SAGe System Guide – Version 1.

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Writing a Review (from version 12. 14.13)

Contents
1. Introduction..................................................................................................................................................... 2
2. Receiving an email requesting an expert review ............................................................................................ 3
3. Commands of the SAGe system ...................................................................................................................... 4
3.1 Logging into the SAGe System ................................................................................................................. 4
3.2 Checking which files are awaiting my review .......................................................................................... 4
3.3 Entering a review ..................................................................................................................................... 8
3.3.1 Declaring conflict of interest .............................................................................................................. 8
3.3.2 Visualizing other reviews already entered for a file ........................................................................... 9
3.3.3 Preparing the review ........................................................................................................................10
Entering your evaluation online .......................................................................................................10
Writing your review offline ................................................................... Erro! Indicador não definido.
3.3.4 Visualizing your review to create a printable version ......................................................................11
3.3.5 Submitting your review ....................................................................................................................12
3.4 Visualizing your review ..........................................................................................................................13
3.5 Declining an invitation to review ...........................................................................................................14
4. Cancelling the invitation ................................................................................................................................15

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1. Introduction
Every research proposal received by FAPESP goes through a peer review process, relying on reviewers
from all over the world, who are experts in the proposal’s field.

FAPESP requests peer reviews for three kinds of documents – the Proposal itself (and eventual requests
for Reconsideration), its subsequent Scientific Progress Reports, and Requests for Change.

The goal of this manual is to help expert reviewers enter their reviews using the SAGe system,
illustrating all procedures step by step.

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2. Receiving an email requesting an expert review
To invite an expert reviewer, FAPESP sends him/her a mail message whose contents are similar to those
shown in Figure 1.

The invitation message contains the identification of the corresponding Process, as well as the review due
date, as shown in the figure.

The message will also contain instructions of how to log into the SAGe system, and to enter the review.

Figure 1 – Review assignment e-mail

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3. Commands of the SAGe system
This section describes how to enter a review using the SAGe system.

3.1 Logging into the SAGe System

After receiving the email invitation, please access the SAGe system at address
http://www.fapesp.br/sage/, logging into the system using your username and password (which you should
have registered previously).

Figure 2 – Accessing the SAGe system

Attention!

If you do not yet have a SAGe account, you must create your SAGe registration, following the instructions
presented in the “User Registration” manual, available by clicking on the “Guides” link.

3.2 Checking which processes are awaiting my review

After entering SAGe, you can visualize your review assignments using one of the following menu
sequences:

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  “Processes”  “My Review Assignments” in the menu bar:

Figure 3 – My Review Assignments (3st option)

 “Processes pending my review” in the shortcuts menu:

Figure 4 – Processes pending my review (2nd option)

You will be presented with a list of all processes that are awaiting your review (your so-called “review
assignments”). Each process in the list will show its status, review due date, and other details, as illustrated by
the following screen copy. This example shows that your list contains two processes for Proposal analysis and
two processes for analysis of Request for Change:

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 Figure 5 – Check processes awaiting my review

To visualize details of a process, click on the link that displays the Process number or on the one in the
“Document(s) to review” column, as shown below:

Figure 6 – Click on the Process number to visualize process details

When you click on the process number, you will be able to access a set of documents associated with the
Process, including not only the research proposal itself, but also other documents, such as those included by
FAPESP.

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 By system default, your list will only show processes pending your review (status “Not started” or
“Pending completion”). You can also check processes with other status situations, using the link “Search”, as
shown below.

The “Search” option lets you look for all processes that you have been invited to review, regardless of
their status. You can restrict your search using several criteria, as illustrated by the figure below:

Figure 7 – Search criteria to check other processes for which a review was requested

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3.3 Entering a review

To enter a review, select the appropriate process by checking the box on the rightmost column , and
click on “Write Review”

Figure 8 – Selecting a process to enter a review

3.3.1 Declaring conflict of interest

When you select a process to enter its review, FAPESP’s Statement of Conflict of Interest (Figure 9) will
appear. Please read this statement carefully, selecting the appropriate option, before you continue the review
process. You will need to click the “Save” button to confirm your selection (conflict or non conflict).

Important:

Any relationship with the Applicant(s) that may keep you from writing an impartial review are potential
sources of conflict of interest. The most frequent situations are: participation in the project to be reviewed
(either in the present or in the past); regular collaboration, in research activities or in publications, with
any of the Applicant(s); financial/commercial interests in the proposed research; or family relationship
with one of the Applicant(s). In any such case, you should immediately return the process to FAPESP,
clicking on the option “I have conflict of interest”, and then on “Save”.

If you have no conflict of interest, after you click on “Save” you will be directed to the evaluation form,
to enter your review.

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 Figure 9 – Declaration of Conlict of Interest

3.3.2 Visualizing other reviews already entered for a process

At any time, can browse your reviews. In some cases, you may also be given permission to see other reviews
submitted for the same process. To see these reviews, and also reviews you may have entered previously for
the same process number, click on link “Reviews I have completed”.

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 When you click on this link, the system will open a new window that will allow you to see other reviews
for the same process.

To see other reviews entered for the same process, click on the “Review Status/Overall Rating” field, as
illustrated in the figure below.

Figure 10 – Other reviews entered for the process

3.3.3 Preparing the review

Entering your evaluation

The evaluation form is opened automatically when you click on “Write review”. Figure 11 illustrates this.

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 Attention!

We strongly recommend that you save your review periodically, while entering it, to ensure that it is not
lost in case a problem occurs, e.g., if the network connection drops. To save your review, please click on

the icon (on the left) or on (at the bottom of the screen).

Please keep in mind that you must save your review every time you log out, until you finish and submit it.

Figure 11 – Entering your review online

If you do not enter any text for 60 minutes, your session will expire. In such a case, SAGe will save the
current version of your review before cancelling your session.

3.3.4 Visualizing your review to create a printable version

At any time, you can visualize a printable version of your review clicking on “Print Preview”, as shown in
the figure below. This shows how your review will be visualized at FAPESP.

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 Figure 12. Option Print Preview

Your review will be shown in a new window.

3.3.5 Submitting your review

Some funding lines require that you enter an Overall Rating when you submit your review. In such cases,
the system will prompt you to enter the rating, as shown in Figure 13.

Figure 13. Entering the overall rating

To submit your review to FAPESP, click on the icon (on the left) or on the button (at the
bottom of the screen). The system will then show the following screen:

You will receive a mail message confirming that your review was successfully concluded, as show on Figure
14.

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 Figure 14 – E-mail message confirming that the review was successfully received.

3.4 Visualizing your review

If at any time you want to visualize a review, go to the “Reviewer Assignments” screen and click on
“Visualize Review” as shown in Figure 19. You can also visualize reviews you have already submitted.

Figure 15 – Selecting a process to visualize its review

If you click on “Visualize Review” and you have not started to enter your review, it status will change from
“Not started” to “Pending Completion”.

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3.5 Declining an invitation to review

Important:

If you are unable to prepare your review within the requested period, please notify FAPESP at once,
so that FAPESP can invite another reviewer. In this case, click on Decline Review Invitation, as detailed
below.

To decline a review invitation, go to “Reviewer Assignments” and click on “Decline Review Invitation”,
as shown in Figure 16.

Figure 16 - Select process to decline invitation

To decline the invitation, you will be requested to provide a justification. Enter it in the appropriate
field, and click on “Confirm”.

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 Figure 17 – Declining an invitation – entering a justification

You will receive a message to acknowledge that FAPESP is aware that you will be unable to provide a
review.

Figure 18 – Message in which FAPESP acknowledges your information that you will be unavailable to review the process

4. Cancelling the invitation

At any time, and until you submit your review, FAPESP may withdraw a review invitation (“un-invite
message”). In such a case, you will receive a mail message to that effect, as shown in Figure 19. You will no
longer be able to enter or edit your review on SAGe.

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In this situation, you do not need to perform any additional action.

Figure 19 – Message canceling the review invitation (un-invite message)

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