Indirect Costs
Sidebar
Indirect costs, also known as facilities and administrative (F&A) costs, or research operating costs, represent the real expenses the University of Louisville incurs to support research and other sponsored activities. These costs include:
- Compliance and administrative support
- Library services and information technology (IT) operations
- Utilities (water, electricity, heating, and cooling)
- Facilities and equipment
- Physical plant operations and maintenance and security
- Sponsored programs administration
- Central administrative offices (e.g., Human Resources and Purchasing)
Because these expenses cannot be easily tied to a specific project, they are not charged individually or directly to external sponsors. Instead, they are recovered through indirect cost rates applied to sponsored projects. Learn more about indirect costs here.
Full Cost Recovery Policy
UofL is committed to full cost recovery for our research programs. Principal Investigators are expected to request and secure full indirect costs from all sponsors when proposing and conducting sponsored projects.
Indirect Cost Rate Agreement
As a recipient of federal funds, UofL negotiates an Indirect Cost Rate Agreement with its cognizant federal agency – the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).
- Current Indirect Cost Rate Agreement: July 1, 2023 -June 30, 2028.
- Designated rates remain in effect beyond June 30, 2028 until a new agreement is finalized.
Alternative Indirect Cost Rates
ACTIVITY TYPE | RATE | BASE | DEFINITION |
Industry Clinical On Campus | FY25-FY28 57% | MTDC | Clinical research and clinical trials that are sponsored by industry and performed on-campus. |
Industry Clinical Off Campus | 30% | TDC | Clinical research and clinical trials that are sponsored by industry and performed off-campus. |
| Entities with Published and Uniformly Applied Rates | Varies | TDC | If a government entity or nonprofit entity limits the indirect cost rate as set forth in a published and uniformly applied policy, UofL will abide by that sponsor’s policy. The published guidelines or policy must accompany any proposal submission bearing less than UofL’s full recovery rate. The alternative rate will be applied to total direct costs (unless the sponsor’s policy specifies otherwise). If the rate is not supported by a published policy or written guidelines that apply to all applicants, the university’s full negotiated rate must be applied. |
| Louisville Metro Government | MTDC | A indirect cost rate of 18 percent is applicable for projects and programs supported by Louisville Metro Government, with the following exclusions; 1) Projects funded by federal funding passing through Metro Government should use the standard federal F&A rates; and 2) Projects funded by Metro Council Neighborhood Development Fund grants or those involving shared Metro Government-UofL position agreements should use 0 percent. |