Sr. Research Administrator, Oncology

About the role

The Senior Research Administrator serves as a trusted partner to Oncology investigators and research teams, providing expert support across the full lifecycle of sponsored projects, with a primary focus on post-award grants and contract administration. This role manages a diverse portfolio of complex sponsored awards while ensuring sound financial stewardship, regulatory compliance, operational excellence, and exceptional customer service in support of the Department of Oncology's research mission.

The Senior Research Administrator independently oversees award management activities, including financial monitoring, reconciliation, reporting, compliance oversight, subaward administration, and resolution of complex administrative and financial issues. As needed, the position also supports pre-award activities, including proposal development, budget preparation, review of submission materials, and interpretation of sponsor guidelines and requirements. The successful candidate will navigate both pre- and post-award functions and adapt to evolving departmental needs.

In a highly collaborative environment, this role partners closely with investigators, research teams, Finance Operations, Grants Operations, Grants Accounting, sponsor institutions, and other institutional stakeholders to ensure effective management of sponsored funding throughout the award lifecycle. The Senior Research Administrator serves as a key resource for faculty and staff, providing guidance on sponsor requirements, regulatory compliance, financial management, and research administration best practices.

Responsibilities

• Manage administration of grants and sponsored programs, including review of proposal documents, monitoring of subawards, and primarily award lifecycle management.
• Ensure compliance with federal, sponsor, or institutional guidelines related to grants.
• Implement and monitor compliance with current accounting standards, policies, procedures, and regulatory guidelines.
• Proactively work with cross-functional teams (e.g., research team, sponsor institutions) on matters related to audits and complex issue resolution.
• Actively contribute to the development of policies and procedures to ensure high-quality services for the team/department.
• Lead development and maintenance of analytical and departmental reports, including account reconciliations.
• Reconcile and analyze grants and contracts in compliance with internal and departmental policy while adhering to established deadlines.
• Identify opportunities and provide input to improve efficiency and automate current processes.
• Perform other duties as assigned to meet the goals and objectives of the department and institution.
• Maintain regular and predictable attendance.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• Minimum of 4+ years of experience in grant administration processes as applicable to grants and sponsored programs, or accounting experience, or related financial information systems.
• Experience working with relevant regulations.
• Experience working with cross-functional teams.
• Proven performance in an earlier role.

Pay

A reasonable estimate of the current salary range is $70,720 - $126,880 per year for the role of Senior Research Administrator, Oncology.

Benefits

Explore our exceptional benefits at St. Jude.