Contracts & Negotiation | Offices of Sponsored Programs and Grants Management

Award Negotiation and Acceptance

The Award Negotiation and Acceptance stage encompasses the activities that take place after a proposal is submitted, up until the fully-executed (signed) award has been received and passed to the Accounts Establishment and Management Unit for account set-up. During this stage, a lot of behind the scenes action is taking place in the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) as the team of Specialists review the terms and conditions of the award notice, making sure RFSUNY/SBU can accept the terms provided by the sponsor. The award mechanism (grant, cooperative agreement or contract) and the sponsor will largely determine the length and complexity of the negotiation process.

Who Can Negotiate an Award?

The OSP staff is responsible for negotiating the terms and conditions of awards, contracts and cooperative agreements which define the relationship between the University and the sponsor and clarify each party's obligations. This is done in consultation with the PI so that he or she understands the issues involved with a contract and can assist by providing background information pertinent to the research being contemplated.

Please note grant awards are processed by the team of Grants and Contracts Specialists while agreements received in the form of contracts, clinical trials or subcontracts are processed by the team of Contracts and Clinical Trials Specialists.