• New METACyt funding in round 3 will focus almost entirely on collaborative projects intended to serve as a springboard for large scale federally funded initiatives such as program project grants, and centers of excellence. Such initiatives should be clearly delineated in the proposal.  Collaborators from IUSM may be eligible for funding if the PI is from IUB. The Neuroscience Node will also consider single investigator proposals on an equal basis. Single investigator proposals for other nodes will still be entertained, but will be given an extremely low priority . Such projects must be deemed exceptionally competitive and will be considered only if there is funding remaining after all multi-user proposals are evaluated.  Examples of projects that might be fundable are listed below:
• Continuation support for previously supported METACyt work that appears to be highly promising and is nearing fruition.  Evidence of strong progress in the previous grant period is essential, as is a specific target for independent funding.
• Exceptionally exciting and novel ideas that require modest seed funding to generate sufficient results for federal funding.  These projects must fit into one of the previously described research node areas of interest. (METACyt nodes include: Analytical Technology Development; Cell Signaling and Differentiation; Microbial Systems; Molecular Evolutionary and Development Biology; and Neuroscience.)
• Seed projects that can translate in the near term into important and commercially viable IP in the life sciences.

For this round we are requesting brief preproposals. 

Preproposals should be as brief as possible and should in no case exceed one page.  They should be submitted by email to  Metacyt@indiana.edu   and addressed to Malinda Lingwall, METACyt information manager.  The letter should briefly describe the scope and nature of the project, name the key faculty involved to the extent possible and give an estimate of the budget required.  The preproposals will be vetted by the operating committee simply to ensure that they are consistent with the scope of the RFP.  Preproposals selected for further consideration will be assigned to a METACyt node for further review.  Preproposals need not necessarily specify all collaborators, but should focus on the central idea being pursued. All applicants will be notified of the status of their preproposal and those selected for further consideration will be invited to submit a full proposal under guidelines that will be posted at that time.

Preproposals due	TBD
Request for full proposals	TBD
Full proposals due	TBD

Additional proposal review and solicitation considerations

The METACyt initiative has been an important source of research support and funding for IU Bloomington over the last two years.  As we progress toward the midpoint of the initiative's lifetime, we are mindful that the overriding goal of the initiative is to create sustainable research structures that will last long past the expiration of the initiative.  To that end, the decision has been made to focus on areas that may lead to larger scale multidisciplinary research initiatives capable of achieving long term funding.  METACyt has received a large number of proposals in the last two rounds of solicitation- far more than our funding is capable of supporting.  Some of those applications were deemed outside the scope of the initiative. We acknowledge that some excellent science will not be funded because of project scope.  However, given the limited funds at our disposal, and the need to focus the initiative so that it will have the greatest chance of leveraging funding in the selected areas, we have decided to continue to maintain the focus dictated by the node structure under which the initiative was originally conceived.  Those who have questions about whether or where their projects will fall under the node structure are encouraged to speak with the relevant node directors.