Research Administration at Emory (RAE) Program

RAE is a comprehensive training certificate program designed to provide onboarding and orientation to Emory’s Office of Research Administration (ORA) for new employees and to provide upskilling or refresher training for current ORA staff. RAE provides an introduction to Research Administration and the grant lifecycle.

Research Administration at Emory Syllabus

Upcoming Session Dates

Basic Certification Training

Basic Certification training is designed for RAS research administration staff new to ORA or the research administration community of practice. Basic certification training consists of 5 self-paced, core courses followed by three days of instructor-led courses.

Self-paced Basic, Core Courses

Self-paced core courses focus on the foundations of research administration, the federal framework, laws, regulations, guidelines, terms and conditions, and “why” policies and procedures must be followed.  These courses are available on demand on any internet-enabled device. Participants must score 75% in required courses to earn a certificate. To obtain access to the self-paced core courses, participants must complete the RAE Kickoff course in Brainier.

Research administrators come to this profession from a variety of educational backgrounds and professional experiences. You may have come to it accidentally or by design, through academic channels or administrative ones, while looking for a challenge or to pursue a passion. You may work in a variety of organizations from a university who receives funding to a mission-driven nonprofit who sponsors research. Whatever your path and now role is as a research administrator, you are probably awed by the expanse of the research enterprise. The number of awards, the variety of sponsors, and the sheer amount of money available can be staggering. This module lays an initial foundation to research administration while providing context and a framework for which to build your professional skills.

Once a funding opportunity is identified, the time-consuming task of preparing a competitive grant proposal begins. Research administrators support Principal Investigators (PIs) through grantsmanship programs focusing on time management, matching PIs to their best opportunity, and forming a deep understanding of sponsors and their application. Knowing the differences between major proposal types and their intended outcomes is necessary for becoming an effective research administrator. It is your role to instruct PIs on grantsmanship skills and provide tools and resources for them to avoid common mistakes. In this highly competitive landscape, this module can give you the tools to make the difference between winning an award or not.

During the pre-award phase of the sponsored project lifecycle, the primary goal of the research administrator and the entire proposal team is to ensure the very best possible proposal is submitted to the sponsor. This can be a challenge for even experienced research administrators because of competing deadlines, multiple budget revisions, and onerous regulations and policies. The ultimate reward for the team’s dedication, attention to detail, and persistence in solving problems is the institution being granted the award. In this ultra-competitive environment though, pre-award processes, procedures, and policies must be clearly defined and communicated to the entire team. This module will assist you in preparing for your key roles and responsibilities during the pre-award phase.

What is post-award non-financial research administration? Why is it necessary, and who provides these services? LevelUP’s newest module explores the vital role Research Administrators share in keeping operations moving smoothly, facilitating effective communication, and fulfilling regulatory and sponsor requirements when managing the non-financial components of active awards. Learners will understand managing and making changes to sponsored projects, compliance obligations, reporting formats and requirements, and the core skills needed for successfully discharging these requirements. This program is a deep dive focused on explaining the what of post-award non-financial research administration and the why to prepare professionals for the inevitable nuances and exceptions they will encounter in their day-to-day responsibilities.

The project has been awarded to your institution, launching the project into the post-award phase. Before your institution accepts this award, though the terms and conditions of the award need to be negotiated. The negotiation of the award depends largely upon the sponsor and the awarded funding mechanism as well as your institution’s culture and policies. This module focuses on defining the common agreement types and standard terms and conditions that may be problematic to your organization. It also presents strategies to solve these problems and ensure compliance. We end the module with a discussion of administering the agreement from award set-up to closeout.
 

Elective Courses

In addition to the basic, core courses, Emory has made available additional elective courses. Elective courses may be taken in addition to the basic, core courses.

For new hires with prior experience in research administration, managers may opt to replace a basic, core course with an elective.

*Note: When selecting from Elective courses, the total number of SRAi course contact hours between Core and Elective courses must still add up to at least 20.75 contact hours.

Clinical research management is a dynamic profession requiring coordination with multiple departments, institutional offices, and investigator teams. Effective research administrators need a deep understanding of clinical research management to be effective in successfully executing their role in the process. This module explores the management and administration of clinical research from study initiation to contract close-out, with an extensive focus on regulatory responsibilities, budgeting and finance, and project management. The emphasis throughout the module is placed on the importance of protecting human subjects, their data, and the integrity of the research process.

  1. Describe the history and regulations associated with human experimentation and the protection of human subjects in research.
  2. Identify the institutional oversight and management requirements that ensure compliance for its programs involving human subjects research.
Understand the roles, processes, and responsibilities for research administration and management professionals conducting clinical research involving research participants during pre-study activities, study conduct, and study completion.

The current research funding environment is highly competitive given the limited resources from funding agencies. This increases the demands on Principal investigators (PIs) who must often submit multiple proposals in order for a successful funding outcome. PIs must balance this increasing demand while also teaching, conducting research, mentoring trainees, and serving their institutions. To assist PIs and strengthen the research enterprise, research administrators provide multiple support mechanisms such as research development programming and resources. This module presents the administrative and functional aspects of working with groups of investigators as well as individual PIs. There is also specific advice on searching for funding opportunities and matching those options to the right investigator. After completing this module, you will have a clear understanding of the need for research development programs in an institution and, more importantly, an organized reference of tools and advice for implementing a targeted and efficient program for your investigators.
After completing this module, you will be able to:

  • Create tools to identify and address critical gaps in the capabilities of institutions and individual applicants.
  • Assess which RDP activities are most appropriate for your institution’s needs and priorities.
  • Search, discover, and disseminate solicitations that align with investigator’s and team’s strengths.
Contribute to the development of a limited submissions selection process that benefits your institution.

Receiving an award is one of the most exciting steps in the research administration life cycle. Full of anticipation, energy and ripe with limitless possibilities, a new project kicking off can create enthusiasm and generate a sense of aligned purpose within the entire research team including a wide array of support offices. In many ways, financial administration and financial oversight of awards are what facilitate the important discoveries waiting to be unveiled. This module will build the foundation necessary to understand the post-award research administration lifecycle, the core responsibilities for managing research finance, and tips and approaches that will increase productivity and improve accuracy.

Key areas covered in this module include:

  • Receiving and establishing an award
  • Award management
    • Expenditure review and monitoring
    • Subrecipient Monitoring
    • Sponsor invoicing and LOC draws
  • Financial Reporting
    • Regular federal reports (Quarterly Cash Transaction Reports, Annual Expenditure Data Reports)
    • Reporting of income generated by award activities
    • Final financial reporting and award closeout
  • Financial Reporting
    • Regular federal reports (Quarterly Cash Transaction Reports, Annual Expenditure Data Reports)
    • Reporting of income generated by award activities
    • Final financial reporting and award closeout
  • Introduction to external audits

Research Compliance Frameworks module is designed to serve as a primer on the various compliance elements that help support effective grants management. Research compliance spans a wide range of complex subtopics making it difficult for most research administrators to gain mastery in any specific topic. Often grants administrators are not familiar with these compliance areas, and if they are, could benefit from a deeper understanding in order to help fulfill their responsibilities. This module will build the foundation necessary to understand research compliance and hopefully lead to increased job proficiency, effectiveness, and success for learners.

This module will:

  • Introduce learners to the compliance areas are most commonly embedded in grants management.
  • Gain a deeper understanding of the key principles of research compliance in grants management and grants congruency.
  • Emphasize the importance of these compliance areas for protecting participants, organizations, and the larger community.
  • Explore how adherence to these compliance touchpoints help contribute to an institutional culture of research integrity and sound financial stewardship.
Develop a foundation in institutional policies and procedures regarding research compliance and foster effective communication to institutional stakeholders.

Instructor-led Basic Courses

Instructor-led core courses focus on university-specific policies, procedures, and systems and “how” tasks and transactions are handled at Emory. Participants who have passed all 5 self-paced, core courses will be sent links to attend the next cohort of Instructor-led courses.

Pre-Award - Emory Policies, Procedures, and Systems related to pre-award administration

Post-Award - Emory Policies, Procedures and Systems related to post-award administration

Financials and Research Compliance
 

Upcoming Session Dates

Mark your calendar to attend the next RAE Cohort! Participants who have passed all 5 self-paced, core courses will be sent links to attend the associated Instructor-led courses.

NOTE: Participants must attend all three sequential days of Instructor-led courses within a cohort offering.

​Below are the next cohort offerings through March 2025.

MANAGERS Register Your Employee (You MUST be logged into Brainer for the link to work): 

NOTE: You may register multiple employees even if the survey shows 100% complete.

Trouble accessing Brainer? Refer to the Brainier Access job aid

RAE Kickoff Meeting Dates (Only attend one)

  • Thursday, December 5, 2024 from 10:00 - 10:30 AM ET
  • Thursday, December 12, 2024 from 2:00 - 2:30 PM ET
  • Tuesday, December 17, 2024 from 10:00 - 10:30 AM ET
  • Thursday, December 19, 2024 from 2:00 - 2:30 AM ET

SRAi Self-Paced Module Completion Deadline:

  • Friday, January 10, 2025
Instructor-led Courses (Virtual):
  • Monday, January 13th from 9 AM to 4 PM ET​
  • Tuesday, January 14th from 9 AM to 3 PM ET​
  • Wednesday, January 15th from 9 AM to 1 PM ET

MANAGERS Register Your Employee (You MUST be logged into Brainer for the link to work): 

  • Registration link Coming Soon!

NOTE: You may register multiple employees even if the survey shows 100% complete.

Trouble accessing Brainer? Refer to the Brainier Access job aid

RAE Kickoff Meeting Dates (Only attend one)

  • TBD

SRAi Self-Paced Module Completion Deadline:

  • Friday, March 14, 2025
Instructor-led Courses (Virtual):
  • Monday, March 17th from 9 AM to 4 PM ET​
  • Tuesday, March 18th from 9 AM to 3 PM ET​
  • Wednesday, March 19th from 9 AM to 1 PM ET

Questions

Please direct questions about the RAE Program to Kathryn Leigh.