Facilities & Administrative (F&A) costs are costs that are incurred for common or joint objectives that cannot readily be identified with a specific sponsored project. Examples of F&A costs include shared services like libraries, utilities, building maintenance, and administrative expenses. CSU negotiates rates for cost recovery for organized research, instruction, and other sponsored activities and for on- and off-campus activities. Current negotiated rates can be found at the Business and Financial Services (BFS) webpage and in KR PD.
In order to determine which rate is applicable to a sponsored project, it is important to know some basic information about the project such as where CSU-funded activities will occur and what the activities are.
On- vs. Off-campus
Investigators, with guidance from their OSP Research Administration Team, should indicate if the CSU portion of the scope of work is on-campus or off-campus. According to our recent Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA), for project activities to be considered off-campus, they must meet one of the following criteria:
a) Performed in facilities not owned by the institution and where these facility costs are not included in the F&A pools; or
b) Where rent is directly allocated/charged to the project(s). Grants or contracts will not be subject to more than one F&A cost rate. If more than 50% of a project is performed off-campus, the off-campus rate will apply to the entire project.
Note: Home offices do not qualify as ‘off-campus.’
If project activities meet the definition of off-campus, select ‘All off’ in the KR PD Budget Settings. In the Comments field, provide a short rationale. If project activities are determined to be on-campus, nothing additional needs to be done as the system default is to use the on-campus rates.
Activity Types
In addition to project location, rate types vary by project or activity type. Projects may be classified as research, instruction, or other sponsored activities. In order for the appropriate negotiated F&A rate to be applied, investigators must indicate the primary ‘Activity Type’ in the Proposal Details Subpanel of the KR PD record.
Sponsored research consists of all research and development activities that are sponsored by federal and non-federal entities. This term also includes activities involving the training of individuals in research techniques, where such activities use the same facilities as other research and development activities.
Sponsored instruction means teaching and training activities of the institution supported with sponsored funds. Activities may be offered for credit toward a degree or certificate or on a non-credit basis, and whether they are offered through academic departments or through separate divisions such as summer school or extension.
Other sponsored activities are programs and projects sponsored by federal and non-federal agencies for work that is not research or instruction, such as service projects, conferences, consultation, or advisory and testing services. For additional guidance on activity types, visit the Kuali Research webpage on the OSP website.
Blog post by Tricia Callahan, former Senior Research Education and Information Officer, Office of Sponsored Programs – Revised and Updated 5/25/25