Assistant Director, Pre-Award

Assistant Director, Pre-Award

Job #: 042673

Location: Syracuse, NY

Pay Range: $79,000 - $93,000

Hours:
Standard University business hours
8:30am - 5:00pm (academic year)
8:00am - 4:30pm (summer)
Hours may vary based on operational needs.

Job Type: Full Time

Job Description:

The Office of Sponsored Programs assists all members of the Syracuse University community in securing external support for research, creative, instructional, and service activities. The Assistant Director, Preaward, independently performs research administration responsibilities reviewing proposals, developing budgets, and negotiating contracts/grants with a focus on complex, multi-component proposals involving multiple PIs, subawards, task budgets, option years, and institutional cost-sharing. This position stewards the OSP Proposal Approval Form (PAF), maintaining currency and researching enhancements to improve proposal routing and approval processes university wide. The Assistant Director collaborates with the Director to evaluate and improve OSP preaward procedures and systems, and reports to the Director of OSP.

Education and Experience:

• Bachelors degree and training in an administrative area (management, accounting, finance, technology) or the equivalent combination of education and experience required.
• Minimum of 5 (five) years of administrative experience, preferably in the field of research administration, with demonstrated progression toward senior-level responsibilities, required.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex, multi-component proposals (e.g., program projects, center grants, multi-institutional awards, or contracts with task budgets), required.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills are essential.
• Masters degree in a related field is preferred but not required.
• Certified Research Administrator (CRA) credential or willingness to obtain within two years of hire, preferred but not required.

Skills and Knowledge:

• Thorough knowledge of federal regulations governing sponsored programs, including 2 CFR 200 (Uniform Guidance) and FAR/DFARS.
• Ability to interpret and apply federal regulations, sponsor-specific terms, and institutional policy.
• Contract negotiation skills with corporate entities and federal agencies is preferred.
• Knowledge of pre-award and ongoing award management processes, including award setup, compliance monitoring, and closeout.
• Organized and able to manage high-volume, concurrent deadlines while maintaining compliance and accuracy.
• Strong communication, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Budget development experience using MS Excel required.
• Proficiency in Adobe Acrobat and MS Office suite required.
• Experience in higher education sponsored programs with federal portals (Grants.gov, eRA Commons/ASSIST, Research.gov) required.
• Proficiency in AI tools to enhance administrative efficiencies preferred.
• Ability to evaluate and improve administrative workflows and systems.

Responsibilities:

• Independently manages the development and submission of complex, multi-component proposals through federal and non-federal electronic systems (e.g., Grants.gov, NIH eRA Commons/ASSIST, NSF Research.gov, NSPIRES, DOD portals), with emphasis on proposals involving multiple PIs, subawards, task budgets, option years, and institutional cost-sharing commitments.
• Maintains current, expert-level knowledge of sponsor guidelines, federal regulations (2 CFR 200, FAR/DFARS as applicable), and institutional policies affecting sponsored programs administration.
• Provides guidance and mentorship to first-time applicants submitting proposals of moderate complexity.
• Reviews and develops proposal budgets including complex, multi-year, multi-institutional, and cost-shared budgets to ensure compliance with University and sponsor policies.
• Revises budgets and proposals as required; prepares and retains all transmittal letters, records, and electronic submission documentation.
• Reviews and interprets award terms and conditions upon receipt of funding, and coordinates with post-award staff to ensure accurate award setup and ongoing financial compliance.
• Negotiates, initiates, and prepares recommended language for contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, subaward agreements, and other sponsored project instruments with corporate entities, federal agencies, and other sponsors.
• Reviews award terms and conditions for compliance with University policy and advises faculty on sponsor-imposed restrictions, reporting obligations, and intellectual property provisions.
• Performs ongoing support of active grants and contracts, including award interpretation, processing of no-cost extensions, re-budgeting and carryforward requests, changes in scope or PI, sponsor prior approvals, and award closeout coordination.
• Conducts special analyses across all facets of the sponsored project lifecycle and serves as the primary point of contact for sponsors and university stakeholders on complex award administration matters.
• Serves as the principal steward of the OSP Proposal Approval Form (PAF), the Universitys central proposal routing and approval tool.
• Maintains the PAF to ensure currency with sponsor requirements and institutional policy and leads ongoing research into system enhancements that improve the proposal approval workflow for faculty and administrators.