The process of transferring awards from one institution to another is not a simple task, and requires negotiation among the sponsoring agency, the relinquishing institution, and the new institution.
During this process, the institutions must:
- Consider the awarding agency’s applicable policies and processes.
- Determine the unobligated balance.
- Calculate differences in facilities and administrative (F&A) rates.
- Plan for potential funding gaps created by the time required to close out the award at the relinquishing institution and re-award it to UC Santa Cruz.
The transfer process may take several months, depending on the complexity of the project being transferred, the timely engagement of the sponsor, and the number of parties involved.
All transfers begin at the institution the investigator is departing, and it is the PI’s responsibility to get the transfer process started. The PI works with the sponsored projects office at the relinquishing institution and the Program Officer at the funding agency to request the transfer and close out the award. In addition, the PI works with UC Santa Cruz’s Office of Sponsored Projects (OSP) to initiate the award following approval of the transfer.
Transferring a sponsored project to UC Santa Cruz is similar to proposing and accepting a new award. In addition to completing sponsoring agency specific requirements, the following steps must be completed:
- The investigator must confirm that both the funding agency and the former institution have granted approval to transfer/relinquish the sponsored project.
- The investigator coordinates with the sponsored projects office at the relinquishing institution, to discuss steps to finalize project activity and relinquish any remaining active awards.
- The investigator completes UC Santa Cruz’s Start a Proposal form for each award being transferred. The project start date at UC Santa Cruz must be after the relinquishing institution’s revised end date.
- The investigator coordinates with UC Santa Cruz proposal administrator to prepare UC Santa Cruz’s budget and justification documents as specified by the sponsor’s program officer(s).
- OSP submits the request(s) to sponsors on behalf of UC Santa Cruz, to request transfer of the remainder of the award(s) to UC Santa Cruz.
- The relinquishing institution submits their final financial reporting to the sponsor(s) for approval.
- The sponsor issues UC Santa Cruz an award for the remainder of the project.
- OSP negotiates terms, accepts on behalf of UC Santa Cruz, and releases the award.
Project dates, project activity, and expenditures between campuses cannot overlap. Allowable and allocable expenses incurred on unrestricted funds can be transferred to awards once released, based on the approved budget, allowability according to the award terms, and start date.
In some cases, the prime award will remain at the previous institution, and a portion of work (funding and scope) will be subcontracted to UC Santa Cruz along with the transferring investigator. Investigators should submit UC Santa Cruz’s Start a Proposal form for each award being subcontracted, and coordinate with the UC Santa Cruz proposal administrator to initiate project records and prepare to receive awards.