Click here to access the Beginning Work on an Award section of the Post-Award Sponsored Projects Guide, page 18.
Beginning Work on an Award
Work can officially begin on a sponsored project on or after the award’s official start date as indicated on the award notice or contract and when the agreement has been fully executed by both parties or when a binding commitment from a sponsor has been received and the terms and conditions of the award have been accepted.
Pending Approvals
In certain circumstances, it may be necessary to obtain a project number for a sponsored award before the award is finalized. It may also be necessary, upon occasion, to incur project costs before the award process is completed. For example, a Principal Investigator may wish to begin the hiring process before the actual project start date. In such situations, it may be permissible to begin work on the project provided that:
- Pre-award activities are allowed by the sponsor
- OSP approves a pending award
- OCGA sets up a pending project and enters the information into PeopleSoft.
Prior to the finalization of an award, project charges should not be made to a departmental account and then transferred to a sponsored project when the award is established. Charges should be made to a sponsored project pre-award pending project only so that they receive proper review and oversight. Furthermore, project charges should never be incurred on another sponsored project with the intent to transfer them to a different project at a later date.