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Office of Sponsored Programs at the University of Virginia
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Course Outlines

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Costing Basics - This is a Core Course This session will provide a broad overview of costing practices and guidance such as:

  • Cost Accounting Standards (CAS)
  • Proper use of expenditure types
  • General cost allocation topics
  • The life cycle of a sponsored project
  • What guides our decisions

    • Through the training, participants will learn to:
    Define direct and indirect costs and their criteria
    Identify resources for administrators in maintaining CAS compliance
    Distinguish between non-allowable F&A costs and allowable F&A costs/justification
    Explain the roles of OSP and the departments in following CAS.
    Review methods to spot potential difficulties BEFORE they become problems.

    These sessions are available to anyone interested including:

    • Grant administrators
    • Graduate Students
    • Lab technicians/Lab managers
    • Fiscal technicians/Office managers involved with purchasing and charging items to sponsored projects

    Class size: Limited to 20

     

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    Advanced Studies in Cost Accounting Standards (CAS)-
    This is a Concentration Course
    Building on information provided in the "Introduction to Cost Accounting Standards (CAS)" session this course will explore the following topics in greater depth:

    • ‘Gray’ costs that often require justification and documentation to charge directly
    • A logical thought process and suggested questions to pose to investigators when determining if an ‘unlike circumstance’ exists
    • Specific cost items and their normal classification for costing purposes at UVa (direct or facilities and administrative costs)
    • Impacts of decision making on the Facilities and Administrative -F&A rates

    Discussion topics will include a closer look that the UVa Disclosure Statement (DS-2), the completion of the CAS portion of the UVa Internal Proposal Routing Form (Goldenrod), and the importance of documentation during audits.

    The structure of this session will be predominantly case study exercises, in groups and individually, as well as group discussion. Case studies will represent real examples and will serve to assist participants in a greater understanding of adequate and complete justification/documentation in the event of ‘unlike circumstances’, specific items of cost to be watchful of, and the distinction between valid and invalid arguments in the treatment of cost items as direct expenses.

    Prerequisite: Introduction to Cost Accounting Standards or permission of the instructor.

    Class size: Limited to 20

     
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    Effort Reporting – An Introduction to the Concepts and UVa Practices -This is a Core Course

    This course has been developed by the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) for School and Departmental Research Administrators involved with the Effort Reporting process in both Medical and non-Medical fields. Faculty/PIs engaged in the research enterprise are welcome to attend this session as well. This workshop has been prepared to provide seasoned administrators with a refresher of the information or the newcomer to this function an understanding of why and how effort reporting is accomplished.

    Federal regulations require recipients of Federal funds to have a method to document and certify all effort expended toward sponsored awards and other activities, whether those costs were treated as direct or F&A costs.

    The workshop will explore this concept of effort reporting and Federal requirements that guide internal UVa procedures and practices. Other topics of discussion will include:

    Roles and Responsibilities of those involved in effort reporting
    UVa Practices – Creation of the reports, distribution, certification, timeliness, etc.
    Implications of NIH Salary Cap, Cost Share commitments, NIH “K-Career” Awards on effort reporting
    Effort Certification Challenges
    Step-by-Step Tutorial of the UVa Effort Reports; special considerations and hands-on case studies to apply your knowledge
    Non-compliance risks to the University and faculty

     

     
    arrow Research Administration Primer
    This is a Core Course

    The Primer to Research Administration is principally for new employees or for those employees whose have recently been given sponsored research responsibilities. The course offers an overview of sponsored research activities and operations at the University. Topics include: terminology, the lifecycle of sponsored research awards, regulations that govern the funds, sponsored research administration, and compliance.The course is beneficial to an understanding of sponsored funding.

    Class size: Limited to 20

     
    arrow Research Administration: Facilitating the Process
    This is a Core Course

    The research enterprise is ever changing and growing both in dollars and complexity in the management of the sponsored activities and the related funding. This class allows Research Administrators to share thoughts/experiences and hear about daily demands and challenges of these exciting roles. Topics of discussion include:
    •The external environment
    •The UVa environment
    •Skills and knowledge central to LEADERSHIP and success
    •Networking, collaboration and resource utilization
    •Challenges and rewards

    Research Administrators are vital to the continued success of the University's research mission, each day applying diverse knowledge and skills to further that mission.

    Class size: Limited to 20

     
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    The A, B, C, and D's of Cost Transfers
    This is a Core Course

    During this workshop, instructors will present the Federal regulations regarding cost transfers (and labor distribution – LD adjustments) and the related UVa practices in place to help in promoting a compliant costing environment. Additional topics of discussion will include: defining a cost transfer/LD adjustment; what constitutes adequate support documentation; how to avoid cost transfers; ‘red flags’; late cost transfers/LD adjustments; and roles/responsibilities in the process.

     
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    Taking the Mystery Out of F&A
    This is an Elective Course

    Facilities and Administrative costs are an essential part of most sponsor budgets and University operations. To also understand direct costing principles, knowledge of F&A costs is needed.

    But so many questions surround the topic:

    What goes into the F&A calculations?

    •  Is F&A a tax on sponsored activities? A fine on research activities?

    •  What are Bases? Pools? Space surveys? How does all this affect a proposal and the University?

    •  Who determines how much F&A each area receives?

    •  Why do the F&A rates keep changing?

    •  How may F&A rates does the University have and how are they different?

    This course answers these questions and more. The session provides discussions, examples and applications that illuminate the distribution of F&A funds, the application of different F&A rates, and relevant F&A terms.

    F&A can be a mystery, but one that can be solved.

    During this workshop, instructors will present the Federal regulations regarding cost transfers (and labor distribution – LD adjustments) and the related UVa practices in place to help in promoting a compliant costing environment. Additional topics of discussion will include: defining a cost transfer/LD adjustment; what constitutes adequate support documentation; how to avoid cost transfers; ‘red flags’; late cost transfers/LD adjustments; and roles/responsibilities in the process.
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    Last Modified: Monday, 11-Apr-2011 13:14:54 EDT
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