RAMP - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Page Updated: July 28, 2025

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Training

Is there a test/train environment I can log into to experience RAMP?

The RAMP Stage environment is available for testing and training purposes. Access the Stage environment and log in with your NetID here.

Are there resources for PIs to know how to certify a RAMP record?

Yes. Please direct PIs here: RAMP PI Certification Page

Are PIs and researchers involved?

RAMP Certification is an attestation statement the primary Principal Investigator (PI) must make before the UW submits a proposal for funding or before the UW enters into a non-funded agreement. This is a requirement of UW-Madison.

Funding Proposals: When a RAMP funding proposal record moves to the Department Review (Division/School/College) state, the PI receives an automated email from RAMP asking them to certify the record. The funding proposal email has a link taking them directly to the specific RAMP record to certify.  If a user would like to ask the PI to certify prior to this step in the workflow, they can contact the PI outside of RAMP or send an "other" ancillary review with the request.

Agreements: Notifying the PI that certification is required on an agreement can be done in two ways:

  1. Use the Send Email activity from the agreement workspace to send the PI an email with a link to the record and ask them to certify.
  2. Using an Ancillary Review to the PI, asking the PI to go into the RAMP record to certify/sign. Approval of the Ancillary Review doesn’t automatically certify the record, so the PI would need to access the record, click the Certify activity, and then respond to the Ancillary Review letting the unit know it’s completed. 

Note: PIs do not certify Agreement Module Records for Standard Research Agreements or Clinical Trial Agreements because those agreement types have an associated RAMP Funding Proposal Record. PI certification is obtained at the funding proposal stage instead.

Awards/Award Modifications: The Certify activity does not exist on awarded Funding Proposals, active Awards or Award Modifications. If your Division requires that the PI review & approve an award modification request (AMR) – use the Ancillary Review functionality.

How does a PI certify once in a RAMP Funding Proposal or Agreement Record? 

Once in the RAMP record, PIs navigate to the “Certify” activity on the left-hand menu.

Clicking Certify brings up the RAMP attestation statement. PIs read the statement to understand their obligations as a PI.  PIs then click OK when ready to Certify the RAMP record.

Where can I, or will I, be able to access training materials for RAMP?

Please visit the RAMP training webpage here. As materials are developed, they will be added to this page.

Roles & Access

If there are multiple departments involved on a proposal/award/agreement, will all departments have edit rights to the RAMP record?

Users with the Division Role Member role will have edit rights to all draft records in RAMP. Collaborating departmental research administrators must be added as either a reader or editor to the record to have access to the record.

Why can't I edit or take a specific action on a record?

In RAMP, there are different levels of access:

  • Record-level: Access to a specific record
    • Can be granted by the dean's office via the Manage Access activity
    • Administrative contact and read-only or edit rights
    • Able to move record through workflow (submit to RSP, submit for department approval, etc.)
  • Department admin editor: Access to all records in a given department
    • Can edit the SmartForm whenever the record is in an editable state
    • Does not inherently always have the same activities available as record-level editors; may need to be added as an editor to take workflow steps
  • Division member: Access to all records
    • Approve funding proposals, use Manage Access activity, and more

In order to take a specific action, you will need the corresponding level of access. If you don't have it, contact your dean's office for assistance.

Why can't I see a record?

RAMP only shows you records you have access to--if you are missing access you need, please contact your dean's office as they can grant you access to specific records or evaluate what additional RAMP access you may need.

Can individuals sent ancillary reviews download files from the record?

Yes, they will have read-only access while the ancillary review is underway including the ability to view/download attachments.

Who should I contact with RAMP role/access questions?

Please contact your dean's office--they can either grant you access to specific records or request that your RAMP security be updated by the ERA team.

What are the different roles in RAMP?

If you work in a department at UW-Madison, you’ll have the “Study Staff” role which is automatically assigned to every active UW employee. There is no need to request it, it’s automatically provisioned.

If you work in a Dean’s Office at one of the colleges/schools, your supervisor will contact RSP to provision you the appropriate divisional access.

If you work in RSP, you will be given the roles specific to your job/team. More details here: RAMP User Roles

General Questions

How do I delete a record that I no longer need?

You cannot delete a RAMP record, however you can withdraw one. Use the "Withdraw" activity on the RAMP record.

More information can be found in the RAMP User Guides linked on the Resources Page: RAMP training page.

How do I find an award in RAMP if I only know the legacy ID instead of the Workday ID?

Use the global search box in Grants to search by the legacy ID:

Why isn't my ARROW protocol showing up in RAMP, or my RAMP record isn't showing in ARROW?

The RAMP-ARROW integration runs twice a day at 6:00 AM and 12:30 PM. If you made changes in between then, wait until the next run and then check again if you are not seeing something you're expecting. Please also note that RAMP records MUST be listed as a primary funding source in ARROW protocols.

For help with issues in ARROW, contact irb-arrow@research.wisc.edu

Additional resources:

Is there a difference between “Printer Version” & “Generate PDF Version"?

Yes. "Printer Version" is a printed version of the SmartForm. "Generate PDF Version" generates a PDF that will look like the application in the sponsor system (for example, one might look like the assembled application in the eRA Commons).

Note: The PDF generated by "Generate PDF Version" is independent from what is submitted electronically to the sponsor. The PDF is primarily for preview purposes; if something doesn't look right on the generated PDF, that doesn't necessarily mean it will get submitted to the sponsor like that. As long as it is correct in the SF424 SmartForm, it should submit as expected.

What goes into RAMP Agreements Module vs. RAMP Grants Module?

All funding proposals and awards go in Grants. Funded agreements and non-funded agreements which require RSP negotiation, review, or signature go in Agreements. There is overlap between the two. For example: a federal contract will have a proposal in Grants, once awarded will have an Agreement Module record to negotiate terms, and then an Award record in Grants. A federal grant that is issued unilaterally (no signature, standard terms) will have a Funding Proposal and Award in Grants but no record in Agreements since there is no signature or negotiation required. Non-funded agreements, like material transfer agreements and confidentiality/non-disclosure agreements might exist as standalone records in Agreements only.

What's best practice for uploading attachments in RAMP? There are so many on my record, it's hard to tell which one is most current.

Currently, the Attachments tab does not show author or timestamp when documents are uploaded, so we recommend putting the date in the file name when adding attachments so that users know which file is the most current. Additionally, to help speed up processing, you could also add necessary documents when performing a RAMP activity ("Submit for Specialist Review", etc) so they show up in the history tab for easy access and retrieval.

What are the appropriate naming conventions for attachments and RAMP records?

General Tips: 

Attachments:

  • Currently, the Attachments tab does not show author or timestamp when uploaded, so it is recommended that users add an upload date to the file name when adding attachments to indicate the most recent documents (example, “budget_20230816”).
  • RAMP does not limit long file names or large files, however on the SF424 (Grants.Gov System to System), users will need to follow sponsor limitations as we validate against those sponsor requirements.
  • It would be most helpful to adapt a standard date naming convention for attachments and records: YYYYMMDD = 20230816.  This will allow for sorting numerically. 

 

Funding Proposals (FP) Tips: 

RAMP Record Titles: 

  • RAMP Continuations are used for NIH RPPRS and other federal and non-federal sponsor progress reports needing authorized official signoff.  Putting the deadline in the title of the RAMP record itself will help expedite processing.

Agreements (AGR) Tips:  

RAMP Record Titles:

  • If submitting an Agreement record with a short sponsor deadline (anything less than 2 weeks), including the deadline on the title of the Agreement record itself will help expedite processing. Example: Non-Disclosure Agreement deadline 20230706.

*It is good practice generally to include the deadline on the title of the RAMP Agreement record.

How do I get a withdrawn record off my dashboard?

Withdrawn records should not be on your dashboard. It will remain in the general grants area, but it won’t be in your inbox, unless they have an incomplete ancillary review. Check to see if you have an outstanding ancillary review (AR) on the record. If so, completing the AR will make the record drop off your dashboard. Note: on the AR, you must enter YES to completed.

How do I know what is needed of me when I receive an automated RAMP email?

If you receive an automated email message from RAMP and are not sure what is needed of you, open the RAMP record by following the link within the email and check the History Tab for details.

How do I change the owning department on a RAMP record?

Occasionally a RAMP record needs to be transferred to a new UW-Madison department, for instance, if there is a Principal Investigator “PI” change or departure. To change the owning department of a RAMP record, users will submit an Award Modification Request to RSP.  Follow the steps below to request an award modification to change the owning department on a RAMP record:

Step 1:  Create a modification request with type “Other” that gives details of the request. 

  • Navigate to the RAMP Award Workspace and select the Request Award Modification button.
  • Complete the Request Details page. When complete, select the Finish button.  If additional updates are necessary, use the Edit Modification Request button. The award modification is in the Draft state and has not yet been submitted for RSP review.

Step 2: Create Ancillary Reviews to both departments and appropriate Dean's Offices with details of the transfer as documentation of “approval”.  To do so, select the Manage Ancillary Reviews activity. 

Step 3:  When Ancillary Reviews have been submitted/approved, select the Submit to Specialist activity on the Modification Request to submit the modification request to RSP. In the Submit to Specialist window, add any comments or supporting documents (optional) and select OK.  The award modification request transitions to the Review state and will be reviewed by RSP.

How should Divisions best use Tags in RAMP? Are they customizable?

Divisions can use tags in RAMP to manage special reporting or other special requirements managed by the Division. Tags are customizable (i.e., specific to UW-Madison) but must be added to RAMP by the RSP ERA team.

Will department administrators be able to generate their own custom reports (not created by someone else as a custom report) by selecting the fields we want in RAMP?

No. The capability to write reports will be with RSP. A report created in RAMP is not just for the individual user, but for all of campus. All the data will be in the UW’s data warehouse, SFMRT. Departments/Colleges/Schools are encouraged to work with any local IT staff they may have to generate reports. Users are encouraged to reach out to RSP if they have data requests. Once requirements are known, support staff can generate data sets that can be useful. Some limited information is available in WISER as well.

Note: Access to SFMRT and WISER will remain active through 2026--afterward, data will need to be sourced from the EAP datalake, Tableau, or other resources provided by DoIT/WEST. More information will be shared as we get closer to the decommissioning of those systems.

Will Funding Proposal Numbers replace MSN#s in ARROW?

Records originally created in WISPER will retain their MSN ID for easy reference. New records created in RAMP will adopt the FPxxxxxxxx and AWDxxxxxxxx ID convention.

Does RAMP allow users to have multiple tabs open with multiple records (Agreements, Grants, etc.)?

Yes, RAMP allows you to have multiple records open in multiple tabs (as long as you have access to all of the records you want to open).

Is there a section in RAMP where a user can add notes like the comments tab in WISPER?

Yes, there is an “Add Comment” activity on the RAMP Workspaces. Comments will display on the Workspace History tab.

Can I use the back button (arrow) to navigate backwards through smarform pages?

RAMP is a web-based software solution and the back button will work in RAMP; however, it may not have the desired effect depending on the order in which SmartForm pages are accessed. The preferred navigation method is to use the left navigator and Continue buttons to work through a SmartForm.

Does RAMP autosave when I complete questions?

RAMP does not have an autosave feature. Select Save to save the answers on a SmartForm page. Selecting Continue to move to the next page in a set of SmartForm pages will also save a page (in other words, it is not necessary to select Save and then select Continue).

Is there a SmartForm for the compliance questions that I can send my PIs? Can I download them from RAMP?

On the “Compliance Review” page of RAMP, there is a “print” icon near the upper right hand corner. If you select that, it will allow you to print the page to a PDF that can be used to send to a PI, if that would help.

As part of the certification process, is the PI forced to answer the compliance questions?

No. The PI can certify a RAMP record without having answered the compliance questions. However, the record can’t move forward until the questions have been answered, so it will force some conversation to get them answered.

What is happening with Cayuse 424?

Cayuse 424 will be operational until September 2026.

RAMP supports the vast majority of Grant.gov funding opportunities. However, there have been a few instances where opportunities were not available in RAMP and were available in Cayuse. The main reason for extending the Cayuse liscense is to keep the Cayuse "safety net" in place for a bit longer.

RSP still strongly encourages submitting Grants.gov proposals in RAMP whenever possible. Any proposal submitted via Cayuse requires a RAMP record for routing and approval.

Who can we contact if we have questions?

  • For questions regarding proposal submission, sponsor submission systems, Cayuse, or eRA Commons: preaward@rsp.wisc.edu
  • For questions regarding award setup and award modifications: awardacceptance@rsp.wisc.edu
  • For technical issues and support: era@rsp.wisc.edu
  • For access questions, first contact your dean's office.
  • For questions regarding a specific agreements record, contact the RSP contract specialist assigned on the RAMP record.

Will clicking "Continue" in a SmartForm save the data or do I have to click "Save"?

Selecting "Continue" will save the data and move you onto the new view. "Save" will save the data but leave you on the same view.

Will we be using RAMP to track the WARF funding opportunities?

No--these will be tracked as gift projects in Workday.


Please see the "How to Manage Relationships" section (section 7-2) of the Funding Proposal User Guide on the RAMP Resources page.

Is RAMP replacing the Subaward Portal?

Not at this time. It's possible it could in the future, but not anytime soon.

What if I can't find my PI in the RAMP person list?

Please contact the RSP eRA team. The RAMP system gets nightly updates of personnel information from HRS.

What ends up in the My Reviews tab?

Department Review Requests (division staff) and ancillary review requests.

What exactly ends up in my inbox?

  • For all users: Mod Requests you create, Agreements you create, everything you create in Draft state.
  • Deans/Division users: All of the above and funding proposals that have been sent to you for Division Review (called Department Review in RAMP).
  • RSP users: Please see the RSP user guides.

Ancillary Reviews & Communicating Via RAMP

Will RAMP be used to request limited PI status?

Yes. There is an ancillary review type for this. See the Assign and Complete an Ancillary Review guide.

Does the requester receive an e-mail notification when an ancillary review is completed?

Yes.

If someone goes on vacation and this was assigned to that person, how could the approval process move forward? Can you delegate all your approvals to another person if you are out of office?

RAMP currently does not support delegating ancillary reviews. Best practice is to use unit ancillary review approvals instead of individual ancillary review approvals. This would send the ancillary review to a group of people, rather than the specific individual.

Are we able to reassign an ancillary review to another person once one was set up? Or do we delete it and set up a new one?

It’s recommended to delete and add a new one.

Where do the RAMP Send Email requests end up?

Emails can be sent directly in RAMP via the Send Email activity. This activity will both send an email to the recipient and record the transmission in the record history.

Must all Ancillary Reviews be completed prior to routing agreements/records to RSP?

No. Some are required, and some may not be. Please see the specific user guide (Proposal, Award, Agreement, etc.) for specific guidance.

When an Ancillary Review is approved/denied, does the sender/requestor get an email notification?

Yes, the requestor/sender of the ancillary review receives an email notification once the ancillary review is approved/completed.

How do I check if a notifications went out from RAMP and to whom?

  1. Locate the RAMP Record and open the History tab on the Workspace.
  2. Click and open the Activity you are interested in.
  3. On the opened Activity, click View More Details on the top right.
  4. Click the Notifications tab to see notification details and who received it.

 

 

What's the best way to contact RSP on a RAMP Record?

How to best contact the Proposal Team in RAMP: The RSP Proposal Team best practice is to use RAMP “Send Email” as opposed to Ancillary Reviews. Use the “Send Email” activity on the appropriate RAMP record and choose the “Specialist” checkbox. If sending an Ancillary Review, please search for the specialist by name. If a specific Specialist is not indicated on the RAMP record, then search for “ Proposal Team” under “Person”.

How to best contact the Award Setup Team in RAMP: The RSP Award Setup Team best practice is to use RAMP “Send Email” as opposed to Ancillary Reviews. Use the “Send Email” activity on the RAMP record and choose the “Specialist” checkbox. When using “Send Email”, make sure you are on the appropriate record (funding proposal vs. award) so the email gets to the correct recipient.

How to best contact the Contracts Team in RAMP: If you need to send an Ancillary Review for the RSP Contracts Team to review a draft agreement in a Funding Proposal record, please send the Ancillary Review to “Organization”- “RSP Contracts Team”. Please do not send the Ancillary Review to an individual.

How will campus request items of RSP such as F&A waivers using RAMP?

Use the specific ancillary review type. For example, there is a specific F&A waiver type to be used. See the Assign and Complete an Ancillary Review guide.

Divisions & Dean's Offices Specific

Will the Division Dashboard show only records for your division or all records across campus?

As a division user, your “inbox” will show all records needing divisional action. To view records across campus, you can search for them in the Grants module (Grants tab). Additionally, there are various report tiles available to review records division-wide; access following the path Grants > Reports > Custom Reports. These tiles will be under the heading "C/S Division Role Member Dashboard."

Award Set-up

Will effort information entered in RAMP pull into ECC?

RAMP effort data will flow to the RSP commitment tool. Payroll allocations must be entered in Workday. Once everything is posted, actuals will appear in ECC.

How do I set up an outgoing subaward?

Outgoing Subawards:

Use the naming convention "SUB" at the beginning of the financial account. Example: SUB Michigan State Univ [Project Short Name]

  1. If the award has outgoing subawards, you will need to create a separate financial account for each outgoing subaward. Only one financial account will be needed for each subaward regardless of any restrictions on the award. For example, you may have an award without automatic carryover that would require separate finacial accounts for the UW projects each year, but you would only need one financial account for each outgoing subaward.
  2. Ensure that the correct indirect cost base type is selected on each financial acount, and that the GM-15 project type code is used.
  3. After you create the financial account, then you will need to allocate the funds per budget period. You will be allocating the subawardee's total costs as direct costs and then UW's portion of the indirect costs up to $25k per subaward. Mark each allocation either Authorized by Sponsor, Advance Account, or Not Authorized, depending on the situation.
  4. On each budget allocation, you will need to specify the indirect cost base type and rate percentage. Use the F&A fate that is used in the award document. If the proposal used the 55.5% MTDC rate, enter 55.5% on the budget allocation for the outgoing subaward. This will ensure that the proper indirects are calculated for UW-Madison on the first 25k of the subaward.
  5. For each authorized or andvance account allocation, the categorized budget will be reconciled. For an outgoing subaward, the cost categories "SUB <25k" and "SUB >25K" should be used so that the UW's portion of the indirect costs will automatically calculate on the outgoing sub financial account.

 Outgoing Subaward Example

Shared Grants

A shared grant is a subaward procided by one UW System school to another UW System school. Use the naming convention "SHARED" at the beginning othe financial account.. Example: SHARED UW-Milwaukee [Project Short Name]

Use the same process as above, howver - use the cost category "Other No IDC" as UW-Madison cannot claim indrect costs on outgoing shared grants or re-grants.

Re-grants

A re-grant is a unique pass-through funding mechanism (similar to a subaward or shared grant) in which the UW receives funding from a sponsor and then passes it through to a 'grantee' who has been selected from a panel to perform a project of their own design and direction. Use the naming convention ‘REGRANT” at the beginning of the financial account. Example: REGRANT WI Milk Marketing Board [Project Short Name]

Use the same process as above, howver - use the cost category "Other No IDC" as UW-Madison cannot claim indrect costs on outgoing shared grants or re-grants.

Does ARROW talk to RAMP? If I don’t have access to ARROW will this be a problem?

RAMP does pull in Compliance (IRB, IACUC, IBC, Stem Cell) information from ARROW, but only to display on the Compliance SmartForm page of the funding proposal or award. ARROW is where you will relate your protocols record to a RAMP record. See the following for more information: How to Answer Compliance Questions & Associate ARROW Protocols

A lot of divisions are requiring sub-project accounts for each faculty member. Is there a way to do this in RAMP?

Yes, multiple financial accounts (or grants in Workday) can be created for an award. RSP will setup the minimum number of financial accounts to meet sponsor requirements, but the unit can create additional accounts during the award setup process.

What is the best way to communicate with the RSP Award Setup Team in RAMP?

How to best contact the Award Setup Team in RAMP: The RSP Award Setup Team best practice is to use RAMP “Send Email” as opposed to Ancillary Reviews. Use the “Send Email” activity on the RAMP record and choose the “Specialist” checkbox. When using “Send Email”, make sure you are on the appropriate record (funding proposal vs. award) so the email gets to the correct recipient.    

 

 

How do I initiate the award setup process when I receive the notice of award (NOA) in my department/division?

For New Awards

• If department/division receives a notice of award (NOA) for a new award, please send it to awardacceptance@rsp.wisc.edu. Funding awards for new awards will be initiated in RAMP by RSP.

For Existing Awards 

• If department/division receives a notice of award (NOA) for an existing/active award, please locate the award record in RAMP and submit a modification request using “NOA has been received by department/division” as the Request Type. Attach the NOA document for RSP within the Mod Request.

• Alternatively, if RSP receives a notice of award (NOA) for an existing/active award, RSP will initiate the Modification in RAMP.

Resources: 

How do I create separate grants for outgoing subawards at award setup? Will we be able to import the detailed subaward budgets at time of award set up?

  1. If your award has an outgoing subaward, you will need to create a separate financial account for that outgoing subaward. Create one financial account per subawardee; if carryover is restricted, the RSP award setup team will help ensure accounts are further split out by year as well. Use the naming convention “SUB” at the beginning of the financial account. Example: "SUB Michigan State Uni Grant Short Name"
  2. After you create the financial account, then you need to allocate the funds per budget period. You will be allocating the subawardee’s total costs as direct costs and then UW’s portion of the indirect costs up to $25K per subaward. Mark each allocation either Authorized by Sponsor, Advance Account or Not Authorized, depending on the situation.
  3. For each Authorized by Sponsor or Advance Account allocation, the categorical budget will be reconciled. For an outgoing subaward, the cost categories “SUB <25K” and “SUB >25K” should be used so that the UW’s portion of indirect costs will automatically calculate on the outgoing sub financial account. Yes, detailed budgets entered on the proposal can be imported on the award reconciliation page to save time during award budgeting.

For more details, review the How to Complete Subaward Setup-Separate Project IDs and How to Setup a New Award job aids.

Are protocol numbers and dates still needed for award setup?

Yes, they are still required. RAMP records are linked to the protocol in ARROW and then display that protocol information in RAMP.


Yes.

Effort and Cost-Share

How does the effort data in RAMP get used in other tools like the RSP Commitment Tool and ECC?

RAMP effort data will flow to the RSP commitment tool. Payroll allocations must be entered in Workday. Once everything is posted, actuals will appear in ECC.

What does RSP need during a new award setup when I have cost share on my award?

When an award has cost share – regardless of mandatory/voluntary: 

Currently, RAMP is not using the cost share functionality that is built into the system. 

Cost share question 11 on the budget allocation page should indicate “No”, so a RAMP cost share budget is not created.

Instead, a cost share budget should have been uploaded to the RAMP record with the proposal.  If a budget does not exist, one should be created at this time, either an excel spreadsheet or PDF document.

If payroll is cost shared:

  • The cost share budget should list each person being cost shared, the % of cost shared time/effort, and total cost share dollars.
  • The RAMP Effort page should correctly indicate the total effort committed to the project and requested sponsor paid effort, so cost share months are calculated. 
  • Below shows person one has committed 0.95 academic months of effort and is not requesting any of those months paid by the sponsor.  Person two has 2 calendar months of effort, one is paid by the sponsor, the second will be cost shared.Cost Share Example

o   Filename: “[Financial Account Name], Payroll Cost Share Details, YYYYMMDD”

§  The financial account name is used by the set-up team to match the information in RAMP, since grants are not generated until after the award is activated. 

§  If multiple financial accounts, each financial account should have a separate form.

o   This form provides details like the WISPER Projects tab cost share section.

If there are non-payroll items being cost shared (supplies, travel, third party, approved unfunded F&A) and the cost share budget was not included at time of proposal:

·         The cost share budget should include these items by budget categories.

·         Third-party and unfunded F&A may not be part of the original budget format, but should be added, as necessary, to the cost share budget. 

o   Workday requires all cost share to be included in the total cost share budget amount.

All cost share documents should be uploaded on the Funding Award record by the Unit. 

Will we need separate grants for cost share?

Yes, cost share is tracked on grant worktags in Workday.

How should departments/divisions be maintaining the Effort page in RAMP?

All effort for all personnel should be entered (not only key), and at a minimum key personnel should be entered into RAMP before routing to RSP.

This will allow us to have the proper information to more accurately pre-populate other support types of documentation. Departments/divisions will enter this information as normal via the award set-up process.

Any changes needed after the set-up can be requested by the departments/divisions by using the award mod request or send email function to ask RSP to make an update. The data is intended to be used with the RSP commitment tool.

Award Mods & Management

Can I see a pending or approved award modification on the RAMP dashboard?

Records that require your attention/action will appear on the RAMP Dashboard My Inbox tab. However, if you have access to an Award record, you will be able to view all related award records in RAMP (award modification requests, award modifications) but you may have to navigate to the record directly if it does not require your action and is not in the My Inbox tab of the Dashboard.

Why can't I edit or submit an award modification request (AMR)?

Only the admin contact, PI, or an editor on the award record can create an Award Mod Request (AMR), and only the creator of the AMR and the assigned submitter have access to edit/submit it. Once an AMR has been created, there is no way to add additional editors to it outside of reassigning the submitter.

If a modification is in "review" status, can you confirm that departmental administrators can no longer edit the modification at that point? If updates have to be made, would a department have to ask RSP to send it back for edits?

You cannot change a modification once it has been submitted to RSP. RSP would need to send back to make the record editable again

Why doesn't my PI have the option to certify their award or award modification?

The Certify activity only exists on draft and in-review Funding Proposals. The Certify activity does not exist on awarded Funding Proposals, active Awards or Award Modifications. If your Division requires that the PI review & approve an award modification request (AMR) – use the Ancillary Review functionality. Job Aid: How to Initiate an Ancillary Review

How do you handle Supplements in RAMP?

For Supplements, please use the "Create Revision" activity in RAMP from the workspace of the original award record. Please reference the following training video and job aid for additional details on the revision process:

How do I process new USDA Research Service Agreements (RSA and aka Task Orders) and Non-assistance Cooperative Agreements (NACA) in RAMP?

RAMP agreements should NOT be created from the funding proposal for NEW RSAs and NACAs. RSAs and NACAs are not contracts and thus do not need to route to the RSP agreements team. NEW awards will be processed like a grant in RAMP. When choosing the instrument type (#6) in RAMP’s General Proposal Information section, select Grant for the RSAs and Cooperative Agreement for NACAs. Currently, mid-year modifications (awarding funding only) and closeouts (obligations) will be processed as a modification request in RAMP using the NOA received by department/division type. Note: these types of funding mechanisms are CALS specific.

How do I request an advance account or send a modification request to RSP on Continuation/Resubmission/Revision/Renewal records?

If you need to request an advance account or send a modification request to the Awards team on RAMP Continuation/Resubmission/Revision/Renewal records, use the Request Award Modification button on the Funding Award record. The Continuation/Resubmission/Revision/Renewal records do not allow for set-up processing.

Will RSP/Specialist/Submitter be able to see the date/comments in their work queue? Or will they have to open the Award Mod Requests to see the deadline?

RSP will open the request to see the deadline.

How does the RAMP system determine who in RSP to route Mod Requests to?

It is based on type. It gets assigned to an RSP team (post-award, setup, etc.) and then further assigned out to a particular team member.

If there are deadlines to submit these Mods by RSP request/requirement (e.g.: NCE due on 5/31/23), does RSP want us to use the date to start short title? How will RSP know deadlines for mods that have deadlines for submission?

The recommendation is to put the due date in the short title, so it is prominently displayed.

Proposals

When does the funding proposal lock to department/PI edits in RAMP?

The funding proposal record is locked to edits during the Department Review and Specialist Review states. However, the Department Reviewer (Division/College/School) and the RSP Specialist (RSP Proposal Team) can send the Funding Proposal back to a Dept/Unit/PI and it becomes editable again when sent back.

Why can't I create a new continuation or resubmission?

RAMP only allows one active continuation/resubmission at a time. To check if there is already an active record, go to the original funding proposal's workspace and check to see if there is a red message reading "Follow-on in progress" at the top, like so:

A status of "Complete" or "Active" does not actually count the record as complete unless it is linked to an award modification or an award--please contact the RSP Award Setup team at awardacceptance@rsp.wisc.edu for assistance with this.

How do I obtain multiple PI certifications for a Multi-PI funding proposal?

RAMP funding proposals only allow for one PI certification. The Certify activity/link is only available to the Contact PI listed on a Funding Proposal. Additional Principal Investigators on multiple PI applications will certify via Ancillary Review. For Multi-PI or Co-PI proposals, the contact PI will certify the RAMP funding proposal and other PIs will need to certify via ancillary review. Initiate an Ancillary Review from the Funding Proposal Workspace, Select the intended PI, Select the Multi-PI Certification ancillary review Type and copy the UW's certification language into the comments field. For more details see the Multi-PI Certification Job Aid

How do I obtain PI certification on a Funding Proposal that is already in Sponsor Review status?

To obtain certification post-submission, send an Ancillary Review to the PI with the UW Certification Language in the comments. How to Initiate an Ancillary Review

What is a Revision RAMP record used for?

A Revision is a request for additional funds during a current project period to support new or additional activities that are not identified in the current award. The RAMP Revision Record is created from an awarded funding proposal. The RAMP ID number includes a “REV” suffix.

What is a RAMP Renewal Record used for?

A renewal is a request for additional funding for a period subsequent to that provided by a current award. RAMP Renewal Records are created from an awarded funding proposal. Renewals receive a new FP number.

What are RAMP Resubmission Records used for?

RAMP resubmission records are used for a proposal resubmission. A resubmission is unfunded application that has been modified following initial review and resubmitted for consideration. The RAMP resubmission record is created from a non-funded funding proposal. The RAMP ID number includes a “RES” suffix.

What is a RAMP continuation record used for?

RAMP Continuation Records are used for progress reports requiring RSP submission and continuation proposals (or progress reports) that require authorized official or RSP involvement/signatures. For example, NIH RPPRs and other federal or non-federal sponsor progress reports that require authorized official signatures. Continuation Funding Proposal records are created from the record of an active award. Continuation Funding Proposals have unique IDs starting with the Funding Proposal ID and amended with a “Con” suffix (FP00000099-Con1).

How do I handle adding personnel in RAMP who have dual appointments? The wrong appointment is showing up when I go to select my PI.

UW is only able to load one appointment via the person feed to RAMP. The built-in logic tries to pick the "best" position but it won't always be 100% correct given certain circumstances, such as dual appointments. You can select the PI as they appear in RAMP and then change the Department in the RAMP SmartForm – Personnel page.

What is the best way to communicate with the RSP Proposal Team in RAMP?

How to best contact the Proposal Team in RAMP:  

The RSP Proposal Team best practice is to use RAMP “Send Email” as opposed to Ancillary Reviews. Use the “Send Email” activity on the appropriate RAMP record and choose the “Specialist” checkbox. If sending an Ancillary Review,  please search for the specialist by name.  If a specific Specialist is not indicated on the RAMP record, then search for “ Proposal Team” under “Person”.

Important: When completing something in a RAMP pop-up window (such as Ancillary Review), users must click the “OK” button at the bottom of the pop-up window or the request will not save.  Just clicking OK on the Ancillary Review will not save the request.  This also applies to things such as adding attachments.  Anytime you have a pop-up window always make sure to click the OK button. You may have to scroll down to find it.

What does RSP need for a proposal when I have cost share included?

When a proposal has cost share - regardless of mandatory/voluntary: Campus should attach a cost share budget, either as an Excel spreadsheet or a PDF.

  • Filename: "Cost Share Budget YYYY/MM/DD"
  • The cost share budget can be a copy of the submission budget, with the filename edited to include cost share, if that budget already breaks out cost share. 
    • Otherwise, a cost share specific budget should be created to mimic the submission budget categories aand be uploaded separately with other award documents.
  • The cost share should be detailed in the budget justification, or a separate cost share budget justification should be uploaded.
  • Do not use the cost share budgeting tools that are built in RAMP.
    • This will be used when we transition to Workday.

If salary cost will be shared, the cost share budget should list each person being cost shared, the % of time/effort, and total dollars.

If there are non-payroll items being cost shared (supplies, travel, third party, approved unfunded F&A):

  • The cost share budget should include these items by budget categories.
  • Third-party cost share and unfunded F&A may not be part of the original budget format but should be added, as necessary, to the cost share budget.
  • Workday will require all forms of cost share (payroll, non-payroll, third-party, unfunded F&A) to be included in the total cost share budget amount.

All documents should be uploaded to the RAMP record via "Upload Award Documents".

How are the PIs notified that they need to certify a Funding Proposal record? Does that happen automatically?

If the PI hasn’t already certified their Funding Proposal, then they will receive an automated email message from RAMP when the funding proposal moves to the Department Review (Division/School/College) state reminding them of the certification requirement. If you would like to ask the PI to certify prior to this step in the work-flow, you can contact them outside of RAMP or send an "other" ancillary review with the request.

Do we need to create continuations in RAMP for all RPPRs? We currently only use WISPER records for T32 or large program/center grant RPPRs.

Continuations should be used for progress reports requiring authorized official or RSP involvement and are not for new time periods or funds outside of the original proposal. Examples:

  • Use continuation for NIH RPPRs and other federal or non-federal sponsor progress reports needing authorized official signoff.
  • Do not use for non-institutionally endorsed technical reporting (this can be submitted directly by the PI).
  • Do not use for competing continuations or requests for new project periods (use renewal instead).

Do grants admin editors all have automatic edit access to the RAMP FP record so they don't need to be added to the field of people who need edit access?

Grants admin editors will automatically have access to edit the funding proposal SmartForm. However, they will not automatically have access to all activities available on the funding proposal workspace. You must add them as an editor to the record if you would like them to be able to move the record along in workflow (submit to department, etc.) or access other activities.

If this is a S2S grants.gov proposal, then you will need to add them as an editor to the record if you would like them to have access to the SF424.

Can we as research admins create most of the SmartForm and leave the compliance questions for the PI?

Yes.


If you are on the Workspace for the proposal then yes the URL in your browser will serve as a direct link to that record.

When RSP submits the proposal to the sponsor and it goes to sponsor review status, do administrative contacts receive a notification?

Yes. Both the PI and the administrative contact are notified.

Does RAMP accept long file names or large files? Or is there a limit?

Not for RAMP itself. When you're in the SF424, you will need to follow sponsor limitations as we validate against those sponsor requirements.

Where do I attach the budget justification in RAMP?

Budget justifications are attached on the funding proposal budget record and separately on the SF424 record for Grants.Gov system-to-system submissions.

What do I do if I cannot find a sponsor or a subrecipient institution in RAMP?

Complete the Add Sponsor Information form on the RSP website to initiate the new sponsor addition process.

If I entered a subrecipient in another funding proposal record, do I need to enter them again in my new record?

For each proposal where you want to add a subrecipient, you will need to select the subrecipient from the list. For grants.gov submissions going through RAMP, It may be necessary to enter address information for the subrecipient within the SF424 record as part of the Performance Locations section.

Does RAMP have any file upload limitations here? File size, character limit, etc.?

RAMP will accept any reasonable size limit. Larger documents may take longer for the upload process to complete. For uploads that will be submitted to the sponsor, please follow sponsor instructions as it relates to limits, extension types etc.

How will we know when a funding proposal passed Dean's office review and is now awaiting RSP review? Will there be a way to know this in the "internal review" tab e.g. separated out somehow?

The funding proposal will be in a ‘Specialist Review’ state. You may filter for this state in the “internal review” tab.

What does selecting “yes" on the this person is subject to FCOI actually like do? Does it trigger someone to review or something?

Only individuals who have been identified as “Yes” to the FCOI question will appear on the COI tab of the proposal and award workspaces. Selecting “Yes” does not trigger a review in the system.

SF424

If I make a change in the SF424 budget will the change be reflected in the FP budget?

No. If there are changes to budget totals then those should be made in the FP budget and then you can rebuild the SF424 budget using the “Create-Update SF424” activity.

Why can't I find my opportunity?

There is a nightly process that checks for updates to funding opportunities. If you can't find the one you are looking for, please contact era@rsp.wisc.edu.

What do I do if the Create-Update SF424 activity is missing?

Double-check that question 3 on the Submission Information SmartForm page is set to "Yes." If it is "No," change it to "Yes" but you may need to also click Refresh Form Support to get the forms to validate.

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Why am I getting a "Some of the required forms are not supported" error, but all of the forms say "Yes" under Supported?

The funding opportunity may just need to be refreshed. On the Submission Information SmartForm page, click Refresh Form Support. The error should go away after that.

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Why can't I access the SF424?

By default, the funding proposal creator and funding proposal editors/readers have access. Verify the appropriate people have access to the funding proposal before creating the SF424.

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Sometimes, an error occurs during the process of creating the SF424 that causes FP access to not get carried over. Then, even if everyone is correctly listed as an editor or reader, they still won't have access.

In either case, the fix is the same. Review the list of editors/readers on the funding proposal, add anyone missing who needs access, then click the Create-Update SF424 activity. This will re-run the process that gives people access to the SF424. If you've already started editing the SF424, uncheck any forms you don't want to get overwritten; even if you uncheck all forms, the process will still run to give people access.

If I make changes to the Funding Proposal, will it update the SF424 automatically if it has already been created?

No. When creating the SF424 from the Funding Proposal record, only information completed to date will be used to populate the SF424.  There isn’t functionality that allows fields to be populated by changing selections directly on the SF424 record. 

To update the SF424 to match changes you've made to the Funding Proposal, users will need to select the "Create-Update SF424" on the  Funding Proposal.  Users will need to un-check everything except the page(s) they want to update on the SF424.  The SF424 pages selected will be overwritten with information from the Funding Proposal. 

Example:  If the PI hasn’t certified or answered the Compliance questions when the SF424 is created, that information won’t be auto-populated on the SF424.  Users will want to use the "Create-Update SF424" activity to flow the new information into the SF424. 

How do I update or make changes to the SF424 after it has been created?

When creating the SF424 from the Funding Proposal record, only information completed to date will be used to populate the SF424.  There isn’t functionality that allows fields to be populated by changing selections directly on the SF424 record.

To update information on the SF424 after it has been created, users will need to make changes to the Funding Proposal and then use the "Create-Update SF424" activity. Users must un-check everything except the page(s) they want to update on the SF424.  The SF424 pages will be overwritten with the Funding Proposal information. 

 

Where do I find the SF424 PDF that I just "printed" from RAMP?

To Print, first make sure you are on the SF424 Workspace and then click the Generate PDF Version activity on the left side menu of the workspace.  Upon creating the SF424 PDF, go back to the SF424 Workspace and click the small blue "View" hyperlink next to "PDF Version" at the center of the screen. 

*To ensure that you are on the SF424 Workspace as opposed to the FP Workspace.  On the right hand side of the workspace it will say SF-4240000xxxx and SF424 in a blue box. 

 

 

How do I get a fellow to be listed as PI on the RAMP’s SF424 application instead of the faculty sponsor?

The faculty sponsor’s name will flow to the SF424 application automatically from the funding proposal in RAMP. Users will need to manually enter the fellow’s profile information to “override” the faculty mentor as the PI in the SF424. For all budget periods in R&R Budget V3.0, under Senior/Key Person, make sure the Project Role column value for line 1 is 'PD/PI" with the fellow's name. The Project Role in the R&R Budget V3.0 must match the role in the PROFILE PD/PI section of the R&R Senior/Key Person Profile. Note: Once this is done, be careful if re-executing the "Create-Update SF424" activity as it may overwrite the manual changes you made in the SF424 record.

How do I get the RAMP Budget to load to the SF424?

If you experience an issue with the RAMP budget not loading to the SF424, it’s likely due to one of the following:

  • The budget wasn’t completed before the SF424 was created.  The RAMP budget must be complete before the SF424 is created for it to be pulled over successfully. 

OR

  • The budget choice wasn’t selected when the SF424 was created.  To get the budget to load, select the appropriate budget choice when creating the SF424. If users need to later revise the optional forms that were selected when the SF424 was created, they can do so by opening the SF424 and clicking on the Optional Forms Page to make updates.

If Create-Update is done to update forms, what gets overwritten? If we forget to uncheck a box, will it overwrite what we’ve done in the SF424?

When executing the “Create-Update SF424” activity, you can choose which form(s) you want to rebuild. You don’t necessarily need to rebuild all the forms. It will vary from form to form on what data may get overwritten. It is recommended you review all forms each time you execute the “Create-Update SF424” activity.

How smart is the SF424 form, will it advise if any required documents relating to the funding announcement have not been uploaded? For example, if biosketches for senior/key personnel are not included, will the system advise there is an error?

RAMP validates against a lengthy list of validations provided by grants.gov. For certain opportunities, there may be additional NIH specific validations that occur. Yes, RAMP will catch as part of the ‘Validate’ process if you do not upload a biosketch for a Senior/Key Person.

Where does it show the FOA number we're applying to, other than entering it up front if we want to confirm it?

On the main workspace of the SF424 record, it will also display the FOA number there.

Is there a way to see the versions when attaching documents?

Yes. After the document is attached, the number in parentheses is an indication of what version is being displayed.

Is Subaward entity information saved in a directory for use in future submissions?

It is not saved as an organization. If you filled out the information in the SmartForm, it will pull across to the Project/Performance Site Location(s), but it does not save for future use

Does the name of the file show on the final Grant PDF or do we need to be sure to remove version control suffixes/initials?

You should upload the PDF with the exact file name that you desire to the sponsor. File names should not be duplicated within the SF424.

Budgeting

How do you request your division provide a budget review/approval in RAMP?

Ancillary Review – Type: Division Budget Review.

How do I delete a budget?

There is no way to delete a RAMP budget. You can instead answer "No" to question #5 of the General Budget Information SmartForm page to exclude it from consolidated budgets so it doesn't contribute to the total.

How do I submit a revised budget to RSP when the Funding Proposal is in the RAMP Pending Sponsor Review state?

Periodically a revised budget needs to be sent to a sponsor when the RAMP Funding Proposal is already in the Pending Sponsor Review state. Prior to sending the revised budget to RSP, utilize either the Manage Ancillary Reviews activity or the Send Email activity on the RAMP Funding Proposal Workspace to obtain Dean’s Office/Divisional approval. Upon receipt of that approval, notify the RSP Specialist of a requested budget revision by utilizing either the Manage Ancillary Reviews activity or Send Email activity. Attach the budget revision in Excel format to the Ancillary Review Request or Email. Upon receipt, RSP will review and submit to sponsor.

How do I enter a budget in RAMP for NIH Fellowships?

The suggested way is to Use the “Trainee Other”, “Trainee: Stipend”, “Trainee: Travel”, etc. options in the “General cost type” menu. These costs will not populate over into the 424 so you must manually enter in only tuition there. In SMPH, you do still need to create the internal excel budget and attach to RAMP for all to reference and send the division budget review.

How do I budget student hourlies?

Add "Staff Member to Be Determined" in the Personnel section of Budget SmartForm and select undergraduate student. Then annualize the salary (hourly x 2080) and calculate the monthly effort based on expected hours per week.

What if the fringe benefits change several months into the grant year? Our grants run from June through May.

There are 2 ways to do this. (1) use blended fringe rate. (2) A more exact way would be to define intra-year periods on the funding proposal SmartForm in order to apply specific rate values for specific periods of time.

What would we use for participant support budgets?

See Section 10.2.2 “Detailed Participant Support Costs Budget” In the Funding Proposals User Guide.

If we have all of this already set up in a spreadsheet, this is an additional step to key this info into RAMP correct? Is there a way to import a sheet?

Yes, if you continue to use a spreadsheet, entering in RAMP will be additional data entry. There is not a way to import a spreadsheet. There is a way to export the RAMP budget into a spreadsheet.

Do we need to do cost share budgets for the cap gap?

No.

Will F&A be auto populated?

If you are using the "standard" rate (on campus research rate), the current rates that are loaded in RAMP will appear. For all other F&A types, you will manually enter those along with the appropriate base.

If you make edits to the FP budget does it automatically update, or do we have to “reload” that budget part of the package?

It does not automatically update. You can click the “Create-Update SF 424” activity to re-sync changes from the FP budget to the 424 forms. It is always recommended that you complete the budget first, prior to creating the 424, to take advantage of this one-way data pre-population.

Is there an easy way to see the FP budget at the same time as the SF424 budget? Two windows best option?

Two windows may be the best option to see both.

UW switched to bi-weekly rates. Should we still go with person months for budgeting purposes by converting the bi-weekly into monthly?

If it's bi-weekly pay, you would use an annualized salary and budget person month effort against that rate as you do today. Bi-weekly pay comes in on the post-award side since we'll have 2 months with 3 pay periods (26 bi-weekly pays/year).

Will the previously marked inflation section apply to an increase in fringes each year?

The fringe rate will not increase. The salary only will increase. So the current FB rate will be applied to the inflated salary unless you manually adjust the fringe rate.

How do you add Patient Care Costs (outpatient) to a budget?

On the General Cost Definition page of the budget, there is an option for “Patient Care”.

Does the Cloud Computing question drive anything in the budget?

No.

Do I need to use the RAMP budget?

As of 7/23/24, the lump sums for direct and indirect costs should be entered at minimum. Please reference this job aid for instructions: How to Enter Lump Sum Direct & Indirect Budgets. However, SF424 (submission to Grants.gov) requires budgets to be built in RAMP – it’s part of the application package. *If a RAMP budget is not developed during the proposal stage and the proposal is funded, the RAMP award record will need to have a category budget setup.

We submit to sponsors that use FTE for personnel costs and do not use person months. How would I complete the RAMP budget for these sponsors?

You will need to convert the percentage to a person month. However, in RAMP Select the Show Effort button on the personal cost page that will show the percentage of effort everyone will contribute to the project and the percentage of the base salary required.

How does RAMP account for salary caps on the RAMP budget?

See section 3.2.3 “Personnel Costs Page” of the Funding Proposal User Guide. Also, section 10.2.3.2 Over-the-Cap and Additional Cost Share, provides additional information.

We have part-time employees on our proposal budget – are the salaries loaded in RAMP the parttime salaries or does RAMP use an annualized salary?

Annualized.

The RAMP funding proposal and subaward budget forms as if someone is an FCOI investigator, what does this mean?

It's showing if the person meets the definition of an “investigator” as outlined in the PHS FCOI regulations. UW-Madison interprets the regulations that only key personnel are subject to NIH FCOI regulations.

Does the recent move to biweekly pay impact how we budget in RAMP?

No.

How do we increase fringe rates on a RAMP budget?

When entering the personnel costs in RAMP, enter the applicable Effort and Salary Requested (Sal Req) months and modify the Fringe Benefits Rate if necessary.

If we know about upcoming salary increases, where would we update this on the RAMP budget?

The base salary in RAMP is pulled directly from HRS. However, when building the budget in RAMP you have the ability to update the salary.

How do I budget for a U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA NIFA) submission in RAMP?

The NIFA base is a non-standard F&A base, type TDC and rate 42.85% (or whatever your college allows). The recommended tool for budget creation is the USDA budget spreadsheet on the RSP home page. When inputting your budget into RAMP in TDC, each line item asks if it should be included in the F&A calculation; the answer is “Yes”. If there are subawards, each will ask you what the IDC threshold is; the answer is $0. When setting up detailed General/Travel/Participant Support Costs, “include inflation” should be “No”. With all these items in place, you should be able to enter budget numbers as intended and the indirects should calculate correctly.

How do I budget for Participant Support Costs on my NSF proposal in RAMP?

See Section 10.2.2 “Detailed Participant Support Costs Budget” In the Funding Proposals User Guide.

Does RAMP support modular budgeting?

Yes. See Section 3.2.11 of the Funding Proposals User Guide.

How do I budget for cloud computing expenses?

When creating the budgets, create a separate budget for the cloud computing expenses with the 26% indirect cost rate. All other expenses would be in the primary budget with the primary indirect cost rate.

Agreements

Do clinical trials agreements need a RAMP funding proposal?

All funded agreements will need a corresponding funding proposal record. Awards in RAMP are created from funding proposal records and cannot be created directly from an agreement record.


For Addgene MTA records, create the MTA in RAMP and complete the mandatory fields with these additional instructions for the Agreement Upload Page: Question 3: Check “First draft to be generated internally” - an agreement upload is not required for an Addgene MTA. Question 4: Include the Addgene order number in the Project Title. Question 7: Attach the Addgene order confirmation to the Supporting Documents question.

If a start date for an agreement is “Date of signature” and the end date is e.g. “Three years from date of signature” - should we try filling in term dates, or just leave that blank?

You may leave the end date blank and instead note any date details in Question 11 - “Are there any other comments that would be helpful for the RSP staff to process?”

How will we connect/affiliate agreements initiated in RAMP to projects not carried over from WISPER to RAMP? It is my understanding only recent WISPER records will be pushed over to RAMP, but an outgoing MTA’s materials may have been derived from a project that was active 10 years ago.

There will not be a way to make the linkage. A note in the MTA RAMP record will be needed to document the affiliation.


PIs can open the smart forms and follow the questions in order to answer them. RAMP resources for PIs, such as basic navigation, are located on the RAMP training page.

Currently, some units prepare an initial draft agreement using RSP’s templates. It sounds like this RAMP information will be used to “craft” an agreement. Does this mean that the units will no longer need to draft an agreement and upload it to RAMP, and instead RSP will start the agreement using the SmartForm information we provide?

Yes.

Will RSP be checking for ancillary reviews on agreements & amendments initiated under a FP based on specific Division preferred processes? Without this stop, some agreements may inadvertently slip through without Division review.

RSP may look if an ancillary review is sent for a specific reason. However, the agreement record cannot make it to RSP for full review until a deans/division office has signed off.

How do I notify a PI that they need to certify an Agreement Record?

Notifying the PI that certification is required on an agreement can be done in two ways. 1. Outside of RAMP (email/conversation/chat) – sending the PI the RAMP link and # to locate the record. 2. Using an Ancillary Review to the PI, asking the PI to go into the RAMP record to certify/sign. Approval of the Ancillary Review doesn’t automatically certify the record, so the PI would need to locate the record, click the Certify activity, and then respond to the Ancillary Review letting the unit know it’s completed.

Do PIs have to certify all Agreement Module records?

No. PIs do not certify Agreement Module Records for Standard Research Agreements or Clinical Trail Agreements because those agreement types have an associated RAMP Funding Proposal Record. PI certification is obtained at the funding proposal stage instead.

How do I let RSP know there is a true sponsor deadline on an Agreement Module record?

Include the deadline in the title of the Agreement Record.

How do I process new USDA Research Service Agreements (RSA and aka Task Orders) and Non-assistance Cooperative Agreements (NACA) in RAMP?

RAMP agreements should NOT be created from the funding proposal for NEW RSAs and NACAs. RSAs and NACAs are not contracts and thus do not need to route to the RSP agreements team. NEW awards will be processed like a grant in RAMP. When choosing the instrument type (#6) in RAMP’s General Proposal Information section, select Grant for the RSAs and Cooperative Agreement for NACAs. Currently, mid-year modifications (awarding funding only) and closeouts (obligations) will be processed as a modification request in RAMP using the NOA received by department/division type. Note: these types of funding mechanisms are CALS specific.

What if I have an agreement with a short deadline?

If you are submitting an Agreement record with a short deadline (anything less than 2 weeks), please include the deadline on the title of the Agreement itself. For Example, you might title the agreement: Non-Disclosure Agreement deadline 07/26/2023.

What is the best way to communicate with the RSP Contracts Team in RAMP?

How to best contact the Contracts Team in RAMP:   If you need to send an Ancillary Review for the RSP Contracts Team to review a draft agreement in a Funding Proposal record, please send the Ancillary Review to “Organization”-RSP Contracts Team”.  Please do not send the Ancillary Review to an individual.

Important: When completing something in a RAMP pop-up window (such as Ancillary Review), users must click the “OK” button at the bottom of the pop-up window or the request will not save.  Just clicking OK on the Ancillary Review will not save the request.  This also applies to things such as adding attachments.  Anytime you have a pop-up window always make sure to click the OK button. You may have to scroll down to find it.

 

 

How do I upload DocuSign Documents in the RAMP Agreements Module?

To upload a copy of the email: Drag the email from your Outlook app to the desktop. From RAMP, upload a new agreement and select the email that was downloaded to the desktop.

To upload a copy of the agreement in the DocuSign e-mail: Open the DocuSign link. Click the download button on the DocuSign page. Go to RAMP and upload the PDF that you downloaded from the DocuSign page. In RAMP, select where to upload: 1. PDF of Agreement to Agreements. 2. Email to other Supporting Documents in the SmartForm.

Important Note:

Do not just upload the email (email = DocuSign envelope). This can cause a problem because, while RSP can open the email, DocuSign links expire after a set period and, when they do, DocuSign sends a new email to the original email address. If only an email/envelope is uploaded and the link expires, RSP can’t see the agreement unless they were the original recipient of the DocuSign. This will result in additional correspondence with requests for the documents.

Questions or concerns? Contact the RAMP team at ramp@rsp.wisc.edu