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Proposal Central

ProposalCentral is a one-stop website for finding, applying for and tracking grants offered by more than 100 non-profit and government funding organizations in health, biomedical and scientific research. “They are an e-grantmaking website shared by many government, non-profit, and private grant-making organizations.”

Getting Started with ProposalCentral

Creating a ProposalCentral account is completed by the individual. OSP does not have to approve accounts. ProposalCentral has collected support tools and contact information for help with the system in a central location for easy reference. Please keep this helpful information at hand as you register for the ProposalCentral and work through the steps to create and manage your proposals.

  • Sometimes Depts can submit on own, for others OSP must submit. Please review the RFP for further guidance. 

Registering in ProposalCentral

Department Role

  1. Click the Create an Account link in the top-right corner of the banner.
  2. Provide the information requested to create an account and click the Save button.
  3. Once complete, an email is sent with a confirmation number. Open the email and copy the confirmation number.
  4. Return to ProposalCentral and login.
  5. When prompted, paste the confirmation number and click the “Submit Confirmation Number” button.
  6. Once registered, you will need to add an Affiliation Institution to your profile.
  7. Click the link showing in the “Institution & Contact Info” section of the Professional Profile. This is the screen that you are directed to after logging in and clicking on the Professional Profile tab.
  8. Enter a partial name search for your organization and click the Display Results button.
  9. Your institution is listed, select it by clicking the radio select in the left column and click the Select button at the bottom.
  10. The first Institution Profile added is considered the “Primary Institution”. The “Primary Institution” is what displays by default as the Lead Institution when starting an application. However, users can change the Lead Institution in applications to another institution as necessary.

Managing an award in ProposalCentral

ProposalCentral is used by many different Sponsors and each has their own functionalities. Some have no functions beyond proposal submission, while others utilize the system to manage the award through close-out.

  • The Awards Management Team uses the Proposal Central to submit different requests to agencies initiated by the PI/department, including No-Cost Extensions Carryforward Requests, Renewals, Activity Reports and Supplement Requests. Activation Agreements and Budget Templates may also be submitted in ProposalCentral.
  • The Research Finance Team uses this portal to submit Financial Reports.

Helpful Information

Your OSP Reviewer will need Administrator access to your proposal. Signature pages are often required by the various sponsors, so allow time to get the required signatures for the funding opportunity. Some opportunities require a chair’s or dean’s signature in addition to the Authorized Representative.

Resources

Point of Contact

If you have any questions or concerns when registering, please contact OSPProposalAssistance@harvard.edu.