Constructing a Budget & Research Plan
This section outlines the mutually agreed-upon research activities and research results deliverables. The activities should be complementary to the highly qualified research interests of the chosen faculty member(s). Also, care must be taken in setting reasonable timelines for deliverables. For example, while projects suitable for existing students can be staffed fairly quickly to carry out the work, research activities requiring new staffing are often subject to the graduate student recruitment cycle. The IPS team will negotiate the terms and conditions of an agreement with industry partners to ensure that it best reflects the mutual needs of all parties.
You may wish to use the IPS budget template and/or Indirect Costs Calculator to help construct your budget.
It is also important to take into consideration the Government of Canada’s recommendations for safeguarding your research when developing your research plan.
The research budget includes:
- University Indirect Costs of Research*. Note that IPS team members would be happy to lead on all discussions regarding indirect costs with sponsors.
- Salaries (faculty, students, research associates, etc.)
- Equipment purchase and user fees
- Materials
- Budget items that are subject to the Harmonized Sales Taxes (HST) include both federal (5%) and provincial (8%) components for a total rate of 13% HST; however, the University receives a rebate of 73.769% on the combined tax amount.
Budget a Contract: Unique Features
Budgeting Pricing vs. Costing
Grant budgets include the cost of the work to be undertaken by adding direct and indirect costs. In contrast, a contract budget is priced by incorporating the full cost of the research services. For example, the price can include a contingency cost for unexpected expenses. It is common for the price to be listed as a lump sum or to be broken down into different amounts allotted for several deliverables or categories of expenses (e.g. equipment). For fixed price contracts, the detailed budget typically remains internal to Carleton and the industry partner does not review it.
Scope and Deliverables
The scope and deliverables in a research contract are typically well-defined and fixed. Care must be taken in setting reasonable timelines for deliverables. For example, while projects suitable for existing students can be staffed fairly quickly to carry out the work, research activities requiring new staffing are often subject to the graduate student recruitment cycle. It is important to note that any work conducted outside of the pre-determined scope will not be funded and failure to comply with any of the deliverables described within the budget may constitute a breach of contract.