Grants & Contracts Analyst (School of Medicine - Central Finance)

The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Central Finance is seeking a Grants and Contracts Analyst .

In support of the Senior Grants & Contracts Analysts, this position will serve as a key resource for sponsored project reporting, financial analysis, and portfolio monitoring. The incumbent will assist in the development, maintenance, and distribution of financial and operational reports that support effective award management and informed decision-making by principal investigators, departmental leadership, and research administration staff.

The Grants & Contracts Analyst will provide dedicated professional level sponsored funds management for more than 80% of time with specific responsibility for pre-award and post-award functions that include, but may not be limited to: proposal preparation, submission, budget development, account maintenance and oversight, billing/invoicing, reporting, compliance, and closeout. Works independently on a variety of grants/contracts that range from simple to moderately complex. While this role may assist with some aspects of non-sponsored funds, the primary goal of this position is to ensure timely, effective and efficient functioning of sponsored funding. This is an exempt position.

Job Scope/Complexity

Will work independently most of the time, with support from Principal Investigator (PI) and/or senior/management level grants & contract professionals on increasingly more complex grants/contracts. Will provide standard professional administrative level guidance on protocols, regulations and guidelines to PI and other scientific/research professionals within the department. May interact with external research/administrative professionals.

Types of sponsored awards for which the position is responsible

This role functions at an intermediate level, with responsibility for independent management of simple to moderately complex grants/contracts, including those from NIH, NSF, DOD and NASA. These grants, contracts and awards may involve detailed budgets, subawards and special instructions in RFA, career awards, training awards, multi-project grants, complex foundation grants, subawards from other institutions on their federal pass-through grants and pharmaceutical company clinical trials.

Specific Duties & Responsibilities

- Partner with departmental faculty and/or budgetary staff and the Office of Research Administration toward the planning and development of application submissions to various federal offices, private agencies/foundations and commercial companies.
- Understand and utilize institutional policies for pre-award grant process and sponsor guidelines.
- Review all sponsored project proposals for assigned faculty prior to them being forwarded to the Grants & Contracts Manager and ORA for signature. Review involves accuracy, content, adherence to all relevant guidelines.
- Provide instruction, preparation assistance and support related to grant application procedures.
- Serve as liaison between research units, central offices and funding agencies.
- Review budgets and related justification for appropriateness and completeness of content. Ensures that all applicable and indirect costs have been applied. May also provide groundwork for subcontract negotiations.
- Ensure compliance in all other areas related to grant and contract management, including sponsoring organization guidelines, internal protocols, accurate protocol information within grant documents, conflicts of interest, etc.
- Manage all assigned grant submissions to ensure timeliness and accuracy.
- Maintain ongoing updates and communications related to current grants and contracts, this includes regular auditing and reporting to principal investigators and departmental leadership. Assist with closeouts as needed.
- Coordinate the process of setting up awards in designated department/division after grant number is assigned, including reviewing award, verifying award set-up and ensuring personnel is set up appropriately.
- Ensure that post-award responsibilities are completed, including budget distribution, account reconciliation, e-form setup, effort reporting, cost transfers, paying invoices and paperwork finalization related to subcontract setup.
- Conduct complex award management activities and provide oversight to other employees, including monitoring and managing accounts, audits, evaluations and reporting.
- Provide information and direct assistance required to complete contract and grant closeouts.
- Other duties as assigned.

In addition to the duties described above

- Prepare and distribute routine and ad hoc financial reports for sponsored projects, including budget-to-actual analyses, spending trends, burn-rate reports, effort monitoring, and projection reporting.
- Monitor award financial activity and identify potential variances, deficits, compliance concerns, or other issues requiring escalation to the Sr. Grants & Contracts Analyst.
- Assist with portfolio-wide reporting initiatives to support forecasting, workload management, strategic planning, and operational decision-making.
- Develop and maintain standardized reporting tools, dashboards, and analytics using institutional systems and Microsoft applications.
- Compile, validate, and analyze financial and operational data to ensure accuracy, completeness, and consistency across reports.
- Support award lifecycle management through reporting related to proposal activity, award setup, account management, invoicing, closeout activities, and sponsor deliverables.
- Provide data and documentation for audits, compliance reviews, sponsor requests, and leadership reporting.
- Collaborate with faculty, departmental administrators, and central offices to gather information, resolve discrepancies, and communicate financial status updates.
- Identify opportunities to improve reporting processes, automate recurring tasks, and enhance data accessibility and transparency across RMS-supported departments.
- Maintain reporting procedures, job aids, and documentation to support consistency, knowledge sharing, and operational continuity.

Minimum Qualifications

- Bachelor’s Degree.

- Two years of administrative/budgeting experience.

- Additional education may substitute for required experience and additional related experience may substitute for required education beyond a high school diploma/graduation equivalent, to the extent permitted by the JHU equivalency formula.

- Successful completion of the Research Administration Training Program (13-15 months) is equivalent to two years of relevant experience for this position. If an employee does not successfully complete the program, no additional experience will be applied.

Preferred Qualifications

- Thorough knowledge and understanding of the Johns Hopkins University accounting system and related fiscal offices.

Technical Qualifications & Specialized Certifications

- Knowledge of external federal guidelines/procedures for grants and contracts, including NIH, NSF, DOD and NASA.

Technical Skills & Expected Level of Proficiency

- Analytical Skills - Developing
- Attention to Detail - Developing
- Grant Closeout Procedures - Developing
- Grant Proposal Preparation - Developing
- Grant Regulations - Developing
- Grants and Contracts Management - Developing
- Oral and Written Communications - Developing
- Record Keeping - Developing
- Regulatory Compliance - Developing
- Relationship Management - Developing

The core technical skills listed are most essential; additional technical skills may be required based on specific division or department needs.

Classified Title: Grants & Contracts Analyst 
Role/Level/Range: ATP/03/PC  
Starting Salary Range: $55,145 - $96,760 Annually ($75,955 targeted; Commensurate w/exp.) 
Employee group: Full Time 
Schedule: Mon-Fri, 8.30am-5.00pm 
FLSA Status: Exempt 
Location: Remote 
Department name: SOM Admin Finance Research Services   
Personnel area: School of Medicine