At the University of Oregon, the following criteria and procedures have been adopted as applicable to appointments to research positions funded from grants and contracts provided by external agencies:

1) Research Assistants Successful candidates for research assistant shall have earned a bachelor’s or master’s degree. The appointee's responsibility is to conduct research under direction. Appointment is made by the grant's principal investigator, with the approval of the appropriate dean and vice president. For appointments to conduct research within a research institute, approval is through the vice provost for research. Otherwise, it is through the administrative structure of the principal investigator's home department.

Affirmative action procedures require at least a local or regional search be conducted to locate candidates for the position, and that research assistants be paid on a similar scale to instructors within the discipline.

2) Senior Research Assistants The academic qualifications and position functions for senior research assistants are similar to research assistants except that the rank is used for those who have served successfully as research assistants for a number of years, and whose employment is expected to continue given available funds. The pay scale is higher than that of research assistants by virtue of the additional time and experience, and should be similar to that paid senior instructors in the discipline.

In rare cases, appointment as a senior research assistant may be offered to a particularly experienced and well-qualified candidate for a research assistant position, but normally the title senior research assistant is reserved for individuals promoted from within the university.

3) Research Associates Successful candidates for research associate shall have an earned doctoral degree (or the highest professional degree in the field plus appropriate experience). An appointee's responsibility is to carry on research independently. Appointment is made by the principal investigator, with approval by the appropriate dean and vice president.

The UO follows affirmative action procedures that require a national search for research associate positions and a pay scale similar to salaries of assistant professors in the same discipline.

4) Research Associate (Post-doctoral Fellows) While the formal appointment as research associate (postdoctoral fellow) is made as research associate, the parentheses indicate a special use of this rank. The position requires a Ph.D. or other appropriate terminal degree. Individuals appointed as research associates (postdoctoral fellows) conduct postdoctoral research under the supervision of faculty members for the purpose of acquiring training in research. Normally such an appointment is for one or two years following the doctorate. Appointment is made by the principal investigator, with approval by the appropriate dean and vice president.

The position searches must be national and the pay scale must conform to the customary scale for postdoctoral fellowships in the discipline.

With prior approval, a research associate or a research associate (postdoctoral fellow) may apply for grants as principal investigator. Such approval should be sought prior to making application for a grant and a written request for approval should be made on the associate's behalf by the department chair or institute director for approval by the vice provost for research. Such requests should include the candidate’s vita and appropriate recommendations.

5) Senior Research Associates The academic qualifications for senior research associates are the same as for research associates, but senior research associates are expected to have done significant research at the postdoctoral level and to have research publications equivalent to those of an associate professor. The time spent in research since the doctorate (or its equivalent) should be approximately the same as that expected for promotion from assistant to associate professor.

It is expected that senior research associates will apply for grants as principal investigators and will conduct independent research. They may serve on graduate committees and teach graduate courses (to the extent permitted by grant policy). They are often individuals who, given funding availability and quality performance, are expected to have a long-term, but non-tenured, relationship with the university.

Senior research associate positions may be filled either by promotion from within the university or by a national search. In either case, the appointment process requires an evaluation of the candidate similar to that used for the appointment of tenured associate and full professors. In lieu of the Faculty Personnel Committee's recommendation, the vice provost for research will review the case and make a recommendation. Senior research associates are also subject to five-year reviews focusing on research productivity, but similar to the post-tenure reviews of regular faculty.

The appropriate pay scale for senior research associates ranges from that for associate professors to that for full professors, depending on seniority and level of achievement. Salaries and salary increases are determined by recommendations from the appropriate deans, department heads and/or institute directors to the appropriate vice president.

Under special circumstances, a department may wish to designate a senior research associate as a research professor or associate professor and certain grant activity may require appointing research staff with teaching faculty titles. These titles are not officially recognized within the administrative operations of the Oregon University System, but can be afforded as a courtesy in appropriate situations. Interested department heads should check with the vice provost for research about this possibility.

Intramural Research Support Under the direction of the vice provost for research, the Office of Research and Faculty Development (ORFD) supports faculty research through several programs: summer research awards, new faculty awards, travel award assistance, and special initiatives. ORFD also provides modest cost sharing and other limited assistance to faculty with their research projects.

Summer research awards are granted through competitive review by the Faculty Research Committee. Short proposals are due in late November, with decisions made by January 31. The program for the following academic year is announced in late spring. Tenured and tenure-track UO faculty members at .50 FTE and greater and 1.0 FTE instructors may apply.

New faculty awards assist beginning faculty members who do not have a summer salary or start-up funds to establish their research activities. The award provides a stipend and supplement for research expenses.

Faculty members who receive travel awards from external sources may request a modest supplement to help defray actual travel costs. Assistance is also available for other research-related travel. Tenured and tenure-track UO faculty members at .5 FTE and greater may apply.

Extramural Research Support Services The Office of Research and Faculty Development) provides comprehensive services to faculty members seeking external funding for their research, teaching, and public service projects. Assistance is provided in clarifying objectives, evaluating a research design or program structure, analyzing funding source priorities, developing budgets, interpreting guidelines, reviewing proposal drafts, and communicating with agencies and foundations.

The Office of Research and Faculty Development provides information on all major sources of support, both public and private. The information is made available to faculty through individual mailings of program announcements; the publication of weekly listservs, and a computerized database of funding and a comprehensive research information library.

The Office of Research Services and Administration (ORSA) provides the mandatory institutional clearance required for all proposals submitted on behalf of the university to external funding agencies. ORSA will provide a clearance form and assistance with clearance procedures. The office also maintains computerized records of proposals and awards and produces reports of grants, contracts and awards received and proposals submitted by UO faculty.

Funds received by the University of Oregon in support of research and scholarly activities come from a variety of sources, including federal and state government and private foundations and corporations. Acceptance of grants and contracts by the university includes the commitment of the institution and the principal investigator to meet certain obligations and responsibilities.

Financial accountability is assured through the review and approval of proposal budgets and the accounting and auditing functions of the Office of Research Services and Administration. Principal investigators receive regular reports of financial activity on each grant or contract for the purposes of tracking expenditures and meeting funding agency requirements for administration of the award. ORSA provides assistance to principal investigators with developing proposal budgets and interpreting agency guidelines and on fiscal matters after the award is received.

Apart from financial accountability, other compliance issues associated with sponsored research must be satisfied and monitored on a regular basis. Principal investigators must comply with federal regulations and institutional policies governing the use of human subjects or animals in research and teaching; the use of hazardous substances such as recombinant DNA, chemical or genetic materials, and radiation; the ethical conduct of the research; and disclosure of conflict of interest.

Committee for the Protection of Human Subjects/Institutional Re-view Board (CPHS/IRB) Projects involving activities with human subjects must be reviewed by the CPHS/IRB. Applications are available from the human subjects compliance officer in ORSA.

Biological Safety Committee Research projects involving recombinant DNA or other bio-safety matters must be reviewed and certified by the Biological Safety Committee prior to the submission of the research proposal. Contact the committee for more information.

Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) Research projects and instructional exercises using animals must be approved by the IACUC. Contact Veterinary Services or the IACUC for more information.

Radiation Safety Committee The Radiation Safety Committee works with the Environmental Health and Safety Officer to set safety standards for the use of radioactive materials. Approval for individual investigators to use radioactive materials must be renewed every three years. For more information contact the Office of Environmental Health and Safety.

Alleged Misconduct in Science and Potential Conflicts of Interest In complying with federal and state regulations, the university has established policies on misconduct in science and conflict of interest. These policies, entitled "Alleged Misconduct in Research" and "Policy on Potential Conflicts of Interest," are available from the Office of the Vice Provost for Research.

While most of the research funds applied for and received by the university come from federal or other governmental sources, support is also received from private sources such as foundations, corporations and individuals. Management of these funds will generally fall to the Office of Research Services and Administration (ORSA). However, if the private source is required to grant directly to a 501(c)3 non-profit, tax-exempt entity, the funds may be received and administered by the UO Foundation. The UO Foundation cannot pay salaries and wages to UO employees; therefore, gifts or grants in support of salaried activities should be made to the university whenever possible.

Contracts should always be reviewed by the appropriate university offices, which may include ORSA, and Technology Transfer Services, among others. The authorized university contracting officer or designee must review and sign all contracts. Currently, the director of ORSA signs on behalf of the institution.

Gifts in support of a project usually require no specific product or service in return for the funds. There may be stated objectives or restricted purposes of the funds, however. Gifts may be managed by either the university or the UO Foundation. Gift accounts may earn interest and be assessed an administrative fee.

Private funds awarded directly to an individual as a fellowship or in general support of research activities may qualify for special handling and attendant benefits through the university. Refer to "Leaves Without Pay" in Chapter IV of this handbook. Principal investigators should contact ORSA regarding the appropriate placement of all types of funds in receipt of research and scholarly activities.

No applications for research support for projects likely to be classified by the federal government will be processed by the university's research office. See Chapter III of this handbook for more information about the university's policies on classified research.

In general, each department or administrative unit of the university is responsible for, or gives its faculty responsibility for, monitoring surveys or questionnaires conducted by its faculty or its students. Contact the Office of Research Services and Administration for detailed information on required compliance procedures. Because human subjects are involved, many survey instruments should be reviewed by the Committee on the Protection of Human Subjects prior to any on- or off-campus distribution.

Faculty research surveys and questionnaires should not be distributed off-campus in the name of the university without prior approval by the department head and the appropriate dean. Requests for information should never be made on University of Oregon stationery, thus implying an official request by the university, unless prior approval has been granted by the department head and dean or the appropriate officer of the university.