A strategic, accurate budget is a cornerstone of any sponsored research proposal. As you develop it with your PI, it should be created in full consideration of the sponsor’s requirements, as well as Princeton’s internal guidelines.

The budget is a financial representation of the detailed statement of work. It must be entered into our proposal management system (Princeton ERA) as part of the proposal development process. This budget module automatically calculates indirect costs (overhead) and fringe-benefit rates, assuring the budget captures the required additions.

The budget is reviewed by an ORPA Grant & Contract Administrator for compliance with University and Sponsor guidelines when the full proposal is routed for approval.

Direct costs must belong specifically to a project, and be identifiable with a high degree of accuracy. 

UNIFORM GUIDANCE

Uniform Guidance Cost Principles state that all direct costs must be

• Allowable: Adheres to sponsor terms and University policy.
• Allocable: Directly benefits the project.
• Reasonable: Is prudent for the project at hand.
• Consistent: Is treated in the same manner as like expenses.

TYPES OF DIRECT COSTS

The University’s Direct and Indirect Charging Policy outlines items that may be allocated as a direct cost.

Salaries & Stipends

• Salaries and associated fringe benefits for faculty and research staff
• Salaries and associated fringe benefits for postdoctoral researchers
• Stipend for graduate and undergraduate students

Materials & Equipment

• Capital equipment (a unit cost of more than $5,000) has no indirect costs applied
• Materials and supplies (a unit cost of less than $5,000) is subject to indirect costs

Other Expenses

• Publication costs
• Foreign and/or domestic travel
• Consultants
• Human Subject Payments
• Subawards to other institutions
• Cost sharing, when mandatory as part of the budget
• Participant support: Stipends or subsistence allowances, travel allowances, and registration fees paid to or on behalf of participants or trainees (but not employees) in connection with meetings, conferences, symposia, or training projects. Guidelines vary by sponsor and program.

Indirect costs, also known as overhead costs—are incurred for common or joint objectives and therefore cannot be identified readily and specifically with a particular sponsored project, an instructional activity, or any other institutional activity.

Examples of indirect costs include

• Depreciation and interest costs associated with the University’s physical plant.
• Operating and maintenance expenses, such as utility, security, and custodial costs.
• Common administrative functions, such as payroll and purchasing.

Because it is impractical to account separately for such costs, indirect costs are normally not charged directly to sponsored agreements.

CALCULATING INDIRECT COSTS

Princeton has a federally negotiated indirect-cost rate agreement for on- and off-campus activities. This rate, which can be found on the Institutional Information page, should be included in all budgets, as applicable. 

Understanding the purpose of the funding request will assist in determining the appropriate indirect cost rate to apply to the project budget. If costs do not support instruction and organized research, the Other Sponsored Activity (OSA) rate may be applicable. Discuss the usage with your Grant & Contract Administration.

Based on sponsor specifications, the base for indirect costs may be calculated using modified or total direct costs.

Modified total direct costs (MTDC)

This base is used when the sponsor accepts the University’s federally negotiated rate and there are exclusions. This rate is applied to all budget line items, except equipment, tuition, subawards beyond the first $25,000 (for each subaward) and participant support costs.

Total direct costs (TDC)

This base is used when the sponsor does not accept the University’s federally negotiated rate. The indirect cost rate permitted by the Sponsor is applied to all budget line items with no exclusions.

OFF-CAMPUS WORK

If significant portions of project work will occur off campus, please review the University’s Off Campus Policy for more details to confirm whether the off campus rate can be utilized.

As per 2 CFR 200.75, participant support costs are direct costs for items such as stipends, subsistence allowance, travel allowances, and registration fees paid to on or behalf of participants or trainees (but not employees) in connection with conferences or training projects. 

The Princeton University Library has online resources available for the implementation and maintenance of SciENcv and ORCID records.  

• Princeton Research Data Service ORCID Search Template

External resources

• NCURA Webinar Slides - ORCID (April 30, 2020)
• SRAI Webinar Slides - ORCID (April 14, 2020)
• ORCID - Value of ORCID for Research Institutions 
• ORCID Planning Worksheet
• FDP May 2023 Slides

NSF Information on Biosketch and Current and Pending Support - in effect beginning October 5, 2020.

• NSF-Approved Formats for the Biographical Sketch - including FAQs
• NSF-Approved Formats for Current and Pending Support - including FAQs

The Princeton University Library and Office of Information Technology (OIT) provide resources to help researchers plan, organize, and preserve research data. They have collected information on grant proposal requirements, data file formats, and metadata formats into helpful online resources. For more information, also visit the Research Data Management website.

Library staff are available to review and provide feedback on any data management plan. Please contact the e-Science Library team at [email protected] for assistance.