Grants, Agreements & Contracts

The most significant funder of research at Drexel University is the federal government. There are three major funding mechanisms that support research: grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts. An overview of each is provided below.

Grants

• Provide financial assistance to carry out a public purpose. The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) provides a full listing of all federal programs available
• Incorporate the sponsor's guidelines
• Typically allow the awardee significant flexibility in carrying out the project
• Have minimal involvement from the sponsor in an oversight role
• Governed by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Uniform Guidance
• Defined in OMB Uniform Guidance §200.51

Cooperative Agreements

• Provide financial assistance, similar to a grant
• Have "substantial involvement" from the sponsor in implementation of a program
• Can be changed or rescinded based on performance
• Governed by the OMB Uniform Guidance
• Defined in OMB Uniform Guidance §200.24

Contracts

• Involve the procurement of goods, services, or other deliverables
• Outline legal terms, a scope of work and budget
• Are generally the most restrictive; any changes or deviations from the agreed upon terms require modification through an amendment
• Governed by the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR Clauses) and Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS)
• Defined in OMB Uniform Guidance §200.22

Subcontracts

• Establish a contractual working relationship that transfers funding for an outside entity's scientific contribution to a project
• As the "Prime" organization, Drexel University submits the application to the sponsor, and receives, negotiates, and accepts an award and subcontracts a portion for the scope of work to an outside entity.
• As the subrecipient, Drexel University teams with another entity who submits the application to the sponsor, receives funding via a "Prime" organization.

Subaward

• An award provided by a pass-through entity to a subrecipient; can include terms delineated in an agreement that is considered a contract
• Defined in OMB Uniform Guidance §200.92

Subrecipient

• The entity that receives a subaward from a pass-through entity on to carry out part of a Federal program/sponsored project
• Defined in OMB Uniform Guidance §200.93