Effort Reporting & Management

The most significant cost to sponsored programs is salaries, wages, and related fringe benefits, therefore, ensuring proper management of these funds is a priority for the University of Florida. To ensure compliance with the Federal government’s effort management requirements, the University of Florida established an Effort Reporting Policy and related Directives & Procedures.

Guidance for entering effort commitments in UFIRST and myUFL is available is found in the UF Effort Commitment Entry Guidelines. For more information about the University’s certification process, visit the Effort Certification webpage.

Required Training

University faculty and support staff engaged in sponsored activities are required to receive training in effort management and certification. Both courses can be accessed in the University’s online training system, myTraining.

RSH500- Faculty Stewardship is required of all Principal Investigators and key personnel participating in sponsored programs. This session covers key concepts related to effort reporting as well as cost principles.
RSH207- Effort Commitments, Management, and Reporting is required of all grant management staff. This session covers managing effort throughout the sponsored programs life cycle – from proposing effort to managing commitments to certifying effort.

Student Augmentation Effort Guidance

When students are the primary recipient of funding in support of their progress, the award may considered “student augmentation.” The student must be the primary beneficiary; if the student leaves the lab or University, the funds do not remain with the UF faculty mentor for general furtherance of their program. Doctoral dissertation programs and undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral fellowships fall into this category.

No committed effort is required from the faculty mentor on student augmentation awards. UFIRST effort commitment entry will follow the UF Effort Commitment Entry Guidelines.

If the faculty mentor has substantial involvement, including responsibility for the conduct of any of the research (performing analysis, project design, or project implementation), the award may not meet the definition of student augmentation.

Some indicators of whether the project is student augmentation or research are listed below:

Student Augmentation	Research Project
Faculty PI mentoring student	Faculty PI performing analysis
Faculty PI overseeing project	Faculty PI responsible for project design
Faculty PI advising student/ fellow	Faculty PI involved in project implementation
Faculty PI tangentially involved	Faculty PI ultimately responsible for the project

Resources:

Last updated 11/4/24

Effort Reporting & Management

On this page:

Required Training

Student Augmentation Effort Guidance

Resources:

Award Management