Click here to access the Award Acceptance section of the Post-Award Sponsored Projects Guide, page 19.
Award Acceptance
The vehicle for award acceptance, a notice of award, is a legal agreement between the University and the sponsor. Award notices can assume the form of formal contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements. Before accepting an award or beginning work on an award, OSP must review the award notice for compliance with University policy and good business practice.
If an award notification is sent to the Principal Investigator or to a departmental office, the award notice and any agreements or contract materials must be forwarded immediately to OSP for review and acceptance.
The award document is an official agreement regarding the scope of work, the amount of support the sponsor will provide, any cost sharing commitments on the part of the University, and other terms and conditions that govern the project. Award notices typically contain the following information:
- Title or description of the project
- Award beginning and ending dates
- Dates of the budget period, which may or may not coincide with the dates for the total project period
- Name of the Principal Investigator who is responsible for conducting the project in accordance with University policies and sponsor requirements
- Dollars committed or obligated
- Note: Not all project funds may be released at the beginning of the project. The sponsor is under no legal obligation to pay dollars not yet obligated.
- Future year commitments, which are funds that are contingent upon their availability as well as on satisfactory progress on the project
- Restrictions on spending which may be imposed by the sponsor and therefore limit the kinds of costs that can be charged to the project
- Terms of payment, e.g., letter of credit or invoice
- Milestones or deliverables, which are specific work products that the University must deliver to the sponsor
- Reporting requirements
- Note: Virtually all awards require technical and financial reports. Some awards also require patent and property reports.
- Cost sharing or matching expectations if applicable
- Budget, particularly if it has changed from the budget submitted at the proposal stage.