A SURVEY OF RESEARCH ADMINISTRATORS: IDENTIFYING ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN IN POST-AWARD FEDERAL RESEARCH GRANT MANAGEMENT.

Research universities and the federal government partner to foster societal, scientific, and technological advancements, but the federal research grant process is criticized for its procedural inefficiencies. Principal investigators and research administrators lament losing time to bureaucratic regulations, unwieldy processes, and burgeoning reporting standards. As the cost of higher education is increasingly scrutinized, existing procedures warrant examination to identify areas of undue administrative burden and subsequently restructuring to ameliorate cumbersome inefficiencies. The purpose of this study is to identify areas of administrative burden among post-award research administrators (PARA). Ninety-six PARA were surveyed. Several overlapping themes emerged, such as frequently changing regulations and excessive reporting requirements. The suggestions to alleviate administrative burden included standardizing federal grant management systems, regulations, forms, and cash management systems and limiting the rate of changes to federal grant management systems and regulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]