Office of Sponsored Programs Last updated 10/24/2018

Letters of Commitment, Collaboration, and Support

Overview. Many proposals require or allow letters from your institution, administrators, partners,

and collaborators. Some funding organization request letters of support or commitment and

others do not allow them. The Department of Education, for instance, rarely asks for letters,

and, if included, would count against the proposal page count. The National Science

Foundation, on the other hand, requires letters of collaboration, especially from the proposing

institution and project partners, but does not allow letters of support. Other funding agencies

the partner’s rationale for supporting the project and point to strengths of the

organization that could be of value in implementing or sustaining the project.

Letter of Collaboration – indicates the signatory’s intent to collaborate and/or commit

resources as described in the proposal or the letter, should the proposal be funded.

Note that NSF now only allows letters of collaboration (unless otherwise requested) and

specifies how they should be written in its Proposals and Awards Procedures and

Policies Guide. OSP has a template for the NSF Letters of Collaboration on its website.

Letter of Support – expresses the organization’s knowledge and support of the project,

including why the project is important and how it relates to the organization’s mission or

expressed goals. May address the proposer’s qualifications or abilities to complete the

It is often useful if you, after conversations with the writer, draft the letter or give the writer a list

of talking points of things to include. This is especially important if resources are being

committed. Use the following guidelines in preparing letters:

• Keep letters short and to the point.

• Be specific about the nature of the collaboration or commitment.

• Usually indicate concrete actions the signer is committed to provide during the project.

• Do not commit to any dollar amount of funds or resources

unless you have permission

from OSP (the Program Director of Sponsored Research).

• Don’t use form letters; make each letter unique (except for NSF Letters of Collaboration).

Office of Sponsored Programs Last updated 10/24/2018

• Letters from a UVU Vice President or Dean require a week for approval.

• Letters from the UVU President, which are rarely requested, require two weeks

(10 business days).

• Letters from business and community partners should have been discussed and agreed

to long before the submission date. These may also take up to a week to get approval.

• Letters must be printed on letterhead paper

of the signer’s organization, signed, and

scanned as a pdf document.

• The PI should keep a signed original copy of the letter in the event the proposal is

XYZ Systems Inc.

Office of Sponsored Programs Last updated 10/24/2018

Example 2 – Partner Letter of Commitment and Support

Eric Luetkenhaus

U.S. Department of Labor

Employment and Training Administration

Division of Federal Assistance

the U.S. Department of Labor.

Our nation has been losing a large portion of our manufacturing base business to overseas and

low labor countries. The economic pressures that this trend has created here in the US are

tremendous. Many companies could prevent this inevitable transition if personnel familiar with

more high tech automated manufacturing methods were available. Many companies currently

rely on automated equipment to support their efforts of producing products at a higher rate, with

better quality for less money. To accomplish this, companies must have technicians trained in

the high tech automation and manufacturing disciplines.

XYZ Systems will be pleased to partner with UVU in this program by providing knowledgeable

technicians to give demonstrations to students and future students about career opportunities

in the field of Mechatronics. As the program progresses, we will offer several internship

opportunities annually to qualified students and will consider graduates of the program for

full-time employment. A member of XYZ Systems will also serve on the Advisory Board for

the program and assist the program in other capacities as needed.

I highly recommend your support of this funding and can assure you that U.S. companies will

greatly benefit from the resultant training and education that students entering this program will

Vice President of Sales and Marketing

Notice that a letter of commitment

is stronger than just a letter of

support because it indicates the

organization will use its resources

to help the project be successful.

Office of Sponsored Programs Last updated 10/24/2018