Review and negotiation of all sponsored program award types (grants, contracts, cooperative agreements, industry agreements, international agreements, incoming and outgoing subawards, NDAs, DUAs, MTAs, etc.) are handled by the Division of Research Administration Contracts team (DRA). When other University office involvement is required, such as general counsel, UTRF, compliance officers, etc., DRA facilitates those ancillary reviews and incorporates feedback into the review and negotiation process.
When an award is received by the University, DRA is responsible for comparing the proposal against the award to ensure accurate budget, SOW, and other programmatic information is included in the award, determining if any compliance reviews are required, initiating those reviews, and negotiating the terms and conditions of the award (including prime flow downs where applicable).
This process can involve engaging supervisors, counsel, or other University offices, depending on the circumstances, to confirm the University can accept and comply with the terms. DRA also engages with the PI to confirm they accept the programmatic terms and asks any questions necessary of the PI and their business manager as part of the review.
The circumstances of each award can be unique and range from straightforward to review and accept to complex and requiring significant negotiation. While no rule is absolute, the following are common indicators of how complex awards can be to review and negotiate, which generally influences how long reviews take to complete. Complexity can also be compound when multiple factors are involved on the same award.
Most straightforward scenarios:
- Federal funding with standard research terms and conditions
- Sponsor accepts UT template agreements
- No compliance or other ancillary reviews required
Increasing complexity
- Federal funding with terms and conditions such as FAR, DFARS, etc.
- Conflict of Interest review
- Export Control review
- Publication restrictions
- Cost share / institutional commitments
Further increasing complexity
- Compliance protocols or plans required (TCP, IRB, IACUC, COI, etc.)
- Increased research security requirements
- Terms that run contrary to Tennessee law
- Subawards to be issued
Often most complex factors
- International sponsors or collaborators
- Negotiation of intellectual property terms
Once the award is accepted, it is passed on to DRA’s Financial Management and Compliance team for account set-up and post-award financial monitoring.