PI Eligibility Guidance

PI eligibility guidance

Guidance: Requesting eligibility to serve as principal investigator

A Principal Investigator (PI) is the individual who has overall responsibility and is accountable for the preparation of the proposal, conduct of the sponsored activity, reporting of results and the proper administration, including programmatic and fiscal management, of the project, including overseeing subrecipient activities. They are responsible for compliance with the terms and conditions of the award and all applicable laws, regulations and policies of the funding agency, federal, state, and local regulations and Northeastern.

The privilege to act as a PI or a Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) on an externally funded project is automatically conferred upon all Northeastern faculty members with the following titles:

  • Professor
  • Research Professor
  • Associate Professor
  • Associate Research Professor
  • Assistant Professor
  • Assistant Research Professor

At the discretion of the college dean or their designee, in consultation with the department or division chair, individuals who do not hold any of the above faculty appointments may serve as the PI on an extramurally sponsored project. Those without the specific faculty titles listed above must work with their college administration to determine if the college’s policies and procedures allow the college to confer temporary PI status.

Individuals whose appointments are not granted by a college may serve as a PI or an investigator on an extramurally funded research or sponsored program at the discretion of the institute or center’s director.

Individuals serving as PIs have been determined by the college, center or institute to have the appropriate level of authority and responsibility to direct the project or program supported by the grant or contract.

Postdoctoral fellows may serve as a PI or co-PI in limited circumstances. PI status should only be granted when the sponsored program has a stated purpose of advancing postdoctoral education or research or to advance the individual’s research career (i.e., a NIH F31 grant).

Graduate students, and in rare cases undergraduate students, may be approved by exception to serve as PI or Co-PI only when a project’s stated purpose is solely to support a student’s education or individual research. This is typically through a thesis or fellowship award.

The college’s approval is project specific and documented by routing the proposal through the University’s electronic proposal award workflow system (ePAWs). The form included below is recommended to formally document the expectations and understandings between the college or institute and the individual seeking eligibility.

Conditions

The college’s approval reflects, but is not limited to the following conditions:

  • The proposed PI is also eligible under the funding agency’s eligibility criteria.
  • The proposed PI is or will be an employee of Northeastern at time of award; however, permission to serve as a PI on an award does not guarantee continued employment and/or future promotions or appointments.
  • The University, as the applicant organization, reserves the right to name a substitute PI, relinquish or decline an award.
  • If appropriate, a faculty mentor/sponsor has been identified.
  • The proposed PI agrees to cooperate with the college to complete the required annual salary verification process.
  • The proposed PI has read and understood applicable NU policies, including the Code of Ethics and Faculty Handbook and, if required by the College, taken RCR (CITI) training.
  • The proposed PI agrees to file and maintain an up-to-date conflict of interest and commitment disclosure through the electronic conflict disclosure (eCD) system in accordance with university policy.

PI responsibilities

  • Compliance with all applicable rules and regulations.
  • When applicable, ensuring all relevant approvals to serve as a PI are sought from applicable university research oversight bodies (i.e., IRB, IACUC, IBC).
  • Ensuring all project personnel, including subrecipients, are in compliance with all applicable regulations and policies.
  • Ensuring all project personnel, including subrecipients, have taken all required training.
  • Submission of required reports.
  • Financial management.

Colleges may wish to use the following form to further document their review and approval of requests by non-faculty to serve as PIs.

Ready to request PI status?

Download the request form, fill and sign, and obtain the approval of your College/Institute/Center.

Getting help

Support: [email protected]

Grant Officer: res.research.northeastern.edu/research-and-sponsored-programs-points-of-contact