Considering Indirect Costs
Research requires both direct and indirect investments. Operational maintenance of research infrastructure requires reinvestment on a significant scale.
Indirect costs support many institutional functions of the University, including:
- Space and utilities (electricity, plumbing, heating, and air conditioning, as well as plans for and finances new research spaces)
- Core facilities (janitorial services, Facilities and Management Planning, Computing & Communication Services, hazardous waste disposal, campus security and health services)
- Library services (acquisitions, maintenance costs, etc.)
- Research financial services (personnel, financial management utilities, like FAST, Banner, etc.)
- Research compliance and regulatory requirements (Research Compliance Office, Animal Care Facility)
- Payroll
- Office of the Vice-President (Research and International) (Research Office personnel, cuResearch, research development funding, etc.)
- Occupational safety
- Liability insurance
- Laboratory/office furniture
These indirect costs must be included in budget requests to external sponsors of research. Carleton’s Indirect Costs Policy states that indirect costs will be recovered as follows:
| Funding Type | Rate Applied |
| Contracts, agreements and grants (charitable, government or industry)
Includes cash contributions made as part of matching programs (except for NSERC CRDs, which are exempt from overheads on the industry contribution). |
Maximum allowable by sponsor or 20% when no sponsor policy exists |
| Public Works and Government Services Canada | Sponsor procurement policy: 65% on direct salaries and benefits, including fringe benefits; 2% on travel |
| Service agreements | 20% |
How are indirect costs distributed at Carleton?
Indirect costs are distributed as follows:
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40% – Central university operating
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15% – Office of the Vice-President (Research and International)
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15% – Faculty (for cross-faculty CURCs* this amount is split equally between the Faculties)
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15% – Department or School (based on the principal investigator’s appointment)
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15% – Principal Investigator–Researcher (for non-CURC* projects) OR CURC* (for CURC* projects)