Important Reminders for Spending and Reimbursements on ALL Grant and Non-Grant Accounts

  • Expenses made with personal funds must be submitted for reimbursement no later than 30 days from the date of purchase (or 30 days from the return date of travel). Accounts Payable will not process Expense Reports submitted after more than 30 days have passed. 
  • Do not, under any circumstances, use personal funds to pay for the following–
    • Student time or assistance (or any kind of personnel time/effort)
    • Contractors or consultants

Reimbursement to employees for these expenses is prohibeted by U.S. Tax law. The College will not be able to reimburse you for any such costs made with personal funds.

Workday Guides for Grant Recipients

Workday Guides for Internal Grant Recipients

Hiring and Supervising Student Assistants Using Grant Funding

Grants and sponsored awards are a great resource for hiring Emerson students to work as assistants on faculty projects and scholarship. The maximum amount of hours students may work a week is 20 when classes are in session, and 40 when classes are not in session.

If you haven’t previously hired or supervised students, your first step should be to get in touch with the Office of Student Employment— they can grant you the needed permissions in Workday to create student job postings and approve hours, as well as provide an overview on the rules, regulations, and other important policies that govern the process. 

Helpful Guides

Helpful Links

Purchasing Gift Cards for Participants in Human Subjects Research

Because of the tax-reporting implications that gift cards present for both the College and recipients, ORCS handles the purchasing of gift cards for researchers who plan to compensate participants in IRB-approved human subjects research projects. The full interim policy can be viewed here, but in brief, the process is as follows–

  1. Researcher submits request to ORCS: Protocol number, number of gift cards needed, denomination(s), gift card type (electronic or physical)
  2. ORCS reviews and verifies protocol information
  3. ORCS purchases gift card with account specified by researcher
  4. Researcher awards gift cards to participants in accordance with protocol (Alternately, ORCS can purchase and email gift cards to recipients on an individual basis)
  5. ORCS creates an internal payment log for the study (viewable only to the researcher(s) and ORCS). For each gift card issued, Researcher records the following information–
    • Date of Issuance
    • Gift Card Amount
    • Vendor
    • Recipient First and Last Name
    • Valid Email for Recipient

None of this information is linked to any participants’ individual responses or data in the study.

Near the end of the calendar year, ORCS reviews the gift card recipient names against names of employees, students, and individuals in Workday, to assess if the gift card must be counted as part of the College’s total compensation to the individual for the year. In the case of most human subjects studies, nothing further happens– the IRS threshold for reporting Miscellaneous Income to individuals is over $600, so it’s only in cases where a person has received other payments from the College where they may receive an additional Form 1040 from the College. In the event that they do, the study or protocol number is not referenced on the Form 1040.

More detailed guidance on this process can be found here. If you are a researcher on an IRB-approved study and need to make a gift card purchase request, you may email the Executive Director of ORCS. 

Policies and Guidance for Travel

Spend Authorizations for Travel

College policy requires that, prior to booking a trip or incurring expenses for one, an Emerson faculty/staff member must create a Spend Authorization in Workday. This is process is to ensure that the budget is available to cover the travel costs and encumber funds, once approved.

To create a Spend Authorization, follow the instructions found in this guide. 

Using SAP Concur to Make Travel Reservations

SAP Concur is Emerson College’s online booking tool featuring negotiated rates for air, hotel, car and train reservations. Using SAP Concur has several advantages over the traditional practice of making your own arrangements with personal funds and then requesting reimbursement. These include:

  • Access exclusive discounted rates for airfare, rail, lodging and car rentals;
  • Your entire itinerary is saved in a single place, can be shared via email, and also accessed via the SAP Concur mobile app;
  • All reservations are insured, minimizing your personal liability in the event of a cancellation.
  • Changes to reservations may be made with the help of a SAP Concur Travel Agent (additional fees may apply).
  • Reservations can be made with refundable and nonrefundable travel options (additional fees may apply). 

NOTE: Initial access to SAP Concur must be made by emailing purchasing@emerson.edu. Setting up your profile with a personal credit card is encouraged as some travel reservations (e.g. car rentals) require a personal credit card.

Per Emerson College Finance, a Spend Authorization is required for all overnight travel related to College business. Learn how to create a Spend Authorization here.

Logging Into SAP Concur

Once Purchasing has registered you to use the tool, you can access Concur in Workday by selecting the Expenses worklet and clicking on the “Emerson Travel Program.” Alternatively, you can access the tool via this link.

Direct Booking

Use this training guide for booking directly on SAP Concur. Please note that your Profile must have a personal credit card on file (or a P-Card in your name) in order to make direct reservations. If your personal credit card is used when booking travel, Emerson accounting policy requires that reimbursements for business expenses must be submitted via Workday no later than thirty (30) days after the date of service or purchase.

Registering International Travel

Grant-funded travel to foreign countries should be registered with the College’s Risk Management Services team prior to departure. You may also wish to download World Travel Protection’s Travel Assist App, which provides emergency assistance features on your smartphone and real-time information on emerging or evolving situations. 

Contractors, Consultants, and Artists

•Contact ORCS as early as possible when you need to engage an outside service provider on your grant.

•ORCS will typically draft/negotiate/sign contractor agreements, set up contractors as new vendors in Workday, and generate payments to contractors (typically upon receipt of an invoice for services completed/milestones met).

•Never pay a contractor out-of-pocket– the College will not reimburse you for this.