It is the policy of the University of North Dakota to recover full Facilities & Administrative cost (indirect cost) as defined by the applicable federal negotiated rate agreement. It is also recognized that some sponsors have existing policies that preclude payment of indirect cost or provide only for partial reimbursement. To the extent that the policy of the sponsor has been verified, the University accepts the limitation on facilities & administrative cost recovery.

The table below shows the current Facilities & Administrative cost rates (indirect cost rates) for the University of North Dakota:

DHHS Indirect Cost Agreement

June 27, 2006

Prov. = Provisional

*BASE: Modified total direct costs, consisting of all salaries and wages, fringe benefits, materials, supplies, services, travel, and subgrants and subcontracts up to the first $25,000 of each subgrant or subcontract (regardless of the period covered by the subgrant or subcontract). Modified total direct costs shall exclude equipment, capital expenditures, charges for patient care, tuition remission, rental costs of off-site facilities, scholarships, and fellowships as well as the portion of each subgrant and subcontract in excess of $25,000.

To download a copy of the Indirect Cost Rate Agreement, click on the link below:

• DHHS Indirect Cost Rate Agreement

Difference Between F&A (Indirect Cost) Rates

1. Research

Research and scholarship activities include the rigorous inquiry, experiment or investigation to increase the scholarly understanding of the involved discipline. Organized research activities are funded by both external sponsors (Sponsored Research) and by UND (University Research).  Together, these categories comprise the Organized Research distribution base, used to calculate the Research F&A (Indirect Cost) rate.

Research activities are properly classified as Sponsored Research if the activity is sponsored (funded) by an external organization, i.e. a federal, state or private organization or agency. Examples of sponsored research include:

• awards to faculty to support research activities

• external Faculty "Career Awards" to support the research efforts of the faculty

• external funding to maintain facilities or equipment and/or operation of a center or facility which will be used for research

• external support for the writing of books, when the purpose of the writing is to publish research results.

Research activity is properly classified as University Research if the activity is supported by either of the following:

1. Funding that is derived from UND institutional funds (e.g. gifts, endowment income, interest income, technology licensing income, operating budget) through a competitive application and award process, and where the proposed activity is characterized by the same factors which generally distinguish sponsored projects, or

2. Cost sharing expenditures which are committed to be borne by UND rather than by the sponsor.

Research supported by an award from the Research Development & Complaince Office is an example of University Research.

2. Other Sponsored Projects

Other Sponsored Projects are defined as academic projects funded by sponsors in which project activities involve the performance of work other than Sponsored Instruction or Sponsored Research. Since most projects in this category do not directly involve students and gain little, if any benefit from libraries, the F&A (Indirect Cost) rate applicable to Other Sponsored Projects is less than the rate for Research or Instruction.  Examples of other sponsored projects include:

• Travel grants

• Support for conferences or seminars

• Support for University public events

• Support for student participation in community service projects which do not result in academic credit

• Support for projects pertaining to library collections, acquisitions, bibliographies or cataloging

• Programs to enhance institutional resources, including Data Center expansion, computer enhancements, websites, etc.

3. Instruction

Sponsored Instruction is defined as teaching and training activities at UND funded by grants and contracts from federal or non-federal sponsors.  Sponsored Instruction includes agreements which support curriculum development as well as all types of teaching/training activities, whether offered for credit toward a degree or certificate, on a non-credit basis, or through regular academic departments or by separate divisions, summer school or external division.  Examples of sponsored instruction include:

• any project for which the purpose is to instruct any student at any location; recipients of this instruction may be UND students or staff, teachers or students in elementary or secondary schools, or the general public

• curriculum development projects at any level, including projects which involve evaluation of curriculum or teaching methods; such evaluation may be considered "research" only when the preponderance of activity is data collection, evaluation and reporting

• projects which involve UND students in community service activities for which they are receiving academic credit

• activities funded by awards to departments or schools for the support of students

• dissertation work funded by grants, including grants for travel in relation to a dissertation

• Upward Bound Program, bringing local students on campus for classes

• general support for the writing of textbooks or reference books, video or software to be used as instructional materials.

4. EERC

This rate is applicable to all sponsored projects at the UND Energy and Environmental Research Center.

5. HNRC

This rate is applicable to all sponsored projects at the Human Nutrition Research Center.

Difference Between On-Campus and Off-Campus Locations

An off-campus activity is defined as that activity performed by University employees at locations other than the main campus and not using the University's operation and maintenance facilities. 

Activity such as short term (less than one month's duration) travel by employees to an off-campus site where office space is maintained on campus in their absence shall be considered on-campus activity for the purposes of applying the indirect cost rates.  Travel in excess of one month's duration will be reviewed and classified on-campus or off-campus on a case by case basis.

Activity performed by other than University employees through contractual arrangements is normally considered on campus with only the first $25,000 subject to the on-campus indirect cost rate.