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Creating & Closing Out Subawards

What Is a Subaward?

Subawards are issued under a grant or cooperative agreement to another university or nonprofit entity for collaborative research. They may also be issued to a for-profit entity, a nonprofit entity or a university for non-commercial or non-standard research-related services.

A subaward is a formal legal agreement between the UCLA and a non-UCLA entity in which:

  • A defined portion of the UCLA work statement’s intellectually significant activity is assigned to another entity (the subrecipient) to fulfill.
  • Work is generally performed by the subrecipient’s personnel using its resources, usually at its site.
  • The subrecipient takes full responsibility, including intellectual leadership, for the portion of UCLA’s work statement that it will undertake.
  • The award terms and conditions UCLA has accepted from our funding agency apply to the subrecipient, who must also agree to comply with them.

A subaward may be appropriate if any of the following conditions apply: 

  • The entity’s statement of work represents an intellectually significant portion of the programmatic effort of the overall project.
  • The entity has responsibility for programmatic decision-making.
  • An identified principal investigator for the entity is a co-investigator on the primary proposal.
  • The entity’s work result in the development of intellectual property.
  • Publications are anticipated from the entity and individuals at the entity may be co-authors on articles.
  • The entity will need animal and/or human subject approval for its portion of the work.
  • The entity is providing cost sharing or matching funds.

Requesting a Subaward

The UCLA Office of Contract and Grant Administration (OCGA) issues subawards under the order class G. To request a subaward, a department must take the following steps: 

ActionsDetails
1. Submit an R-class requisition via BruinBuy.

Use the following object codes:

  • 7310 for the first $25,000.
  • 7300 for the remaining balance.
  • Add $1 to leave the order open.
2. Submit a completed OCGA/Purchasing Subaward Checklist and required supporting documents.

Send by fax or e-mail:

3. The OCGA issues a subaward agreement.All documentation must be complete and correct in order for the subaward to be issued.
4. Upon receiving a signed subaward agreement from OCGA, Campus Purchasing makes payment.A purchase order is posted in BruinBuy for payment within five business days.

Amending a Subaward

To amend a subaward, follow steps 2, 3 and 4 above.

Closing Out a Subaward

Follow these steps to close out a subaward:

ActionsDetails
1. Submit an Subaward Closeout Certificate.

Send by fax or e-mail:

2. Subaward purchase order is closed.Closure occurs within five business days after receipt of the certificate. Once the purchase order is closed, it cannot be reopened.