Developing your budget taken from slide presentation: Writing Your First Grant Sara Rockwell, PhD

1. Developing your budget taken from slide presentation: Writing Your First Grant Sara Rockwell, PhD Professor, Therapeutic Radiology and Pharmacology Associate Dean for Scientific Affairs Yale School of Medicine

2. Budget • Format and required information vary dramatically • Some agencies specify a fixed budget and define how you must spend it. • Some want budget details • Some want none • Give them what they want • Use the forms or follow the format given in the instructions • Check agency guidelines: whatcosts are allowable and what are not? • You won’t get money for unallowable items • Watch how Indirect Costs (Facilities and Administrative Costs) are handled.

3. Developing your numbers • Even if the agency doesn’t want details, work up a budget so you know what you can do with the funds available • Use real numbers • Real salaries and fringes • Real costs of supplies, animal care, etc • Include everything you will need • Extrapolate costs to actual start date of grant • Don’t “low ball” • Don’t forget the F&A costs

4. Extrapolate from first year budget • Consider changes in project over time; the science and the budget should always correspond • Project future salaries as accurately as possible • Include expected raises and promotions • Business office can help here • Increase other costs to allow for inflation Future years

5. PROBLEM: Constant budgets • Some agencies fund grants at a constant level for future years • NIH modular grants • Grants with total budget set by agency • May allow carryover of funds • Remember to plan for raises and inflation in deciding how much money you request in the first year • HINT: for a 3 year grant use second year cost estimates (not current year values or first year cost estimates) to develop the budget for the project

6. Budget Justification • Format and detail required vary greatly for different applications • Follow instructions carefully • Always justify your costs in terms of the science of the project • Will be examined by study section members (scientists) during their review • Will be examined later by business people and accountants

7. Time and effort is examined closely by the reviewers • Does it match the scientific activities you have described? • Do you have enough time from the people who are essential to the project? • Do you have all the skills you need? • Do you have enough technical support? • A very common problem with grants from young investigators is that the project described cannot possibly be performed with the resources available.

8. Expectations on time/effort • Percent Salary = Percent Effort • If not, you must justify the difference • Effort generally is not allowed without salary support • You cannot have more than 100% professional effort • All SBH assignments • All external professional activities • Watch efforts in application carefully. If you are funded: • You may be held to the promises you’ve made • You will be asked to document the efforts of those on the grant