‑PIs, and designated support staff (myFunds delegates) can access.

What you can do:

View grant and internal fund summaries.
Review budgets, expenses, and encumbrances.
Communicate with support staff about awards.

In short: log into myResearch, then navigate to myFunds to manage finances.

The Internal Approval Form (IAF) is Penn State’s electronic form for collecting required administrative and fiscal information for proposals and awards.

Required prior to proposal submission
IAF approval form notifications are sent from ePIAF@psu.edu
Assignment of credit on the IAF has financial implications for the college

More information is available on the Penn State Research Support website.

SIMBA is Penn State’s core financial system used across the university, including sponsored research.

Key aspects for research:

Real‑time financial management of grants and budgets
Creation and management of Internal Orders (IOs) (each grant has at least one IO)
Reporting via myFunds 2.0 and Power BI
Integration with SIMS and SAP Concur
Is critical for approving effort certifications on their grants

SIMBA is accessed via your Penn State access account. VPN may be required off‑campus.

Research Resources

Developing Your Proposal (College of IST)

Additional Resources

Questions? Contact us.

Legal Statements

Research Resources

Developing Your Proposal (College of IST)

Additional Resources

Questions? Contact us.

Research and Graduate Affairs

Legal Statements