Certificate Program Pretest
Current Institution:
Name:
City:
State:
How many years of experience do you have as principal investigator, co-PI or senior personnel on grants?
Years of experience must not be negative.
How many years of experience do you have in research administration?
Years of experience must not be negative.
Are you a certified research administrator?
Yes
No
Which of the following roles apply to you?
PI
Co-PI
Senior Personnel
Research Administrator
Undergraduate Student
Faculty
Other
Highest degree earned:
BA/BS
MS/MEd
PhD
MD
Other
Time since last active grant role (if applicable):
<1 year
1-3 years
4-10 years
10+ years
Types of institutions:
R1
Primarily undergraduate institution
Other higher education
Nonprofit
Industry
Government
If you are currently a student, what is your major?
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1. The research administrator’s role in the pre-award phase includes (select all that apply):
A. Identifying databases to search for the literature review
B. Overseeing the ethical conduct of human subjects research
C. Ensuring the institution receives the de minimis indirect cost rate
D. Ensuring the proposal complies with sponsor funding requirements
2. What is the function of a research development office?
A. Manage research funds to further develop institutional capabilities.
B. To handle technology transfer and manage the patent and licensing portfolios resulting from faculty research.
C. Assist researchers in identifying funding opportunities and developing proposals
D. Oversee the ethical review process (IRB, IACUC) for all institutional research
3. The Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200) provides regulations for:
A. Ethical treatment of animals
B. Investigator initiated proposals
C. Administration of Federal Awards
D. Ethical treatment of human subjects
4. ______ was established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to coordinate U.S. scientific research for military purposes during World War II.
A. National Science Foundation (NSF)
B. Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD)
C. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
D. Scientific Civil Defense Force (SCDF)
5. A primary role of a research administrator is:
A. Supporting the publication of peer-reviewed research
B. Writing the research narrative of a proposal
C. Ensuring a proposal complies with sponsor guidelines
D. Participation on the Institutional Review Board
6. Post-award research administration would be responsible for: (select all that apply)
A. Managing the project budget after an award is received
B. Assisting with project closeout
C. Managing compliance after an award is received
D. Writing the final research report
7. What is the role of a Program Officer at a funding agency?
A. Serve as the technical and administrative liaison between the funding agency and the Principal Investigator
B. Ensure the institution complies with human and animal subjects regulations
C. Hear appeals from the sponsored project staff in disputes over authorship or methodology
D. Facilitate international research collaborations
8. When substantial involvement is expected between the sponsor and recipient, the most appropriate funding mechanism is a:
A. cost-reimbursement grant
B. grant award
C. fixed price contract
D. cooperative agreement
9. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is:
A. A non-profit, non-governmental organization
B. Part of the National Science Foundation (NSF)
C. Part of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
D. The Directorate of the U.S.D.A. charged with research on animal and human health
10. The type of grant that receives the largest proportion of NIH grant funding is:
A. Small Business Innovation Research grants, Phase I and Phase II
B. R01 research grants
C. R21 exploratory research
D. Career development grants
11. Cost principles for the development of Facilities and Administrative rates for institutions of higher education are included in:
A. 2 CFR 200. Appendix III
B. 2 CFR 200, Subpart A
C. NSF R01
D. 45 CFR Part 46
12. The primary and uniform set of policies that governs the acquisition or contracting actions of all executive agencies is:?
A. CFDA
B. OMB 200
C. FAR
D. SF 424
13. To be eligible for a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award, an organization must: (select all that apply):
A. Be a for-profit small business
B. Have fewer than 500 employees
C. Be at least 51% owned and controlled by U.S. citizens or permanent resident aliens
D. Operate as a nonprofit research organization
14. In assessing the qualifications of the principal investigator, NIH reviewers will closely examine the:
A. biosketch
B. bibliography
C. letters of support
D. project design
15. To ensure the funding agency that there are no conflicts of commitment, a federal proposal must include
A. A biosketch with all activities of the researcher, whether paid or unpaid, including hobbies that may take up a significant portion of the researcher’s time
B. A common form with only current support. This must be updated with any support that is pending, if a new project is funded after the notice of award is received.
C. A common form with both current and pending support and any in-kind contributions
D. A common form that includes only current and pending support that have a financial contribution to the salaries of investigators and senior personnel
16. The NIH Just-in-Time policy allows the submission of certain:
A. elements of a competing application to be deferred until after review when the application is under consideration for funding.
B. corrections of errors but only if made within 24 hours of submission of the application in eraCommons or grants.gov
C. corrections of substantive errors in the application, regardless of method of transmission, as long as the grant deadline has not passed
D. changes to SF-424 and budget forms within 24 hours after the proposal deadline.
17. Dr. Taylor has .25 of her salary paid by an NIH grant, .1 by a grant from a local non-profit aimed at improving health care and .25 by a contract from a pharmaceutical company for research on drug side effects. The Other Support form in the new research proposal she is submitting must include:
A. Only the federal grant support
B. All grant support, whether federal, non-federal or philanthropic
C. All financial resources that support her research
D. The federal grant and commercial contract but grants from charitable organizations can be excluded
18. The electronic system used by NIH to track grants is:
A. grants.gov
B. clinicaltrials.gov
C. Research Web
D. ERA commons
19. A cost that can be identified and charged to a specific project is a(n):
A. established cost
B. direct cost
C. indirect cost
D. institutional cost
20. In the context of research administration, cost sharing refers to:
A. Reallocation (sharing) of funds from one budget category to another (e.g., from salary to travel) after a grant has been awarded.
B. The process by which the prime awards a subaward to a second institution to perform a share of the work at cost
C. The portion of the total project costs that is not paid by the external sponsor but is instead contributed by the grantee institution or other non-federal entities.
D. Contribution of a portion of total project costs to the institution’s foundation or other charitable enterprise
21. A reasonable cost is one that
A. Is allocated in the budget, with a reason given in budget justification
B. is necessary for performance of the grant and what a reasonable person would pay, reflecting fair market value
C. is essential for the grant’s performance, regardless of the cost
D. directly benefits a specific grant or project
22. Which of the following
may
be an allowable cost on a federal grant?
A. work visas
B. supply charges after the project period of performance is over
C. dependent care costs
D. alcoholic beverages at a lab meeting to foster collegial relationships
23. Ms. Garcia proposes a budget for an NSF research grant with $500,000 in direct costs, $125,000 in indirect costs and cost-sharing of $25,000. You tell her she needs to revise this budget because:
A. the indirect cost rate exceeds the de minimis rate of 8%
B. NSF does not award grants that exceed $500,000 in total costs to faculty without a terminal degree
C. NSF does not allow voluntary cost-sharing to be included in the budget
D. indirect costs + cost-sharing cannot exceed 25% of direct costs
24. Dr. Rogers purchased a laptop computer for $2,800 which will be used in the field by a research assistant on his project to collect data. This cost would be:
A. part of F & A expenses
B. covered by indirect costs
C. not allowable
D. charged to supplies in the grant budget
25. Which of these usually does NOT require prior approval
A. Change of PI/PD
B. Transfer of grant to another institution
C. PI or key personnel effort reduction by < 10%
D. Transferring funds out of participant support costs
26. Which of the following require prior approval from the NIH as a ‘change of scope’ (select all that apply)
A. Changing the focus of study from lung cancer to breast cancer
B. Changing the technician preparing laboratory specimens
C. Adding a specific aim to the project
D. Paying $15,000 for laboratory animals budgeted at $12,000
27. The university library has received a grant to establish a collection on nanotechnology and offer training to medical school personnel on using the collection. The grant budget includes line items for purchase of materials, staff salaries and participant stipends. The hourly salary at her current rate of pay, for the reference librarian who serves the entire campus community would be:
A. reasonable and allocable
B. reasonable but not allocable
C. not allowable
D. allowable only if she is a full-time employee of the university
28. Ms. Smith has received an NIH award for research on the impact of stress on serotonin levels. A salary for her administrative assistant at her current rate of pay for 20 hours per week is included in the budget, for entering data and editing papers prior to publication. In reviewing the award you determine that:
A. this is an allowable and reasonable cost.
B. this must be moved to indirect cost, as she is clerical personnel and not directly involved in the research.
C. this is an allowable cost but does not require tracking as she is not research personnel.
D. salary is an allowable cost but the fringe benefits for clerical personnel are not allowed.
29. Dr. Harris receives a contract from the Department of Labor to create aptitude tests for applicants to a program providing training for construction trades. In addition to descriptive statistics for each item and the total score, she is unsure whether she needs to include reliability and validity computations in her report. You tell her to look for the answer in the:
A. Data Management Plan
B. Data Use Plan
C. Statement of Work
D. Logic model
30. The method for allocating costs for institutional fixed assets that are allocated to a sponsored project for a specific project period, should be:
A. indirect costs assignment
B. depreciation
C. based on what a reasonable person would expect to pay
D. 100% of the cost of the asset, payable in equal annual installments
31. The School of Education has received a $750,000 grant for teacher training. As part of this grant, 11 elementary education majors are funded to attend the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics conference. The cost of their travel should be paid from which line item:
A. travel
B. undergraduate student costs
C. participant support costs
D. subrecipient costs
32. Amazing State University had $20 million in research grants in 2022 and now has $40 million in grants. During this period the facilities and administrative costs have increased by 5%. The impact on the institution’s F & A rate is that it will:
A. decrease
B. increase by 5%
C. increase by 100%
D. stay the same. F & A rate is unrelated to grant portfolio.
33. Prior approval is required for:
A. Change in scope of work, even if there is no associated budget revision
B. Change in scope of work but only if there is an associated budget revision
C. PI or key personnel effort reduction by 5%
D. PI absence for two weeks
34. Which of the following is most likely to be included in Facilities and administrative (F&A) costs?
A. Equipment used on the project that will be retained by the university after the grant ends.
B. Library subscriptions to academic journals
C. The Principal Investigator’s salary
D. Expendable supplies used by the project that cost under $500
35. Basic underlying ethical principles in the protection of human subjects are:
A. Justice, respect for persons and beneficence
B. Beneficence, equity and diversity
C. Justice, respect for persons and cure
D. Justice, equity, diversity
36. How often must the IACUC review the institution’s animal care and use program and facilities?
A. Every month
B. Once a year
C. At least once every six months
D. Only when concerns are raised
37. An Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC):
A. oversees the ethical treatment and use of animals in research
B. can be combined with the Institutional Review Board functions at smaller institutions
C. is optional for institutions that receive less than $5 million in annual research funding
D. Both A and B
38. Which of these would be considered Human Subjects Research?
A. Analysis of cancer cells from the liver of a person who donated their body to the medical school
B. Analysis of statements indicating depression in the letters of three sisters who lived during the 19th century, who are identified by name in the published article
C. Pre- and post-assessment on a measure of clinical depression of patients receiving counseling in a telehealth program
D. Regression analysis to predict a cancer diagnosis from demographic and social stressor data, from data downloaded from a file where all personally identifying information has been removed
39. Metropolitan State University’s Institutional Biosafety Committee consists of six members: two professors from the biology department, two from the chemistry department, a research administrator from the sponsored programs office and a community member from the local Humane Society. This committee is:
A. compliant with federal regulations
B. non-compliant as at least seven members are required.
C. non-compliant as at least two community members are required.
D. non-compliant as the regulations require five members to prevent the possibility of tied votes.
40. The purpose of a Data Use Agreement is to:
A. Specify the methods used in collecting data
B. Establish terms under which confidential data can be used and shared
C. State an explicit policy that allows generative artificial intelligence programs to use data
D. Agree that any data produced by a research project will be open access
41. The primary purpose of a subaward is to:
A. designate how the indirect cost funds may be spent
B. delegate a portion of the sponsored project to another entity
C. allow the principal investigator to hire a foreign collaborator under the direct supervision of the sponsoring organization
D. allow for spending before the official award start date, at the institution’s risk
42. Dr. MacDonald has an overdue project outcomes report for her NSF grant. She must:
A. contact the program officer who will need to override the system to allow an overdue report
B. combine the outcomes she would have reported in the overdue report into her next report that she submits in a timely manner
C. submit the report on research.gov
D. do nothing unless this is the final report. Project outcomes reports are optional progress reports.
43. The purpose of a no-cost extension is to :
A. Allow the researcher to extend the project with a new study as long as there are no additional costs
B. enable extending the life of a research project with staffing provided as in-kind match (at no cost)
C. extend the reach of research results by requiring publication in open source journals
D. extend the project period for a grant without further funding.
44. Ms. Davis is considering using generative AI to expedite submitting her progress report to NSF. Which of these uses would be allowed?
A. Use of Gemini 3 to alphabetize references and format in APA style.
B. Uploading the report, excluding any sensitive or confidential information, and have ChatGPT draft an abstract.
C. Both A and B would be acceptable.
D. None of the above. NSF specifically prohibits the use of generative AI that has not been pre-approved.
45. Dr. Waddell received a five-year grant, from October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2024. On October 15th, 2024, after the end of the grant, but before the closeout, she paid publication costs of $11,000 for two articles based on this research to appear in prestigious journals in January, 2026 and March, 2026. These costs are:
A. not allowable as they occur after the project end date
B. only allowable if the publication date occurs before the closeout date
C. not allowed as publication costs are not an eligible expense
D. both allowable and allocable
46. Which is NOT a major benefit of research security?
A. maintaining trust
B. safeguarding data
C. increasing international collaboration
D. protecting economic security
47. An example of a digital persistent identifier (DPI) is
A. a researcher’s university email address, if the institution has implemented multi-factor authentication
B. a researcher’s ORCID
C. the URL for an article published in an open access journal
D. the area code for telephone numbers in a specific region
48. The role of HIPAA in research is establishment of
A. regulations for the health of animal subjects
B. standards for the treatment of human subjects as spelled out in the Nuremberg Code
C. digital persistent identifiers for health information
D. standards for protecting the privacy and security of health information
49. Which of the following is an adequate data security program?
A. University A has a process focused on backing up data to the cloud in case of hardware failure or natural disaster.
B. University B has measures and processes to protect data from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction.
C. University C uses multi-factor authentication for logins and an algorithm that converts passwords into an unreadable format before storing.
D. University D uses a program that creates a strong firewall to protect the network perimeter
50. The Bayh-Doyle Act:
A. regulates the use of animal subjects in research
B. allows universities and small businesses to retain ownership of inventions developed with federal funding
C. makes a clear distinction between requirements of human subjects research in the United States and conducted with foreign collaborators
D. sets the policy on open access publications for federally-funded research
51. Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs):
A. Need to be signed by an authorized signatory, someone who can legally represent the institution
B. Are only required by for-profit companies
C. Are another term for Material Transfer Agreements
D. Are a standard template that can be downloaded from the Internet and signed with minimal modification
52. Which of the following is a violation of the rules regarding disclosure of intellectual property:
A. Professor X has an idea for creating a new exercise machine that would reduce body fat of regular users. She did not report her idea;
B. Dr. Y built an exercise machine that reduces body fat in March, 2026. In May of the same year, he received funding for research on the impact of obesity. He did not report his invention.
C. Mr. Z developed a prototype of a fat-reduction exercise machine and reported his invention to the technology transfer office in March 2026. The office reported the invention to the funding agency in December, 2026.
D. None of these violate IP disclosure requirements
53. The Uniform Biological Material Transfer Agreement (UBMTA) was developed by the ______ in order to standardize and simplify materials transfers.
a. NSF
b. NIH
c. USDA
d. FDA
54. In the United States, patent rights go to the party who:
A. is the first to file a patent for the technology
B. is the first to publish the idea of the technology
C. has evidence that they were the first to create a minimum viable product
D. invented the technology and did not sign a work-for-hire agreement
55. Two organizations that provide professional development for research administrators are:
A. DOE and NIH
B. NCURA and SRAI
C. NASA and MRSA
D. ORA and CFDA
56. The primary advantage of retrieval augmented generation is:
A. It increases the speed of retrieval of information
B. improved accuracy and relevance of the results
C. lower cost for retrieval
D. it does not have the same environmental impact as other artificial intelligence methods
57. Dr. Davis used a generative AI program to format her bibliographic references in APA style and put these in alphabetical order. When submitting her proposal to NSF she should:
A. delete the bibliography and re-do this manually as AI is strictly prohibited
B. cite the artificial intelligence program used in her bibliography
C. omit mention of AI as it is not relevant to the intellectual merit of her proposal
D. describe the extent to which generative AI was used in developing the proposal
58. Dr. Plant intends to conduct research on the impact of food deserts with tribal members residing on a reservation in the United States. He would need approval from:
A. His institution’s Institutional Review Board
B. The reservation’s own IRB or designate, if there is one
C. The tribal council or its designated representative
D. All of the above
59. The individual responsible for insuring the institution adheres to relevant laws, regulations and ethical standards for research is the:
A. Research Contracts Officer
B. Compliance Officer
C. Principal Investigator
D. Program Officer
60. On November 1, 2025, University of Nowhere received a notice that their grant for a new research center has been recommended for funding, with an anticipated start date of January 1, 2026. Accordingly, they purchase $20,000 in laboratory equipment and pay $11,000 in salary and fringe benefits to technical staff to set up the equipment. On December 15, 2025, they learn the project will not be funded due to agency budget cuts. They are eligible for cost reimbursement of:
A. $31,000
B. $20,000
C. $11,000
D. $0
61. State agriculture experiment stations were established by:
A. Bayh-Dole Act
B. The National Science Foundation
C. 1945 Morrill Commission
D. Hatch Act of 1887
62. The Department of the Interior contracts with Cargill to produce pesticides for use across all national parks. This contract must be in accordance with
A. The Helsinki agreement, since it involves a potentially toxic substance
B. FAR
C. NSF Circular 200
D. NIH R01
63. Dr. Plant intends to conduct research on the impact of food deserts with tribal members residing on a reservation in the United States. Once data are collected, he should:
A. have a plan for sharing these data with the designated tribal entity
B. only use data it has been collected without including tribal identification
C. use an algorithm to convert any information identifying a specific tribe into an unreadable format
D. only publish the data if he has a designated tribal member as co-author
64. Professor Fox uploads the NSF Proposal Awards Policies and Procedures Guide and enters a prompt asking for a summary of the formatting requirements for an SBIR grant. This use of artificial intelligence is:
A. not allowed under NSF regulations
B. an example of retrieval augmented generation
C. a likely violation of privacy per HIPAA
D. a misuse of large language models because the prompt is insufficiently specific
65. In year one of an NSF grant, supplies were charged as a direct cost. However, the grant is in danger of going over budget in year two. Supplies:
A. Can be charged to indirect costs, as long as the change is documented
B. Can be charged to indirect costs if it can be shown that these supplies are not allocated to another project
C. Can be charged to indirect costs as long as the total approved budget is not exceeded.
D. Cannot be charged to indirect costs because charges must be consistent
66. The funded proposal awarded to Northern University includes a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Deans of the School of Engineering at Northern University and Southern State College, agreeing to share faculty and curriculum for a summer program which will be held on site at Northern. Due to staffing cuts, the Dean at Southern State says they will no longer participate. He is:
A. legally bound by the Memorandum of Understanding to provide both faculty and curriculum
B. legally required to provide either equivalent funds or the promised faculty and curriculum
C. legally required to provide curriculum, even if the faculty are unavailable
D. not legally bound by the Memorandum of Understanding.
67. The university owns a bus which will be for the exclusive use of the New Elm Research project for two years for the purpose of transporting patients to the clinic for testing. The appropriate method for allocating the costs for the two-year period is:
A. The total cost of the bus, charged in year one
B. Allocate the cost based on the number of miles driven each month, using the IRS standard mileage rate.
C. Allocate the cost as an indirect cost by adding the purchase price to the institution's central Facilities and Administrative cost pool.
D. Allocate the cost of the bus to the grant through straight-line depreciation
68. Dr. La Flesche has developed a new technology for evaluating crude oil quality. He wants to apply for a Small Business Technology Transfer award, so he has incorporated as a Delaware C-corporation. He:
A. is now ready to apply
B. must find a federal lab for a partner
C. must find a research institute for a partner
D. cannot apply unless he is working full-time for the new company
69. Dr. Pilates thinks his grant is not in compliance because the approved animal protocols have not been reviewed in the past eight months. He is:
A. correct
B. incorrect. Protocols must be reviewed annually.
C. incorrect. Protocols must be reviewed every three years.
D. incorrect. Once approved, there is no need for protocol review unless there has been a significant change in authorizing legislation.
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