Certified Research Administrator Review Session at UIC Friday, February 22, 2013

To contact us Click HERE
Albert Schorsch III, PhD, CRA
Associate Dean, College of UrbanPlanning and Public Affairs
 At the request of a number ofcolleagues, we have again scheduled a review session dated Friday, 2/22/13at the UIC campus for those preparing for the nationally-administered May, 2013Certified Research Administrator exams. The registration deadline for the2/22/13 CRA review session at UIC is 2/1/13.

For the past several years, a number of us on the UIC campus have beenworking to advance the professional training and recognition of researchadministrative staff through the national certification offered by the ResearchAdministrators Certification Council (RACC)--

http://www.cra-cert.org/whatiscertification.html
Many thanks to the UIC Office of Grants and Contracts of OBFS, and to the UICOffice Research Services of the Vice Chancellor for Research, for their moralsupport for this effort, as well as the University Human Resources Office ofOrganizational Effectiveness, with whom we are cooperating on furtherannouncements.  When we began promoting the CRA certification on campus,there was only one CRA on campus. Over thirty UIC employees have now passed theexam and earned the national CRA designation. The CRA list is at:

http://cra-cert.org/certified/

(Current CRAs are reminded to check your own listing, to make sure that yourenew your own CRA certification before the end date of your own certification.Re-certification information is at:  http://www.cra-cert.org/application.html  Please note the deadlines for re-certification. )

Research administration professionals report that they learn much during theirstudy of the "Body of Knowledge" for the CRA certification-- http://cra-cert.org/bodyofknowledge.html
--and this whole process not only gives a research professional a rigorousoverview of the legal and technical aspects of research administration, butalso gives professional recognition.  The exam covers all aspects ofresearch regulation, is difficult, and cannot usually be passed by someone whohas not had hands-on work in preparing and adjusting grant budgets.  Sopassing the exam is a true achievement.

The cost is $195 for a review session and $350 to take the certification exam,and this cost is the responsibility of a sponsoring unit or of anindividual.  Once a review session is announced on the web by the RACC,persons from other universities also register as well at the RACC website,where fees for registration and the exams are paid, so it is best to registerearly.

Action Item:

The next CRA exam review session has now been scheduled at UIC for--

Friday, February 22, 2013  (registration deadline for this review sessionis 2/1/13).

--beginning at 8AM and ending at 5PM, tentatively scheduled for Rm. 110 CUPPAHall, 412 S. Peoria.   If you wish to register for this reviewsession, you can do so at--

http://www.cra-cert.org/examschedule.html

Individual applicants are responsible for their own registration, and forarranging for either personal or departmental payment of the review and examfees.

Please note that the application deadline for the May 4-18, 2013 CRA exam is 3/29/13.

http://www.cra-cert.org/examschedule.html

We also note that there is a new certification available, the CertifiedPre-Award Research Administrator (CPRA).   For more information onthis new certification, please see--

http://cra-cert.org/whatiscertification.html