Pre-Award Specialist - Department of Medicine

University of Washington • Seattle, WA

5d • $84,996 - $95,004 • Hybrid

About The Position

The Department of Medicine is hiring a Pre-Award Specialist for its Pre-Award Integrated Resources Team. Under the general supervision of the pre-award team lead, this subject matter expert manages proposal development for grants and contracts submitted by divisions within the department. The role ensures proposals are developed, reviewed for compliance, and submitted on time, and serves as a primary liaison among principal investigators, central offices, and funding agencies.

The specialist provides expertise on pre-award policies and practices established by federal, state, foundation, industry, and University sponsors. The position also conducts proposal quality assurance, supports portfolio coordination and award handoffs, contributes to team administration and staff training, and recommends process improvements. This is a regular, 100% FTE position in a standard office environment, with full or partial remote work options and hybrid arrangements consistent with departmental policy. It is a deadline-driven role requiring flexibility during peak proposal submission periods.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in any field and at least 3 years of relevant experience; equivalent education and/or experience may substitute, except where legal requirements apply.
• Experience in research administration with substantial responsibility for proposal development, including complex budgets and sub-awards.
• Experience interacting with faculty and department leadership in a project management context.
• Ability to manage priorities and meet deadlines while maintaining attention to detail.
• Intermediate proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Word.
• Demonstrated commitment to excellence and customer service.

Nice To Haves

• Intermediate knowledge or experience with OMB guidelines, Grants.gov, and eRA Commons.
• Experience working with UW operations staff, including OSP, SOM RGE, PAFC, and GCA, and sponsor program and research staff.
• Experience with UW systems, including SAGE and Award Portal.
• Experience leading teams or projects.

Responsibilities

• Manage the unit's pre-award grants and contracts program and proposal development, including complex budgets and administrative proposal sections.
• Advise faculty principal investigators on sponsor requirements, including specialized program announcements and non-federal sponsors.
• Interpret and provide technical advice on government, foundation, and University regulations to principal investigators, program managers, researchers, and support staff.
• Ensure compliance with University, federal, and state policies and regulations; review proposals for potential IRB, IACUC, and SFI issues and coordinate follow-up with principal investigators.
• Review proposals for sponsor, department, and school requirements before routing them in SAGE for campus review.
• Serve as a primary contact among funding agencies, central offices, faculty, and department leadership; interface with OSP, PAFC, funding agencies, and other grant review teams.
• Coordinate review and documentation of PI eligibility, F&A waivers, cost sharing, and IP disposition memos with DOM and SOM grant review teams.
• Resolve problems with funding agencies and seek approval for deviations from authorized procedures.
• Prepare Just-In-Time and time-of-award documentation, routine proposals, and non-award agreements.
• Coordinate with subrecipients and subcontractors to ensure proposal requirements and timelines are met, and provide guidance to their contacts.
• Provide training to faculty, staff, and students on pre-award management; train new pre-award staff, review their work, conduct periodic audits, and arrange additional training as needed.
• Recommend internal policy updates and assist with implementation of policies and procedures based on federal and University requirements or system functionality.
• Analyze quality assurance results, identify trends and improvement opportunities, work with team leads and the associate director on process improvements, and collect and report submission metrics by fiscal year.
• Develop pre-award policies, procedures, guidelines, and templates; recommend improvements to business processes, quality control, and grants management systems, and lead selected projects.
• Liaise with departments and principal investigators on pre-award activity and coordinate with post-award contacts to support handoff at the time of award.
• Participate in team meetings, attend faculty and department research meetings as appropriate, provide regular updates on research directives and procedures, and contribute to special projects and related duties.
• Provide backup to other Pre-Award Grants Managers and assess and provide staff feedback through annual peer performance reviews.

Benefits

• The posting refers applicants to the University of Washington staff benefits information page but does not enumerate specific benefits.
• Opportunities for professional growth.

What This Job Offers

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