VU SOM Letters of Support Guidelines

VU School of Medicine Letters of Support – General Guidelines

All requests for letters of support should be sent to the attention of Anthony Tharp (anthony.c.tharp@vanderbilt.edu) in the Office of the Dean of Basic Sciences.

VU SOM Letters of Support Guidelines (PDF)

Requests for letters of general support should be submitted at least two weeks prior to the preferred grant submission date.

Requests for letters of support (LOS) that ask for specific financial, space or other material resource commitments from the institution should be submitted at least 30 days prior to the preferred grant submission date.

Requests should include:

• Draft LOS for editing (Word document)
• Brief summary of the project including project title, co-investigators or key personnel, and program name with solicitation number
• Complete budget (all years) including subcontracts.

NOTE: Although VU and VUMC are legally separate entities, LOS often highlight Vanderbilt’s strengths such as our unique trans-disciplinary environment and highly collaborative culture. However, draft VU SOM LOS should particularly focus on VU personnel, cores and collaborations. Additional information may be requested from you to help with tailoring a highly effective letter for you.

Letters of support are subject to review, editing and approval. LOS will be signed by the Dean of Basic Sciences in the VU School of Medicine. If matching funds, space or any other material resources are committed by VU but outside the School of Medicine, then letters will be co-signed by the appropriate Dean or Vice Provost for Research.

NOTE:  In addition, if there will be a subaward to VUMC, it may be necessary to obtain separate letter(s) of support from the VUMC Executive Vice President for Research or VUMC Chief Operating Officer. In such cases, the VU SOM will work with the grant PI to facilitate with the Office of Research, as needed.

Templates and Style Guide:

Template documents are available for use in preparing your draft LOS. They are offered as guidance, not rules. Also, VU and VUMC have adopted a Style Guide. It provides useful tips such as language for how to refer to each entity (VU and VUMC) when writing drafts. Templates and the Style Guide are available at your request.

S10 Example Letter of Support (PDF)
T32 Example Letter of Support (PDF)
Style Guide (PDF)
Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center Letter of Support (PDF)

We welcome your feedback and suggestions. Please send any comments to Anthony Tharp.