Grants and Contracts Specialist - Engineering Business Services Center

The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is one of the world’s leading research institutions, and they are seeking a proactive Grants and Contracts Specialist for the Engineering Business Services Center. This role involves supporting faculty and principal investigators in developing and submitting proposals, managing funded research projects, and ensuring compliance with regulations throughout the grant lifecycle.

Responsibilities

• Provide support to faculty and principal investigators in the preparation and submission of routing proposals to various federal and non-federal sponsors. This includes reviewing and interpreting sponsor guidelines and regulations, as well as University policies and procedures for proposal submission and ensuring that all are met
• Assist faculty and principal investigators with the management of their funded research projects, programs and accounts, including the preparation of financial forecasts as necessary. Advise faculty on the financial aspects of hiring personnel and major spending decisions, such as large equipment purchases, as necessary. Assist with the management of personnel budgets and expenditures through review and approval of proposed appointments in the appointment application and redistributing appointments of principal investigators and research staff in response to changes in research efforts
• Serve as a liaison to SPA Award Management and assist with grant account set up, management, budgeting, billing and close out activities, as necessary. Ensure that completed projects are closed in a timely manner and in accordance with the terms of the award
• Complete regular review of accounts to ensure integrity, accuracy and allowability of transactions in accordance with project budgets, agreement terms, and University, Federal and sponsor guidelines. Take appropriate action to move unallowable or questionable charges to an appropriate funding source
• Serve as liaison to Sponsored Program Administration (SPA) and assist them with requests related to proposal submission and award negotiations, as necessary. Follow up on pending agreements and ensure that awards are finalized and funded projects accounts are established in a timely manner in support of the research efforts
• Request and monitor anticipation accounts, subaward agreements, no-cost and other contract extension modifications as necessary
• Participate in campus research administration community through attendance at meetings and conferences offered by the Office of Business and Financial Services (OBFS), SPA and Sponsored Programs and Research Compliance (SPaRC), as well as those offered at the College level to enhance and improve research administration efforts
• Assist with department human resource functions by the review and approval of faculty and student appointments
• Assist with department purchasing and payable functions by the review and pre-approval of purchasing transactions with possible compliance issues, and the review and approval of Travel and Expense Management (TEM) system transactions and P-card transactions
• Assist principal investigators with the semi-annual expenditure confirmation process to obtain certifications in a timely manner
• Monitor principal investigator effort on sponsored projects for assigned faculty to ensure investigators meet their effort obligations on their respective awards. Assist with the maintenance of the Activity Reporting System (ARS) for assigned faculty. Update ARS as necessary and in accordance with the department’s allocation policy, and discussions with the faculty teaching, research, public service, and cost-sharing obligations are properly reflected and meeting the designated obligations
• Other duties as assigned

Skills

• Bachelor's degree in business administration, accounting, finance, economics or a field related to the position
• One year (12 months) of professional work experience in business, finance or a related field
• Illinois Certified Research Administrator

Benefits

• Health, dental, vision, life insurance
• A retirement plan
• Paid time off
• Tuition waivers for employees and dependents

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