Links & Resources

Sponsored Projects Administration (SPA) serves as a central resource to support the research community at Columbia by providing guidance and stewardship for researchers and administrators on all campuses.

SPA's website is here.

Sponsored Projects Finance (SPF), part of the Office of the Controller, is the University’s central office responsible for managing key elements in the post-award financial administration of sponsored projects, including financial reporting and invoicing, receivables management, fiscal closeout, and other activities to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.

SPF's website is here.

The Climate School's post-award administration is led by Victoria Nazario, Director of Sponsored Projects Finance & Reporting. 

Conducting research involving human research participants is a privilege that comes with significant responsibility. Prospective IRB approval is required for all research involving human subjects. Researchers must follow all requirements that help ensure the safety of human research participants. We highlight here the importance of obtaining and documenting informed consent to participate in research. Please see general requirements for informed consent and additional resources to support an ethical informed consent process.

Consultation with the Human Research Protection Office is recommended if there are any questions about the need for IRB review.

HRP's website is here. 

SPA maintains a resource listing vital institution-wide information required for preparing sponsored project proposals. This includes information such as our DUNS, EIN, UEI, institutional addresses, and more, and is available here.

If you are exchanging materials or data with partners outside of Columbia, you will likely need an Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) or a Data Use Agreement (DUA) to protect your research materials/data and establish the terms of use. SPA handles DUAs and MTAs related to human materials, with information available here.

For non-human materials, please contact Columbia Technology Ventures.

To mitigate the risk of disruption during events such as hurricanes or other natural disasters, public health emergencies, or campus unrest, all principal investigators should develop Research Continuity Plans for their laboratories and research teams.

Learn more here. 

Research security remains a priority at the federal and University levels. To safeguard our research, the University’s Research Security webpage contains resources and guidance in this area. FAQs address considerations for common international engagements and collaborations. 

Researchers must pay particular attention to making all disclosures required by federal funding agencies. The U.S. government published and implemented revised disclosure requirements in 2024. Please review the updates to make sure your current and pending (other) support and biographical sketch disclosures are complete.

Federal law and Columbia policy prohibit senior and key personnel on federally-funded sponsored projects from participating in malign foreign talent recruitment programs (MFTRPs). Please review the definition of MFTRP. Starting in 2024, federal funding agencies are requiring researchers to certify that they are not participating in MFTRPs. NASA- and DoD-funded researchers must complete a standalone certification to this effect. 

The University’s Guidelines on Retention of Research Data reiterate that research data acquired under the auspices of the University must be stewarded, managed, and shared in accordance with scholarly practice and funding agency requirements.  

Visit Research Data at Columbia and the Research and Data Integrity (ReaDI) Program for more information and resources.

The University’s Policy on Misconduct in Research ensures that issues of plagiarism, falsification, or fabrication of research are addressed with rigor, care, and confidentiality.

The University’s conflict of interest and conflict of commitment policies set out disclosure requirements while affirming that a researcher’s outside activities may stimulate and nurture scholarship. These policies address how real or perceived conflicts may cause bias in research, or affect an individual’s ability to carry out their University responsibilities because of time commitments or competing priorities. All Columbia researchers must comply with these policies. 

Disclosure of potential conflicts to the University must be completed at least annually through Rascal. Protocol-specific disclosures must be filed with human subject research protocols

New 2024 resources include an addendum that individuals may append to consulting agreements. The addendum contains important provisions that help ensure the consulting is aligned with University policy. All conflict of commitment requirements must be followed in relation to such engagements.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has partnered with Columbia University to support the research lifecycle by providing cloud computing infrastructure, data management solutions, and advanced analytics.

This Key Takeaways recap from their June 2025 presentation highlights several funding opportunities, including the AWS Social Responsibility and Impact Grant (SRIG), which provides up to $200K in cloud credits for AI/ML-driven projects that benefit underserved communities. To apply for these initiatives, build cost estimates, or access technical guidance, researchers are instructed to coordinate directly with designated AWS and Columbia representatives: Angela Helfrich, [email protected] and cc Brittney Destin, [email protected].