Associate Director, Pre-Award Research Administration
About The Position
The Office of University Research and Innovation (OURI) supports Tufts University's research, scholarship, innovation, and entrepreneurial activities across all campuses. OURI partners with faculty, staff, students, and university leadership to advance groundbreaking research, secure external funding, ensure regulatory compliance, and translate discoveries into real-world impact. OURI provides expertise and oversight across sponsored research administration, research compliance, intellectual property management, technology commercialization, startup development, and industry partnerships. Through these efforts, OURI helps strengthen Tufts' research enterprise while supporting the university's commitment to innovation, collaboration, and academic excellence. This position is fully remote and may be performed from anywhere within the United States. The Associate Director is expected to maintain regular availability during Eastern Time business hours and may occasionally be asked to travel to campus for meetings, training, or other business needs, typically no more than 1-3 times per year. Application Materials: Candidates are strongly encouraged to submit a cover letter as part of the application process. Cover letters will be reviewed and considered by the hiring team. Please review the Application Instructions section below for additional details.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree.
- 7+ years of progressively responsible experience in research administration, sponsored programs, grants administration, or a related field.
- Experience leading, mentoring, and developing research administration staff and/or professionals.
- Demonstrated experience managing compliance with federal grants and contracts and interpreting sponsor requirements, federal regulations, and institutional policies.
- Experience with electronic grants management systems and enterprise research administration platforms.
- Knowledge of pre-award research administration, proposal development, electronic proposal submission processes, contract negotiation, and post-award financial management.
- Excellent communication, relationship-building, and problem-solving skills.
Nice To Haves
- Experience working within a central research administration or sponsored programs office in a higher education, academic medical center, or research-intensive environment.
- Experience supporting federally funded research programs, including NIH, NSF, and other federal sponsors.
- Experience developing or implementing research administration policies, procedures, or operational improvements.
- Professional certification in research administration, such as CRA, CPRA, or CFRA.
Responsibilities
- Lead, mentor, and develop a team of pre-award research administration professionals, including hiring, coaching, performance management, and professional development.
- Establish team goals, priorities, and service standards to ensure high-quality support for faculty and research administrators.
- Foster a collaborative and customer-focused culture that supports the university's research mission.
- Provide expert guidance and oversight for proposal development, review, approval, and submission activities.
- Support faculty and department research administrators in preparing competitive proposals and budgets for external funding opportunities.
- Manage a portfolio of complex sponsored projects, awards, and subawards.
- Review, negotiate, approve, and execute sponsored research agreements, grants, contracts, and related documents on behalf of the university.
- Finalize and approve subcontract agreements and amendments.
- Ensure consistent interpretation and application of sponsor requirements, federal regulations, and university policies.
- Oversee non-financial post-award activities, including award modifications, budget reallocations, and no-cost extensions.
- Analyze research administration processes and identify opportunities for operational improvement.
- Develop, implement, and evaluate policies, procedures, and best practices that strengthen research administration services.
- Build and maintain strong partnerships with faculty, departmental administrators, and institutional leaders across the university.
- Collaborate with colleagues throughout OURI and the broader research community to support multidisciplinary research initiatives.
- Develop training materials and educational programs for faculty and research administrators.
- Mentor junior research administration staff and contribute to professional development efforts across the research enterprise.
- Lead special projects and represent the unit on university committees and cross-functional initiatives.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
