Onboarding for RA/RD

ORED oversees the overall research enterprise at MSU, including research integrity, compliance, and strategic development initiatives. It's mission is "to foster an environment that ignites innovation, solves critical changes, and improves lives." It does this through administering compliance and support units to help researchers accomplish their goals. 

ORED houses the following Research Support Units:  International Institute, Office of Laboratory Animal Resources, Office of Research Compliance and Security, Office of Research Development, Office of Sponsored Projects, and the Office of Technology Management. 

In addition to administering the central research support units, ORED:

• works closely with state and federal agencies and industry partners to advance funding opportunities and find solutions to complex, real-world problems
• coordinates university-wide research centers and institutes that conduct innovative multi-disciplinary research
• provides training and support for scholars across campus through seminars, workshops, internal funding programs.

See more About ORED. 

OSP oversees sponsored projects for grants, contracts, and other sponsored agreements, and coordinates interaction between the University, research faculty, and sponsors by providing services such as proposal review, agreement negotiation, and award acceptance.

OSP manages Cayuse S2S, which is the online submission platform for all proposals and acts as the main means of communication between OSP agents and investigators. This is where you will find updated policies and forms related to sponsored research applications, subawards, and procedures. 

To learn more, visit the OSP website.  

ORCS provides support and protection for MSU's research enterprise with the highest standards of security, compliance, and ethics utilizing outreach, education, and effective, fair, and consistent customer service.

This is where you will find information and assistance with export controls, international and national security, and human and animal research subjects, as ORCS manages research security certifications, IRB and IACUC protocols. 

To learn about research compliance, security, and trainings in both, visit the ORCS website. 

The MSU Office of Laboratory Animal Resources (OLAR) is the service unit that provides veterinary care and animal husbandry resources for all animals required in biomedical research, teaching, and testing programs at MSU. 

Visit the OLAR website. 

ORD supports individual and institutional efforts to attract external funding through proposal development. ORD is where an investigator or team comes for assistance finding appropriate funding mechanisms or for assistance developing a proposal for a specific mechanism. ORD creates and distributes resources - from newsletters to templates - designed to make proposal-building easier. 

ORD manages Limited Submissions and coordinates all ORED programming each year, as well as maintaining Pivot-RP and managing the Undergraduate Research Symposium. 

To see how they can assist you, visit the ORD website. 

The OTM team assists investigators in navigating the complexities of intellectual property to ensure that the wealth of knowledge generated within our institution reaches its full potential. By seamlessly connecting researchers, inventors, and industry leaders, we drive economic growth, create meaningful partnerships, and propel Mississippi State University to new heights of success. 

OTM handles intellectual property and commercialization of ideas, inventions, and other creative works. If you are or work with an entrepreneur or inventor, this is a unit you need to know about. 

Find team members and learn more about them by visiting the OTM website. 

SPA is not managed by ORED, but is the institution's central post-award financial management office, providing oversight and stewardship of externally-funded projects from award setup through closeout. 

SPA is where funding gets funneled to the correct accounts and investigators work with them on project reporting and draw-downs. 

See what all SPA can do for you by visiting their website. 

Mississippi State University researchers can utilize dedicated departmental support positions—such as grants and contracts specialists, business managers, and research administrators—to assist with navigating external funding workflows. Because this local infrastructure is not universally available across all colleges or departments, the Office of Research Development (ORD) actively maintains a staff directory to connect faculty with their designated unit personnel. For teams lacking internal departmental resources, the ORD step-in services provide specialized assistance to ensure all proposal developments and fiscal operations remain fully supported.

To find college or departmental support, visit the ORD Find Support webpage. 

The International Institute enriches and expands the academic and cultural experiences of faculty, staff, students, and the community through global outreach, research, academic programs, and international student services.

Learn more about the International Institute. 

The Sponsored Programs Policy and Procedure Statement outlines overall institutional responsibilities for managing sponsored projects across academic departments and the Office of Sponsored Projects.

The University-Industry Sponsored Programs defines procedures for negotiating and managing technical contracts and agreements with commercial and industrial sponsors.

The Financial Conflict of Interest in Sponsored Activities regulates mandatory disclosures and establishes formal oversight management plans for financial conflicts of interest.  

Investigators must complete the accompanying Financial Disclosure Form.

The Distribution of Recovered Facilities & Administration Costs policy governs how collected indirect cost recoveries are distributed back to academic units, colleges, and research enterprises.

The MSU Travel Policy sets institutional parameters for allowable domestic and international travel expenses charged directly to university and sponsored project accounts.

These two policies regulate campus-wide intellectual property protocols, federal copyright compliance, and software site licensing terms.

• Policy on Use of Copyrighted Words for Education and Research (OP 01.20)
• Management of Copyrighted Site Licensed Computer Software (OP 30.03)