Research and Sponsored Programs

The New Research Investigator Guide includes answers to frequently asked questions, a quick-reference for the various research departments and offices, and a chart listing training opportunities. (The research offices and training opportunities charts are also available as separate documents.)

Department administrators and research staff may also find this information helpful.

The Resources section of this page (see below) is an excellent additional source of information on BMC Research Operations.

Every BMC department and division engaging in sponsored program activity is assigned three RO points of contact for pre- and post-award administrative needs; awards finance; and clinical research (CR) finance.*

To find your RO functional area team members by department or find email addresses and phone numbers for RO staff, please see Portfolio Assignment and Directory.

You can learn more about the teams for Sponsored Programs Administration, Sponsored Programs Finance, the Clinical Trial Office, and the Clinical Research Network on their respective pages.

* Please note: CR finance ranges across both negotiated industry trials and sponsor awards that include one or more protocol-specified clinical services, ranging from tissue sampling through major surgery. For those awards, the Clinical Trial Office collaborates with their pre- and post-award colleagues.

Infor is BMC’s financial system system of record, sometimes referred to as the general ledger (GL). Departments use Infor to pay vendor invoices and monitor expenses; view awarded budgets and available balances; requisition supplies, equipment, and services; and monitor purchase order (PO) balances and de-obligate as appropriate.

For access to Infor, please see the instructions at Systems for Sponsored Programs.

For help understanding the financial reports produced by Infor, please see How to Read Infor Reports.

For help understanding effort reporting, please see the BMC Research Operations guide, Time and Effort Reporting.

For help with Boston Medical Center salary allocations, please see the BMC Research Operations guide, Salary from Workday.

For help with Boston University salary allocations, please visit BU Information Services and Technology’s BUworks Central Portal.

Those new to grant-sponsored research may find these quick-access primers helpful:

• Introduction to Sponsored Programs
• The Grant Lifecycle
• Introduction to Proposals
• Introduction to Agreements

To determine who is eligible to be a Principal Investigator (PI) or Program Director (PD), please see PI/PD Eligibility.

For help finding funding opportunities, please see Finding Funding.

For information about the pre-award process, please see the guides from Sponsored Programs Administration.

For help identifying your assigned grants and contracts administrator, please see Portfolio Assignment and Directory.

If you need clarity on noncompeting continuation, please see RPPRs and Progress Reports.

To learn more about subrecipient monitoring, please see Subrecipient Monitoring.

The Indirect Cost Rate for Sponsored Programs policy provides a short overview of IDC requirements.

Please consult the new IDC standard operating procedure manual, effective May 1, 2024, for details.

If you have questions about a confidentiality agreement (CDA/NDA), please complete our CDA/NDA Intake Form.

If you need help reviewing a draft Clinical Trial Agreement (CTA), please complete the Clinical Trial Office’s CTO Intake Form.

To find information on patient care cost amounts, please email the Clinical Trial Office.

For information on ancillary and support services for clinical research conducted at BMC, please see Ancillary Services.

For (part-time) help with IRB applications, please see Clinical Trial and Recruitment Staffing.

To learn about the Clinical Trial Office workflow, please visit their page.

For help with participant reimbursement (ClinCard), please see Systems for Sponsored Programs.

For help with the clinical trials management system, VelosCT, please see Systems for Sponsored Programs.

For help with ancillary and support services for your trial, please see Ancillary Services.

If you could use part-time or temporary study team support, please see Clinical Trial and Recruitment Staffing.

To learn more about clinical trial participation, or if you have questions about a clinical trial in which you are enrolled, please see the BMC Clinical Research Network’s resources for patients and community members.

To learn how community engagement can support inclusive research, please see the Clinical Research Network’s resources on community engagement.

If you are a Boston University Medical Campus faculty researcher, consult the Research Faculty Leaves webpage for information.