OPA Research Fellowship Program

The purpose of this OPA RFP PA is to solicit offers from interested applicants to establish partnership/relationship which includes a program for university students, post-doctoral researchers and faculty members to conduct mutually-benefitting research which supports OPA's research program, as described herein, and also provides learning and process-development benefits to the researchers using OPA data. The applicant shall provide the necessary management and support for the RFP for research described herein. Such support should address the following requirements: a) Provide appropriately trained and experienced undergraduate and graduate students, Post-doctoral researchers, and faculty for conducting mutually-benefitting research that is compatible with, and contributes to, OPA research, analysis, and studies; b) Match faculty expertise to mutually-benefitting research and study needs within OPA; c) Facilitate a mentoring relationship between OPA researchers and undergraduate and graduate students and post-doctoral researchers; d) Provide a structured approach for OPA researchers to collaborate with university* faculty and graduate students on mutually-benefiting research projects; and e) Provide research space (to include laboratory space when applicable) for conducting research to support the OPA program if proposed by faculty. *The term "University" is used throughout this Program Announcement to refer to a post-secondary regionally accredited college or university. The OPA RFP will further science and technology through basic and applied research, studies, analysis and evaluations with this research having the potential for both civilian and military applications. It will also enable the university, faculty and student researchers the benefit of learning by using OPA data. Under the OPA RFP, candidates are sought to conduct collaborative research, applying their knowledge and talent to research areas that are of interest to them and potentially to OPA. Fellows will perform scholarly research at OPA, which should embody research ideas of the individual and which are of interest to OPA. To facilitate the Fellow selection, the Applicant should propose a competitive application process that incorporates OPA evaluation of the research and capability provided. It is important that a research application be consistent and complimentary with OPA facilities and interests, supporting or stimulating OPA basic and applied research programs. The term 'Fellows' refers to faculty, students, or post-doctoral researchers who will perform scholarly research under the OPA Research Fellowship Program cooperative agreement. NOTE: No Fellow under this program will be considered an employee of OPA or the Department of Defense under any circumstance.

To facilitate the Fellow selection, the Applicant should propose a competitive application process that incorporates OPA evaluation of the research and capability provided. It is important that a research application be consistent and complimentary with OPA facilities and interests, supporting or stimulating OPA basic and applied research programs. The term 'Fellows' refers to faculty, students, or post-doctoral researchers who will perform scholarly research under the OPA Research Fellowship Program cooperative agreement. NOTE: No Fellow under this program will be considered an employee of OPA or the Department of Defense under any circumstance.

a) Provide appropriately trained and experienced undergraduate and graduate students, Post-doctoral researchers, and faculty for conducting mutually-benefitting research that is compatible with, and contributes to, OPA research, analysis, and studies; b) Match faculty expertise to mutually-benefitting research and study needs within OPA; c) Facilitate a mentoring relationship between OPA researchers and undergraduate and graduate students and post-doctoral researchers; d) Provide a structured approach for OPA researchers to collaborate with university* faculty and graduate students on mutually-benefiting research projects; and e) Provide research space (to include laboratory space when applicable) for conducting research to support the OPA program if proposed by faculty. *The term "University" is used throughout this Program Announcement to refer to a post-secondary regionally accredited college or university.

The purpose of the Cooperative Agreement (CA) to be awarded as a result of this Funding Opportunity is to establish and administer the OPA Research Fellowship Program (OPA RFP) to provide OPA with university students, post-doctoral researchers and faculty for the conduct of collaborative research. The OPA RFP includes six Fellow designations: Assistant Research Fellow; Associate Research Fellow; Doctoral Research Fellow; Postdoctoral Research Fellow; Senior Research Fellow; and Sabbatical Fellow (as described later). The OPA RFP is expected to contribute significantly to the overall efforts of OPA and DoD by establishing a mutual-benefiting partnership/relationship which supports development of new research processes and technologies. This CA will be issued under the authority of 32 C.F.R. § 21.420 (b) and (c). There is no intent to acquire goods or services to benefit OPA or DoD .

5 years

The following represents the evaluation criteria for this PA: The award decision will be based on an overall evaluation of each applicant's proposal in accordance with the factors set forth below. The four factors are: (A) Plan to Identify Fellows to Perform Research with Technical Merit, (B) Past Performance, (C) Management Plan, and (D) Cost.

After a proposal is submitted through Grants.gov, the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) will receive a series of three e-mails. It is extremely important that the AOR watch for and save each of the e-mails. An Applicant will know that the proposal has been properly received when the AOR receives e-mail Number 3. Retain the Submission Receipt Number (e-mail Number 1) to track a submission.

 Number 1 - The AOR will receive a confirmation page upon completing the submission to Grants.gov. This confirmation page is a record of the time and date stamp for the submission.  Number 2 - The AOR will receive an e-mail indicating that the proposal has been validated by Grants.gov within a few hours of submission. (This means that all of the required fields have been completed.)  Number 3 - The third notice is an acknowledgment of receipt in e-mail from Grants.gov. The email is sent to the AOR for the institution. The e-mail notes that the proposal has been received and provides the assigned tracking number. THE PROPOSAL IS NOT CONSIDERED PROPERLY RECEIVED UNTIL THE AOR RECEIVES E-MAIL #3. An Applicant is responsible for submitting proposals so as to be received and accepted at the Government site indicated in this Program Announcement no later than the date and time specified above. When sending electronic files, an Applicant shall account for potential delays in file transfer from the originator's computer to the Government website/computer server. An Applicant is encouraged to submit their response early to avoid potential file transfer delays due to high demand or problems encountered in the course of submission. An Applicant should receive confirmation of delivery at the Government site, not just successful relay from the Applicant's system. Acceptable evidence to establish the time of receipt at the Government site includes documentary and electronic evidence of receipt maintained by the Government site. All submissions shall be submitted before the deadline identified above in order to be considered - no exceptions. Late submissions will not be considered for award.

Grant will be awarded within 15 days - no appeals.