UNIV- Grants Administrator II- Department of Public Health Sciences

Medical University of South Carolina • Charleston, SC

2d

About The Position

The Grants Administrator II provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for research administration and grants management in the Department of Public Health Sciences, working with the Department Administrator and Vice Chair for Research. The position operates with a high level of autonomy and serves as a primary expert in sponsored research administration, guiding faculty, investigators, fellows, and trainees through the grant lifecycle. It directs pre-award activities, supports post-award administration, ensures compliance with sponsor and institutional requirements, supervises grants administration staff, and develops processes to improve efficiency, compliance, and research funding success.

The role leads proposal development and submission, including complex budget preparation, sponsor and institutional compliance review, coordination with collaborators and subrecipients, and tracking proposals. It also oversees and supports post-award documentation, award setup, grant transfers, subcontract administration, financial monitoring, grant accounting, records management, and reporting. The administrator advises faculty on funding and grant strategies, identifies relevant funding opportunities, develops educational resources, and communicates policy and procedural updates. The position supervises, trains, mentors, and evaluates grants administration staff and contributes analyses and metrics to support departmental decisions.

The position requires a bachelor's degree in business administration, public administration, or the social sciences, and four years of experience in contracts and grant administration activities. Computer literacy is required. The job description lists physical demands including frequent sitting, standing/upright work, walking, bending, hand and arm use, reaching, and lifting, carrying, lowering, pushing, or pulling objects weighing 15 pounds or more; indoor work is continuous.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in business administration, public administration, or the social sciences.
• Four years of experience in contracts and grant administration activities.
• Computer literacy.
• Ability to perform job functions in an upright position, seated, and while walking or mobile.
• Ability to work indoors continuously and outdoors in all weather and temperature extremes infrequently.
• Ability to work in confined or cramped spaces infrequently.
• Ability to bend at the waist, use both hands and arms, perform repetitive motions with hands, wrists, elbows, and shoulders, and reach in all directions.
• Good finger dexterity and ability to maintain tactile sensory functions.
• Ability to lift, carry, lower, push, or pull objects weighing 15 pounds or more without assistance.
• Ability to maintain corrected 20/40 vision, recognize objects close at hand and at a distance, discriminate between colors, judge depth and distance, and maintain peripheral vision.
• Ability to hear and understand conversations.
• Ability to perform gross motor functions with frequent fine motor movements.
• Ability to work in dusty areas infrequently.

Responsibilities

• Provide comprehensive proposal development support to faculty, investigators, fellows, and trainees.
• Coordinate the preparation, review, routing, and submission of grant applications to federal, state, foundation, and industry sponsors.
• Create and route applications to departments and personnel for approval before submission.
• Develop and review complex proposal budgets in accordance with sponsor guidelines and institutional policies.
• Evaluate cost sharing, Facilities and Administrative costs, effort commitments, waiver requests, and other fiscal requirements.
• Coordinate proposal activities with collaborating institutions, consultants, subrecipients, and internal stakeholders.
• Review proposals for completeness and compliance with sponsor and institutional requirements before submission.
• Maintain departmental systems for tracking pending, submitted, and awarded proposals.
• Lead and manage departmental research administration operations, including proposal development and submission.
• Supervise, train, mentor, and evaluate grants administration staff.
• Manage and monitor proposals, establish priorities, and ensure timely and accurate submissions.
• Serve as a departmental resource for grant administration policies, procedures, and best practices.
• Develop metrics, reports, and analyses with the departmental research team to inform leadership and strategic decision-making.
• Participate in institutional committees, research administration workgroups, and sponsored-programs professional development activities.
• Prepare and coordinate sponsor and institutional documentation, including progress reports, RPPRs, carryover, extension and rebudget requests, closeouts, and financial reporting.
• Aid in preparing and reviewing investigator biosketches, Other Support documents, effort reports, and related sponsor documentation.
• Support award setup, grant transfers, subcontract administration, and management of multi-year awards.
• Monitor award requirements and assist investigators with compliance with sponsor terms and conditions.
• Interpret and apply federal, state, sponsor, and institutional sponsored-research regulations.
• Maintain knowledge of applicable regulations, policies, and procedures, including ORSP, GCA, IRB, and other research compliance requirements.
• Ensure compliance with sponsor guidelines, institutional policies, and regulatory requirements throughout the proposal and award lifecycle.
• Communicate policy updates, procedural changes, and best practices to faculty and staff.
• Recommend and implement process improvements to improve operational efficiency and regulatory compliance.
• Advise faculty and investigators on grant development strategies and sponsor requirements.
• Identify and share funding opportunities aligned with departmental research priorities.
• Develop educational materials and tools supporting proposal development and research success.
• Maintain and enhance departmental grant resources, including content and tools on the department website.
• Monitor grant expenditures and budgets for compliance with sponsor regulations and institutional policies.
• Identify budget variances and communicate concerns to departmental leadership.
• Collaborate with the departmental finance team to resolve financial discrepancies and support fiscal stewardship of sponsored funds.
• Manage departmental/DCU research efforts; complete payroll costing allocations, payroll accounting adjustments, effort adjustments, and spending transfers as appropriate.
• Assist with annual budget planning, forecasting, and financial reviews.
• Maintain complete and accurate grant-related records and documentation in accordance with institutional, sponsor, and regulatory requirements.
• Oversee tracking and management of MOUs, VA Task Orders, subcontract agreements, and other research-related documents.
• Develop and maintain systems for recordkeeping, reporting, and data analysis.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior