All research collaboration agreements with other organisations should be organised through the Research and Enterprise Office.
Visit Research collaboration with Otago for expert advice.
Memoranda of understanding
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a document that identifies who are the intended collaborators in a research project. It is signed by the University of Otago and the external organisation, indicating an intention to collaborate should the project be funded. If your research project involves collaboration with another organisation that will result in a sub-contract agreement, a Memorandum of Understanding must be signed at the time the research application is submitted. It will form the basis of your Sub-Contract if the application is successful.
An MoU includes the following:
- Which objectives the external organisation will be involved with
- FTE and salary costs of all sub-contracted personnel
- Total consumable costs
- Overheads (if the funding body funds full-cost recovery)
- The intended level of funding to the sub-contractor for the period of the grant (subject to the funding provided by the sponsor)
- Specifies if the agreement is GST inclusive or exclusive
Please note: the budget must be fully costed.
The MoU could also contain:
- a description of how the funding would change if the full amount of the contract not be awarded
- a description of how intellectual Property would be treated should the contract be successful
The MoU must be signed by the authorised signatory of the sub-contracting organisation before submitting to the Research and Enterprise Office with your grant application.
Research and Enterprise Office staff will gladly help with any enquiries you may have regarding MoUs.
Sub-Contracting Agreement (money going out)
A sub-contract is a contract that the University of Otago has with a collaborating organisation for them to work on one of our research projects. If you receive funding for a research project which involves collaboration with another organisation, a sub-contract agreement must then be entered into (this follows on from the MoU you completed at the time of grant application).
The Research and Enterprise Office will ask the Principal Investigator (PI) to fill in the project details of the agreement from a template provided. It is the responsibility of the Research and Enterprise Office to negotiate sub-contract agreements on behalf of the University with the sub-contracting organisation.
If the funding awarded is less than that applied for, The Research and Enterprise Office, in consultation with the PI and the sub-contractor, will determine the re-allocation of funds. This could be done to maintain equity in the funding of the project, or whatever is agreed to in the MoU. The Research and Enterprise Office will also liaise with the sub-contractor in regards to other terms of the agreement such as publication rights, student involvement and ownership of intellectual property.
Once the terms of the sub-contract have been agreed to by all parties concerned, the Research and Enterprise Office will arrange for the authorised signatures on the agreement The original of the agreement will be held in the Research and Enterprise Office and a copy sent to the PI.
Research and Enterprise Office staff will gladly help with any enquiries you may have regarding sub-contracts.
Confidentiality Agreements
These should be discussed directly with staff at the Research and Enterprise Office.
Material Transfer Agreements
These should be discussed directly with staff at the Research and Enterprise Office.