Academic Year Effort

The Office of Sponsored Programs at Harvard has created a school-wide policy on Effort Reporting to guide the process of effort certification on sponsored projects. To comply with these guidelines, Harvard has deployed the web-based system, ecrt, to serve as the new tool to facilitate the effort certification and reporting process.

Faculty members in the FAS are customarily paid a salary covering nine months of academic duties, paid out over twelve months.  At the end of each fiscal year, faculty members must certify that the work effort was indeed performed as indicated and paid via the Annual Faculty Effort Certification in eCRT.

If an effort commitment was made on an award in which a no-cost-extension is approved, it is reasonable to assume that the commitment will continue on during the rest of the extended grant period.

The Faculty Academic Year Salary Incentive Program (FASIP)

The Faculty Academic Year Salary Incentive Program (FASIP) was first introduced as a two-year pilot program (FY16 & FY17) to enable tenure track, or tenured, faculty to voluntarily charge up to three months of their nine month academic year salary to sponsored awards and receive an incentive payment. The FASIP program became permanent in FY18.

Dean Claudine Gay approved changes to the policy in May 2020, designed to provide faculty with a source of discretionary funding. As of July 1, 2020, benefits of FASIP will include the following:

  • Faculty will receive discretionary funds equal to 75% of the salary and benefit costs charged to sponsored awards that pay the full indirect cost rate (IDC) (69%).
  • Awards with a reduced indirect cost rate will now be eligible for a FASIP incentive of 33%
    • This change eliminates a significant barrier to participation for faculty with awards from foundations or non-federal sponsors that pay a minimal rate.

Related program documents:

Faculty Academic Year Salary Incentive Program (FASIP)

FASIP Request Form for Participation

FAQs

Annual Effort for Other Academic Appointments

Salary certification for Research Associates, Instructors, Preceptors, and any other employees paid on sponsored accounts under object code 6030 is done at the end of each fiscal year end, along with the annual faculty certifications via the Annual Faculty Effort Certification in eCRT. 

Proxies for Other Academic Appointees will be allowed when there is an assigned mentor on an award or if an appointee is working under the direction of a Principal Investigator on his or her award.  The “Request for Proxy of Authority for Annual Effort Certifications Form" must be filled out and submitted to the Tub Effort Coordinators for approval.

Revision History:

April 2021: Updated the following - responsible office name, effective and revision date, and removed statement referencing the policy will be in effect for one fiscal year.