The proposal budget should be derived directly from the project description. Cost estimates are usually required for each year of a multiple-year project. It is important to include funds to cover expected cost increases between the proposal preparation date and the project start date, up to a year later, and in subsequent years of the project. Keep in mind that a proposal budget contains estimates of the cost to perform the project.

Review guidelines to determine funding agency guidelines for format and to determine what costs the sponsor allows. For example, some sponsors do not allow equipment purchases on a project. Proposal budgets typically include some or all of the following cost categories:

Salaries and Wages
Fringe Benefit Rates
Materials and Supplies
Equipment
Subcontracts
Consultants
Travel
Facilities and Administrative Costs (Indirect Costs)
Cost Sharing
Contact

ODU Research Foundation s Grant & Contract Administrators are available to assist with proposal preparation and budget development.

SALARIES AND WAGES

For each person involved in the project, list name (if known), position and percentage of time on the project. Include annual salary increases, effective each year. When projects are charged for personnel salaries, the associated fringe benefits are also charged in the same proportion.

Faculty
Funds to cover the cost of faculty and staff time spent on a project can be requested from most sponsors. The time that ODU faculty and staff members, who are paid from department or college operating accounts, spend on a project is reimbursed through release time. When a purchased release time appointment is charged to a project, the appropriate salary and fringe benefit amounts are returned to the individual's department.

Most faculty members are on a ten-month contract with a nine-month performance-period. Others are on contracts of differing lengths, such as twelve months or eleven months. The nine-month, also referred to as academic year, performance period is from August 16 through May 15. In computing salaries for proposal budgets, the following computations are to be used. Amounts charged per project period are calculated as follows: base salary divided by 9 gives the rate per month. Rate per month multiplied by number of months in period times percent effort in period equals charge per period. The percent increase in salary for nine-month faculty is decided annually and is effective each January 1st of the project's duration. Currently, we use a rate of five percent in budget projections.

Note that sponsored activities may not result in individuals receiving compensation at a rate in excess of their contracted salary rate. This restriction is applicable to summer salary pay as well. The pay rate for faculty members during their off duty quarter is 1/9 academic year salary multiplied by the number of months.

Also note that NSF restricts a faculty's summer earnings to a maximum of 2 months.

Graduate Research Assistants
A Graduate Research Assistant (GRA) is a Master's or Ph.D. candidate meeting criteria set by ODU. During the nine-month academic year, graduate students generally have 50% appointments and usually may not work more than twenty hours per week. During the summer, GRAs may be appointed for up to 100% effort. GRA compensation during the summer is based upon the rate in effect for the academic year. The maximum that can be paid in the summer for full-time work is calculated by multiplying the academic year base amount by two-thirds, in other words, dividing the academic year rate by 9 (to get a monthly rate), multiplying by 2 (to bring 50% to 100%) and then multiplying by 3 (three month period). Pay rates for GRAs are determined by each department. Please check with your department chair for the most current rates.
Another consideration is whether tuition and fees for GRAs should be budgeted on the sponsored program or paid from another source.

Full-time Research Foundation Employees
(Research Scientists, Other Professionals)
Research Scientist is a professional level assignment and must be recruited for following the same procedures as for other regular positions at the Research Foundation. All full-time Research Scientist positions are eligible for the full complement of benefits available to regular full-time Foundation employees. Individuals in this category are usually compensated solely from sponsored programs. Salaries are established by the Research Foundation Human Resources Director in consultation with the principal investigator. The usual performance period is 12 months.

Postdoctoral Associates
"Postdocs" are employees who, having completed the doctoral degree, are appointed to a project to enhance research proficiency or for additional training. Appointments as a Postdoctoral Associate are for a limited term, approximately one to two years, and are not intended to be a permanent or continuing position. As this is an academic appointment, the salary is based on competitive salaries for the particular field and set by the individual department. While the primary employment activity for this position is research and research-related tasks, some teaching assignments may be allowed. This category of employee is entitled to all "regular status" employee benefits EXCEPT contribution in lieu of retirement and education assistance program.

A Postdoctoral Fellow or Trainee is an individual appointed to a specific type of funding mechanism, unlike the more general Postdoctoral Associate category. Fellows are supported by individual fellowship awards. Frequently these awards are made directly to the fellow rather than to the institution. Trainees are supported by training grants. The sole obligation of a trainee is his or her education.

Other Full-time and Part-time Employees
(Technical, Clerical, Etc.)
Pay rates for these positions vary with requirements. These positions normally are budgeted for on an hourly basis. Contact the Research Foundation Human Resources Director for current hourly and salary rates.

Secretarial, clerical, and administrative salaries and wages should normally be treated as indirect cost. The direct charging of these costs may be appropriate where the nature of the work performed under a particular project requires an extensive amount of administrative or clerical support that is significantly greater than the routine level of such services provided by academic departments, centers and institutes. The costs would need to be identified specifically with a particular sponsored project relatively easily with a high degree of accuracy, and the special circumstances requiring direct charging of the services would need to be justified to the satisfaction of the awarding agency in the grant application or contract proposal.

FRINGE BENEFIT RATE