Research Development Office
The Research Development Office at ISERP was established to generate external, institutional support for the research of our faculty, fellows, and scholars. While the Office offers an array of administrative services, we also help investigators develop research, strengthen their proposals, and assess the prospects of funding, allowing for more innovative, high-return research proposals. If you are interested in learning more about the Research Development Office and what it can offer, have a look at our F.A.Q. or contact Kristin Murphy for further information.
The Research Development Office is the liaison between Columbia University's Research Administration and the social sciences.
Research Development
Our primary role is to facilitate the development of high-risk, high-return research, as well as collaboration among social science faculty, scholars, and scientists at Columbia. At ISERP, we have a unique vantage and perspective, both of the research being undertaken at Columbia, and of the standards and programming interests of foundations and agencies that are supporting social science research. We use our knowledge of the interests and concerns of funding sources to help investigators develop research to the point where it will attract funding, as well as to tune research narratives and budgets. Moreover, in the effort to foster a community of social science research, we take the initiative to put investigators in touch with other investigators working on similar problems, and also bring new projects and funding sources to the attention of investigators who may benefit from them.
Administrative Services
Generating external, institutional support for innovative basic and applied social research does not come without its measure of procedure and red tape. The Research Development Office provides a number of administrative services to help investigators cut through the bureaucracy of applying for and administering a research grant. We keep abreast of developments in University policy, human subjects certification, and the application procedures and programs of major funding sources, helping to ensure that investigators' applications and reports are complete. We guide investigators through online systems like Columbia's Rascal system and the NSF's daunting Fastlane, and we also maintain a set of downloads and links to checklists and boilerplate documents, which may assist investigators with the processes of proposal submission and grant administration.
For investigators who have been awarded external funding, the Research Development Office establishes grant accounts, reviews and issues monthly fiscal statements, and works with investigators to address budgetary, human subjects, and other certification and compliance issues pertaining to their grants. We also assist with final reports and grant closeout.
The Office also participates on behalf of the social sciences in the development of the University's Research Administration policies and procedures.
