US Department of Defense (DoD)

The Department of Defense supports a wide variety of innovative research through its funding agencies. Each agency has their own research program and priorities with unique requirements, proposal components and submission procedures.

Some key US DoD agencies included:

• Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
• Office of Naval Research (ONR)
• Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR)
• Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP)

Key dates are located within each Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA).

The Macquarie University submission date is 4 weeks prior to the funding agency due date and requires the full draft application to be submitted via Pure.

1. Complete the MQ Notification Of Intent (NOI)
   Complete a Notification of Intent to inform your to inform the Grant Development team of your intention to submit an application.


2. Communicate with the Funding Scheme Program Director
   The program director (also referred to as program manager or program officer) is an excellent resource to use to understand the various schemes in which you might be able to apply. They can also advise if similar or related work has been funded by the agency. It is generally good practice to contact program manager(s) before each submission. You can find contact information for the program managers on the FOA under Grantor Contact Information.
   
   In preparing a Department of Defense (DoD) proposal, it is extremely important to talk with the program manager, as they have significant influence in which projects are funded under their programs. Most DoD programs have a window of dates in which you can contact the program manager with questions, during which they can be very candid and forthcoming, and after which they will answer only the most basic of questions.

If you would like some tips on contacting a program officer and what to include in your correspondence follow this link.



3. Create an eBRAP account (if you do not already have one)
   The Lead Principal Investigator (PI) must have an eBRAP account prior to application. Register an account through the eBRAP portal. The Grant Development Team, Research Services will approve your affiliation so to allow the application to progress.

As Macquarie University is an extramural organisation (non-Department of Defense (DoD) organisation. E.G. academia, biotechnology companies, foundations, Government, and research institutes), applicants usually submit their pre- application content and forms via eBRAP and full application via the US grants portal (grants.gov).



4. Access application from Grants.gov, review funding announcement and create a Grants.gov account (if you do not already have one)
   Search the US grants portal database for an appropriate funding scheme. Each scheme has a unique opportunity number (which is generally made up of letters and numbers E.G. W81XWH-20-RCRP-CA).

To create an account with the US grants portal click “register” in the top right-hand side of the webpage. To register as an MQ employee you will need to input our UEI number which is CS58C37BL6W8. The Grant Development Team, Re search Services will approve your affiliation



5. Foreign Justification
   When considering applying for a US based grant, such as the DoD, it is important to consider the expertise of the team and the research being proposed, as a justification for funding to be conducted outside of the USA. Areas to be considered are the expertise of the team, the resources available at MQ as well as partner organisations, and if appropriate, the populations you will be researching.


6. Complete the Application
   The application has multiple forms and are completed in the US grants portal. The forms can be completed directly into the workspace or the forms can be downloaded via the workspace. The resources below will assist in completing the forms required, including annotated forms which provide pertinent information for completing each of the forms.

For your sub-awardees (applications led by another institution) it is recommended that you download and send the forms directly to them to complete. They will need to complete a R&R Subaward Budget Attachment(s) Form..



7. Submit application in PURE
   A PURE record must be created, all forms must be uploaded into the PURE record and the record ’sent to internal approval’ no later than 4 weeks prior to the funding agency due date. During these 4 weeks, your application will receive a strategic review and two compliance checks (if submitted on time).


8. Submission to funder
   For applications led by Macquarie University, the lead PI must click the “Submit to AOR” button in the Grants.gov workspace to submit the final completed application to Research Services for us to be able to submit it to the funder. The funder recommends applications are submitted 24-72 hours prior to the deadline, as the Program Manager checks for any errors manually. If errors are found Research Services and the PI are notified to rectify. These errors are only able to be fixed if discovered prior to the scheme closing.

For sub-awardees (applications led by another institution), the MQ co-PI must submit completed documentations via PURE for HoD and DDRI approval, see below.

Macquarie University is a sub-awardee and the application is led by another institution, the process is:

1. Complete the MQ Notification Of Intent (NOI)
   Complete a Notification of Intent to inform the Grant Development team of your intention to submit an application.
2. Complete the Application forms, as directed by the lead institution
3. The Grant Development Team will provide a compliance and eligibility check no later than 2 weeks prior to the deadline, given the complexity of US grants it is highly recommended that you complete them earlier to avoid last minute complications.
4. Submit application in PURE, with a note indicating when the lead institution has requested for the forms to be submitted to them
5. Submit to the lead institution when HoD and DDRI approvals have been obtained in PURE.

How-To Guides

• How to search for a grant
• How to register with Grants.gov
• How to create a Grants.gov workspace
• Understanding the Grants.gov user roles
• Submitting an application in workspace
• More information about US Department of Defense grant applications

Annotated Forms

• Annotated DoD forms

MQ Guide, Budget Templates and Salary Rates

• DoD Budget Template for Applications Led by Macquarie University
• DoD Budget Template for Sub-Awardees
• MQ Salary Rates including on-costs (for proposals submitted in 2024)
• MQ Letter of Organisational Support template