Helpful Hints
Introduction
Sponsored Projects Information Files – SPIFi – is a database
maintained by the Office of Sponsored Projects Administration (OSPA) of
externally funded sponsored projects awarded to faculty and staff at the
Search
SPIFi allows you to search by a number of elements in each project record. You may search by the name of the Investigator (principal and co-investigator), the sponsor name or from several elements that describe the subject matter. Any word, partial word or phrase in the title or the abstract may be queried. Freeform Keywords provided by the PI or Topical Areas selected by the PI from a prescribed list and indicated on the Internal Approval Form may also be searched. Beginning in 2004 the extensive Community of Science Thesaurus will replace Keywords and Topical Areas as descriptors for new proposal submissions.
The default logic between each of the search elements is AND. Therefore, the more elements that are chosen, the more refined the search. For example, if the words “cells” is typed in the Project Title box and no other elements are selected, the results will include all active sponsored projects that have “cells” in the title. If a second query adds “American Cancer Society” to the Sponsor Name box, all active projects funded by the American Cancer Society with “cells” in the title will be listed.
A search may also be expanded or refined by changing the operators from the drop-down box for each search element. The default operator is “contains,” but may be changed to “begins with,” “ends with,” “equal,” or “is not.”
Definitions
Project Title
The title provided by the Principal Investigator (PI) on the
Key Words
Up to five words to describe the project designated by the
PI on the
Abstract
Beginning with projects active as of January 2004, any abstract that was included in the proposal to the sponsoring agency will become a part of the data record in SPIFi. You may search for words or phrases contained in the abstract.
Topical Area
Terms chosen by the PI from the list of 27 areas on the Internal Approval Form.
Thesaurus
NOT YET AVAILABLE. An extensive list of terms provided by the Community of Science which will be used to describe the subject matter of the project. Beginning in 2004, the PI will choose up to five words from this list when completing an electronic IAF. The Thesaurus will replace Key Words and Topical Areas for proposals submitted by E-IAF, but historical data will be maintained for proposals submitted up to that point.
The unique number assigned by the Office of Sponsored Projects Administration (OSPA) to each proposal when submitted. The number is the date and time the record was entered. Results of queries in SPIFi may be sorted alphabetically by the Investigator last name or by the most recent to the oldest Proposal Number.
Sponsor Name
The name of the external agency that funded the project (e.g. National Institute of Health, American Cancer Society). There is a separate Search button to select the sponsor name from a prescribed list. Characteristics of the list are provided from the Sponsor Search box, such as the standard set of abbreviations (e.g. National is abbreviated Natl).
Agreement Type
A code to describe the funding instrument, such as “cost reimbursement grant.” A list of the codes is provided in a drop down box.
Sponsor Type
A code to describe the nature of the sponsoring agency, such as “federal.” A list of the codes is provided in a drop down box.
Department Name
The university unit responsible for administering the sponsored project. A separate search button is provided to choose the name from a prescribed list.
Dept Code
The university department code assigned to the department name above. When a name is chosen using the Department Name Search the corresponding code populates this Dept Code field.
The unique ledger 4 account number for the sponsored project.
Investigator Last Name
The last name of either a PI or co-PI as listed on the UK IAF for the project. You may search for PI and co-PI or limit the search to PI only by checking the “PI Only” box.
Investigator First Name
The first name of either a PI or co-PI.
Data Limit
Your search results will default to a list of currently active sponsored projects. However, you may set the limit at projects active within the last 5 years, 10 years or all available data. The data base includes projects active from 1982 to the present.
Sort Order
The order of your search results will default to listing the most recent proposal number first through the oldest. You may also select “Last Name” and the results will sort alphabetically by the Investigator last name.
