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The National Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA), founded in 1959, is a non-profit professional society dedicated to advancing the profession of research administration through education and professional development programs, the sharing of knowledge and experiences, and the fostering of a diverse, collegial, and respected global community. With over 9,000 individual members from over 1,100 colleges, universities, teaching hospitals, and research institutes in 40 countries, NCURA is actively involved in furthering communication and understanding between research administrators both within and outside the US. NCURA's purpose is to serve all members by advancing expertise in the profession of research administration.
A university research administrator is a knowledgeable, skilled individual committed to providing financial and administrative management for academic research endeavors in colleges and universities. Research administrators provide the needed administrative and financial support services necessary to develop and maintain outstanding research programs in the organizations they serve.
The National Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA) believes a university research administrator facilitates the conduct of scholarly research by working cooperatively with faculty researchers in seeking appropriate extramural support and managing administrative aspects of contracts and grants. Therefore, a university research administrator must be:
Persons skilled in research administration are knowledgeable about:
"A research administrator provides...management for research, not management of research.
NCURA members are from colleges, universities, research institutes, hospitals, governmental agencies, non-profit organizations, research consulting firms, technology transfer organizations, and industrial research organizations. Members include:
NCURA advances the profession of research administration through education and professional development programs, the sharing of knowledge and experiences, and fostering a diverse, collegial, and respected global community.
On behalf of all members of the National Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA), we respectfully acknowledge and honor the Indigenous communities of Washington D.C. where our NCURA Office is located. We pause to honor the land on which we connect, collaborate, and carry forward a spirit of shared knowledge and community.
Washington, DC sits on the ancestral lands of the Nacotchtank, or Anacostan, and Piscataway people…indigenous stewards who cultivated knowledge, trade, and community long before Washington, DC was built.
We honor the labor of those who helped build and sustain our communities, and whose contributions continue to shape our shared history.
As research administrators, we share in that legacy of stewardship…of managing resources, facilitating collaboration, and ensuring knowledge moves forward with care and integrity.
We stand in a tradition shaped by perseverance, collective wisdom, and care for one another.