Sponsored Research Agreements (SRAs) with Industry

Coordinate with Administrative Offices

To facilitate a timely and efficient process around implementing an agreement with an industry sponsor, the PI should engage administrative colleagues at Dartmouth when it appears that an agreement with a company is likely to progress beyond preliminary discussions about collaborative or sponsored work.

The structure of the agreement with the company, including the budget, is highly dependent upon the nature of the research, the involvement of any past, current or future intellectual property and other key considerations that are critical to sustain and grow the Dartmouth researcher's portfolio. Therefore, it is important that the PI, OSP and TTO have the opportunity to discuss the project before engaging the company.

Industry agreements should reflect full costs of performing the research. These costs should include Dartmouth's full research facilities and administrative costs rate as well as time for preparation and submission of documentation required for internal approvals (e.g., animals, human subjects, health and safety). Discuss the proposed budget with the DRA and OSP and consider the appropriate payment structure (i.e., fixed price, cost reimbursement). It is recommended to budget for any contingencies and acceptable to contemplate a reserve or residual for industry sponsors.

Email sponsored.projects@dartmouth.edu providing the project details as soon as possible to schedule a discussion.  We strongly encourage use of the Dartmouth standard agreement to streamline the process. Industry agreements generally involve a negotiation period and the negotiation timeline should be factored into the plan for when the research can commence. OSP and TTO will employ Dartmouth's standard agreements to reduce the timeline as much as possible, but please keep in mind that some sponsors will require use of their agreement which may significantly extend the negotiation period.

As industry agreements should reflect full costs of performing the research, it is important to review needed resources and costs with the Department Grant Manager (DRA) These costs should include Dartmouth's full research facilities and administrative costs rate as well as time for preparation and submission of documentation required for internal approvals (e.g., animals, human subjects, health and safety). Discuss the proposed budget with the DRA and OSP and consider the appropriate payment structure (i.e., fixed price, cost reimbursement). It is recommended to budget for any contingencies and acceptable to contemplate a reserve or residual for industry sponsors.

For information on research funded by the U.S. federal government, including through the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) programs, contact the Office of Sponsored Projects.

Internal Approvals via RAPPORT Grants

While many industry contracts do not require a formal proposal, every research agreement requires internal approvals prior to signing the agreement. Once your scope of work is defined along with budget, the proposal will need to be routed in the RAPPORT system managed by the Office of Sponsored Projects. This system automatically routes the proposal through all necessary internal approvals, including export control.