Occasionally our faculty and researchers require assistance from outside professionals to help complete research projects. Princeton University has two mechanisms in place to hire such services - Consultant Agreements and Professional Services Purchase Agreements (PSPA).

A Consulting Agreement is intended to cover situations in which a specific skill or expertise requiring a high level of independence in the performance of the task is needed for a relatively short period of time. However, no specific, tangible end-product necessarily results in the use of a consultant other than a report or a presentation. A Consulting Agreement should not exceed effort equal to 2 days of work per week, or 40% time. The rate of pay may be capped by the sponsor. For example, the NSF limits consultant reimbursement to no more than $521 per day (2005 rate).

A PSPA is used to purchase a particular piece or pieces of work. Examples include a product of scholarship such as an article or chapter of a book. Aggregate payments made through a PSPA normally do not exceed $8,000 per year. If the proposed amount exceeds $8,000/year the Principal Investigator should include good reasons as to why the individual ought not to be an employee or visiting staff member.

Note that in both cases, the individual is not directly employed by the University, but is acting in a professional capacity and being reimbursed for services and sometimes for travel expenses. These individuals may not work on campus unless under specifically approved circumstances

Rules governing these arrangements are established by the Office of the Dean of the Faculty and available in "Rights, Rules and Responsibilities". The relevant section can be viewed at the following website: http://web.princeton.edu/sites/dof/publs/rprt96/chap5k.htm#ch5d

Those wanting to hire someone through a Consultant Agreement or through a PSPA should first complete the Request for Outside Services form, which can be downloaded from the ORPA website: (http://www.princeton.edu/orpa/forms/requestforoutsideservices.pdf). The completed form should be signed by the Principal Investigator and submitted to ORPA for review and approval. ORPA will issue and negotiate the appropriate agreement with the individual.

In some cases, departments request that ORPA negotiate and manage agreements for non-sponsored research awards. This can be easily done through this same process.

If you have any questions regarding the use of a Consulting Agreement or a PSPA, please contact Geter Hicks at 8-3094 or (ghicks@princeton.edu). A copy of the signed agreement will be sent to the department.

Roles and Responsibilities Grid

Note: With all sponsored research projects, the principal investigator is responsible for the management and administration of his/her award within the constraints imposed by the sponsor and in accordance with University policy. The principal investigator must authorize all expenditures of project funds.

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