Class Codes and Definitions for Sponsored Awards
Class codes are required when preparing a proposal submission or award setup. Find information on various class codes and the corresponding facilities and administrative rate.
This page provides class code definitions, the applicable sponsored award types and helps determine the correct facilities and administrative (F&A) rate (sometimes referred to as indirect cost rate or IDC rate) on sponsored projects. Class codes are mandatory for the University of Michigan’s financial system to classify all expenditures appropriately.
When preparing a proposal approval form (PAF) for proposal submission or award setup in eResearch Proposal Management (eRPM), the class code is required and labeled as “Proposal Type/Class Code.”
The correlating F&A rate is listed below. Full recovery of indirect costs is expected regardless of school, college or sponsor. Consult the current F&A rates and ORSP’s indirect cost (IDC) policy page for full details.
Cost sharing is the financial and non-financial support contributed by U-M to sponsored projects. Compliance with federal cost accounting standards requires that cost shared expenses be treated in a consistent and uniform manner in proposal preparation and in the accounting and reporting of subsequent expenses in the financial reports to both federal and non-federal sponsors.
Instruction class codes
General Academic Instruction (11000) – IDC Rate: 54% (On-campus)
- Course preparation and grading
- Creating educational materials (i.e., textbooks, manuals, books for classroom use)
- Supervision of teaching assistants and faculty scholarly activity not separately budgeted and accounted for on a project basis
- Instructional committees: Academic Standing, Admissions, Curriculum, Fellowship, Lecture, Minority Student Recruitment and Scholarship
Note: Cost sharing for these awards must also use this class code.
Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029 for on-campus Instruction: 54%
Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029 for off-campus Instruction: 26%
Instruction – Research Training Grants (16000) – IDC Rate: 54%* (On-Campus)
- Training individuals in research methods
- Pre- and post-doctoral training awards
- Fellowships
Three basic characteristics of a research training grant/fellowship:
- The individual’s involvement is as a trainee. In most instances, the award is made to an individual who is not the principal investigator.
- Stipends and/or tuition are the primary budgeted expenditures.
- The award document includes language referencing a mentor (U-M Principal Investigator)/mentee (U-M Sponsor Principal Investigator).
Some examples where the rate may vary:
- NIH awards with the following NIH grant number prefixes F (F31, F32), T (T32, T35) and some K awards (specifically institutional career development awards – K12, KL2, KM1)
- NSF Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) program (research training awards from NSF)
Caution: Awards titled “Fellowship” or “Research Training” by the sponsor may not fit U-M’s definition of Research Training Grants. Often an award issued to a faculty member is classified as Organized Research.
* The indirect costs of training grants are often stipulated by the sponsor’s guidelines or funding announcement. See ORSP & U-M Policies on F&A Rates and check with the school’s or college’s dean-level research administration office to confirm.
Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029 for on-campus Instruction: 54%
Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029 for off-campus Instruction: 26%
Research class codes
Organized Research (22000) – IDC Rate: 56% (On-campus)
- Research sponsored by federal and non-federal agencies and organizations
- Managed within academic units, institutes or research centers
- 50% or more of U-M employee personnel effort (including cost-shared effort) is performed in facilities owned or leased by the University
Examples:
- Writing and/or analyzing the findings of research already performed under a separate award
- NIH individual career development awards (K awards, excluding institutional career development awards K12, KL2 & KM1)
- Developing training programs that are not course and curriculum development. See Class 11000, General Academic Instruction.
Comparative examples:
- Example of 22000: Develop training program to teach researchers in a foreign country to be better researchers.
- Example of 11000: Develop course program materials for a joint program in Social Work and Public Health (a for credit course).
Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029 for on-campus Research: 56%
Organized Research (22100) – IDC Rate: 26% (Off-campus)
- Research sponsored by federal and non-federal agencies and organizations
- Managed within academic units, institutes or research centers
- 50% or more of U-M employee personnel effort (including cost-shared effort) is performed in facilities neither owned nor leased by the University. DOES NOT include effort of non-U-M employees (i.e., subcontract employees)
- NIH individual career development awards (K awards, excluding institutional career development awards K12, KL2 & KM1)
Research and synonymous terms: study, develop, investigate, explore, observe, probe, discover, search, examine, inquire, seek
Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029 for off-campus research: 26%
Organized Research (22100) – IDC Rate: 26% (Off-campus)
- Research sponsored by federal and non-federal agencies and organizations
- Managed within academic units, institutes or research centers
- 50% or more of U-M employee personnel effort (including cost-shared effort) is performed in facilities neither owned nor leased by the University. DOES NOT include effort of non-U-M employees (i.e., subcontract employees)
- NIH individual career development awards (K awards, excluding institutional career development awards K12, KL2 & KM1)
Research and synonymous terms: study, develop, investigate, explore, observe, probe, discover, search, examine, inquire, seek
Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029 for off-campus research: 26%
Other sponsored activity (OSA) class codes
Public Service, Other Sponsored Activity (31000) – IDC Rate: 31% (On-campus) (July 1, 2025-June 30, 2029)
- Activities that provide a service to the public
- Activities funded by a single external sponsor and allow access to University resources
Examples:
- U-M employees acting as consultants to industry partners
- IPA Agreements
- Routine/commercial Testing
- NIH R13 grants for scientific meetings
- Conferences/scientific meetings
- If the conference is part of another program, then use the same subclass the program uses. For example, the Conference for Young Scientists is considered part of their research training activity, so the appropriate subclass is 16000 (used for research training grants).
Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029 for on-campus Other Sponsored Activity: 31%
Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029 for off-campus Other Sponsored Activity: 26%
Clinical Trial Site Activity (31200) – See below
A specific subset of Other Sponsored Activity with the following characteristics:
- Human clinical trials where U-M is a participant site in a multi-site trial on a protocol held by the external sponsor
- U-M work involves the collection of data on a study cohort and return of that data to the Data Coordinating Center (DCC) or external sponsor for use.
- Can be Interventional or Observational in nature
Examples:
- Phase III drug trial for Pfizer pursuing investigational new drug approval with the FDA
- 31200 Clinical Trial Site Activity excludes projects where U-M serves in a lead role; for example: contributing to protocol development, managing/overseeing the collection of data from other sites, or having the responsibility to direct (independently) the U-M statement of work.
- The application of F&A costs (or IDCs) for clinical trial site activity will be based on the Prime Sponsor of the project:
- Modified total direct cost (MTDC) base for federal
- Total cost (TC) base for industry
- Prevailing rate for non-profit
- Phase IV, post-market protocol collecting patient data on behalf of Eli Lilly for further FDA review
- Federally sponsored grant or contract where U-M is a participating site following the sponsor protocol and returning study data
- Observational protocol comparing patient responses to an implanted device where U-M is a participating site and sends the collected data to the sponsor
Federal and non-profit: Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029: 31%
Industry / for-profit: Approved indirect cost rate through June 30, 2029: 35%