| To
describe the breadth of knowledge required for the Certified Approver
Program, the following general themes outline was developed. This
is a complete outline of the issues covered in the exam.
Prospective exam
takers should also know the Related
Research Policies. |
1.
Direct and Facilities & Administrative (F&A) Costs
a. Allowability
of costs
b. Allocability
of costs
c. Reasonableness
of costs
d. Treating costs
consistently (Cost Accounting Standard 502)
e. Definition
and examples of Direct Costs
f. Definition
and examples of F&A costs
g. Unacceptable
direct cost charging practices
h. Charging normal
F&A type costs as direct costs
i. Choosing the
appropriate F&A rate
|
- 2. Purchasing of Equipment, Professional Services, Goods
& Materials
- a. Monetary thresholds for purchasing decisions
- b. Assuring a reasonable price for purchases
- c. Encumbering purchases
- d. Procedures/Policy/Process for equipment purchases
- e. Procedures/Policy/Process for purchase of professional services
- f. Procedures/Policy/Process for supply, goods and materials
purchases
- g. Purchasing card program
- h. Purchasing on projects with animal or human subjects
-
i. Justification standards
- j. Purchasing near the end of the project
- k.
Maintaining confidentiality
- l. Principles of internal controls
- m. Special
compliance areas: donated human bodies, controlled substances,
potentially hazardous biological agents
|
- 3. Travel
- a. Allowability of travel costs (benefit to the project, different
modes of travel)
- b. Reimbursable travel costs
- c. Charging travel costs
- d. Travel authorization/payments
- e.
Fly America Act
|
- 4. Effort Certification
- a. Effort Certification Reporting Tool (ECRT) process
- b. Effort requirements for different classes of employees
- c. Examples of changes to effort statements
- d. Changes in Principal Investigator (PI) effort
- e. Historical Salary Adjustment (HSA)
|
- 5. Payroll
- a. Allowability of labor charges
- b. Payroll distributions/encumbrances
- c. Charging severance, vacation, augmentations, and overload
pay
- d. Payroll corrections (Historical Salary Adjustment - HSA)
|
- 6. Subcontracting
- a. Definition
- b. Charging subcontract costs (including A-110 requirements)
- c.
Process for handling subcontracts and payments on them
|
- 7. Matching Funds and Cost Sharing
- a. Definition of cost sharing
- b. A-110 Requirements of cost sharing
- c. Identifying cost sharing, matching and in-kind contributions
- d. Distinguishing mandatory cost sharing from voluntary cost
sharing
- e. Distinguishing committed cost sharing from uncommitted cost
sharing
- f. Including cost sharing or matching in proposals
- g. Handling cost sharing and matching after award acceptance
|
- 8. Responsible Conduct of Research
- a. Definition and examples of conflicts of interest
- b. Disclosure requirements for conflicts of interest
- c. Gift policy (personal gain)
- d. Reporting
misconduct
- e. PI education policies
- f.
Code of conduct
|
- 9. Revenue and Program Income
- a. General process for handling revenue for sponsored accounts
- b. A-110
definition/requirements for program income
- c. Examples of program income
- d. Reporting of program income
- e. Methods for accounting for program income
|
- 10. Account Setup and Pre-Award Spending
- a. Officials authorized to sign proposals and accept grants
and contracts
- b. Pending awards and pre-award expenditures
- c. Developing proposal budgets
- d. Account setup
- e.
Account setup for industry-sponsored clinical trials
|
- 11. Cost Transfers
- a. Definition
- b. Allowability of cost transfers
- c. Acceptable justifications for cost transfers
- d. Examples of allowable and unallowable cost transfers
- e. Deadline dates for cost transfers
- f. Process for completing a cost transfer
|
- 12. Internal Service Organizations (ISO)
- a. Rate development
- b. Allowability of charges
- c. Authorizing purchases
|
- 13. Account Management
- a. No-cost extensions (definition, requirements, requesting)
- b. Clinical trials (definitions, handling)
- c. Rebudgeting
- d. Resolving cost overruns
- e. Removing uncollectible costs
|
- 14. Closeout and Property Management & Disposal
- a. Reporting requirements and deadlines
- b. Steps required to close out projects
- c. Situations where closeout is appropriate
- d. Handling balances
- e.
Procedures for disposing of or transferring equipment
|
- 15. Record Retention
- a. Research records
- b. Business records
- c. Animal and human subject records
|
