Research-Related Collaborations and Agreements

An agreement under which multiple parties participate to support shared statement(s) of work, and where each equally shares in the outcomes of the research. 

For more information on industry consortia agreements, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

For more information on non-industry consortia, contact ospdocs@ucsc.edu. 

A contract is a legally-binding award funding mechanism used as a means of procuring a service or deliverable for the benefit of the funder. Contracts generally have more restrictive terms and conditions than grants, and typically involve more direction and participation from the funder. Typical funders of sponsored contracts include government agencies and industry/corporations. Contracts awarded by US federal agencies are governed by the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). 

For more information on contracts with industry sponsors, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

For more information on contracts with non-profit or government sponsors, contact ospdocs@ucsc.edu.

Cooperative agreements are a type of assistance award funding mechanism, and tend to largely follow standard grant terms and conditions. However, these awards are viewed as partnerships between the funder and the university, and the funding agency (or multiple funding agencies) may be substantially more involved in the direction of the project.

For more information, contact ospdocs@ucsc.edu.

A legally binding agreement established between parties to define how data provided by one party (the “Provider”) can be used by the other party (the “Recipient”). Data being provided may include disclosure of a Limited Data Set to the recipient for research, public health, or health care operations.

For more information, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

A contract that governs the loan of equipment from outside entities to UC Santa Cruz for research purposes, not including circumstances in which UC Santa Cruz is purchasing the loan of equipment.

For more information, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

A contract executed between UC Santa Cruz and a non-UC Santa Cruz entity granting access to one party’s facilities and laboratories for the use of certain research equipment.

For more information, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

An agreement used to provide funding to support the training or research of postdoctoral scholars and graduate students at UC Santa Cruz. Fellowships may be awarded directly to the individual being supported, or may be awarded to UC Santa Cruz on behalf of the individual.

For fellowships that come through institutional channels or are awarded to UC Santa Cruz, contact ospdocs@ucsc.edu for more information. 

For fellowships awarded to the individual, contact your department graduate coordinator.

A grant is a funding mechanism that allows an external sponsor to provide funding for a university-developed project (e.g., research, training, conferences), for a scope of work defined in a proposal. Grant awards are used to assist researchers in developing research or service outcomes intended for a public purpose. Grants typically have flexible terms and conditions, limited deliverables, and with minimal sponsor involvement in the direction of the project. Most grants are funded on a cost-reimbursable basis, and are most typically used by government agencies and non-profit organizations.

For more information, contact ospdocs@ucsc.edu. 

An agreement under which a government entity (such as a national laboratory) provides salary support for a UC Santa Cruz employee who is temporarily on assignment to provide service to the government entity. 

For more information, contact your divisional personnel coordinator.

Federal regulations require that all research funded by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) be conducted only at assured institutions. If a UC Santa Cruz project funded by federal money involves a subcontract to another institution for live-animal research, that institution must provide evidence of an Animal Welfare Assurance (domestic institutions) or a Statement of Compliance (foreign institutions) with the Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW).

For more information, contact iacuc@ucsc.edu.

A contract with a single set of terms and conditions, when a sponsor intends to fund UC Santa Cruz for multiple research projects over a period of time for specific purposes, but desires an open-ended scale or scope of work for individual projects directed by multiple PIs. 

For more information on master agreements with industry sponsors, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

For more information on master agreements with non-profit or government sponsors, contact ospdocs@ucsc.edu.

A legal agreement that governs the transfer of tangible research materials between two organizations. MTAs cover non-commercial research, evaluation, and testing related to the materials.

For more information, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

A non-binding agreement that formalizes an arrangement or relationship of goodwill between UC Santa Cruz and a non-UC Santa Cruz entity, for the purposes of reflecting the general nature of the intended relationship and advancing a future formal agreement. MOUs do not include specific scopes of work or budget, commit university resources, or transfer any rights or deliverables between parties. 

For more information on MOUs with industry sponsors, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

For more information on MOUs with non-profit or government sponsors, contact ospdocs@ucsc.edu.

Also sometimes referred to as a confidential disclosure agreement (CDA) or a proprietary information agreement (PIA). A legal contract between UC Santa Cruz and at least one other party which outlines: (a) confidential materials or knowledge the parties wish to share with one another for certain purposes (but wish to restrict from general use) and(b) limitations on the use and disclosure of those confidential materials and knowledge. 

For more information about an NDA related to research or intellectual property, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

For more information about other NDAs, contact Campus Counsel.

An agreement between an individual UC Santa Cruz faculty and a non-UC Santa Cruz entity, wherein the individual provides professional advice or services related to their field or discipline that furthers the interests of the outside entity. Such agreements may be compensated or uncompensated, and may be provided in return for an immediate or prospective gain. UC Santa Cruz is not a party to outside consulting agreements, as these agreements are between the individual and the organization with whom they are consulting. Individuals may be required to disclose these agreements in federally-sponsored proposals, awards, and reports, and are required to disclose annually as required by APM-025 and Academic Personnel Office guidance. 

There is no central contact for these as they are handled by individual faculty or recipients.

A written agreement between two collaborating institutions that allows one institution’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) to review on behalf of the other’s, while establishing responsibilities for both institutions. A reliance agreement, or IRB authorization agreement (IAA), is usually specific to a single study.

An inter-institutional authorization agreement (IIAA) may also be used, between UC Santa Cruz and an independent investigator who is not affiliated with any qualified IRB. This agreement allows UC Santa Cruz to review on behalf of the investigator and establishes investigator responsibilities.

Learn more about agreements for collaborations on human subjects research.

For more information, contact orca@ucsc.edu.

An agreement between UC Santa Cruz and one or more non-UC Santa Cruz entities, under which each party agrees to make significant intellectual contributions to perform a research project (as described in a statement of work) and where each party agrees to fund its own costs. Under such a collaboration, the parties may work together on the design of the study, share decision-making in the overall direction of the work, and have equal access to and use of the results of the research. Typically, these agreements are “unfunded,” meaning there is no exchange of funding between parties, and the agreement specifies commitments for cooperation, exchanges, or other intellectual pursuits between the parties.

For more information, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

A legally binding agreement to obtain the services of an individual or entity, or for UC Santa Cruz to provide services to outside entities (revenue). Service activities may include testing, analysis, equipment use, specific training, etc. May also include contracts that govern both the provision of services to outside entities and the authorization of external users to work with service center equipment at UC Santa Cruz. The work would be considered procurement or fee for service, and would not provide scientific investigation or conclusions to the outside entity. 

For agreements for recharge facility services provided to industry partners, contact innovation@ucsc.edu.

An agreement under another entity’s prime award that transfers a substantive portion of a scope of work and associated funding to UC Santa Cruz. 

For more information, contact ospdocs@ucsc.edu.

An agreement that transfers a substantive portion of a scope of work and associated funding under a UC Santa Cruz prime award to another entity.

For more information, contact ospdocs@ucsc.edu.