Can the overhead rate be reduced?
In some cases grant or tender guidelines may state a maximum overhead that can be applied for. For example ACIAR only allows 13% overheads to be included in proposals. Where the guidelines stipulate a limit on overheads you abide by this. When submitting the Application Cover Sheet to the Research Office you will have ticked the box “[ ] Excluded by Grant Rules” under the question do “Administrative Overheads apply to this project?” There are many variables at work with negotiations either for ” research” or “consultancies”. Contracts for “research” or “consultancies” consist of detailed provisions some of which are negotiable. For example if the researcher is able to freely publish then this would be of benefit and therefore a lower (15%) rate might be charged. If on the other hand, the contracting organisation wishes to keep the data to itself (thereby depriving the researcher of the ability to publish or develop the material) then this must be a consultancy with the consequent highe
