Good morning Justin,

I have noticed a different pattern depending if the GRA is a Master’s level student or a Doctoral student. So I spoke with a someone from the Grad school and they told me that while Doctoral GRAs must receive 100% coverage in tuition and health insurance, the same is not required for Master’s level GRA.

Doctoral student’s health insurance is charged to the Fringes line,  I see it all the time in the MFRs. The difference is that COS does not cover it so it is charged to the grant through fringes, not on the SNOAs, while in Engineering (for students in CAMEE) it is covered by the individual KCEID department. If accidentally a KCIED grant is charged the UTSHIP, the department will transfer the cost out

This does not happen for Master’s level students. I only see a Worker’s Comp as a fringe benefit, and if there is insurance covered in the SNOA, it is “lumped up” in the tuition because it is not listed separately, and the PI does not let me know if it is included in the amount.

This is why when I assist with proposal, some COS PIs with a limited budget adopt the 8% fringe benefit for Master’s level, instead of the higher option for Doctoral GRAs.

I hope this answers your question.

Sincerely,

Francesca Bronder, M.A.

Research Administrator II - College Research Administration

College of Sciences

The University of Texas at San Antonio

One UTSA Circle

San Antonio, TX 78249-1644

BSE 1.638

Email: francesca.bronder@utsa.edu

http://research.utsa.edu

From: Justin Marmolejo <Justin.Marmolejo@utsa.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, February 25, 2025 8:29 AM
To: rowdy.research@lists.it.utsa.edu
Subject: [Rowdy.research] General Question re GRA Insurance

Hello everyone!

OSP received the following question in our inbox and I thought this would be better answered by this group. Can anyone provide any guidance from their respective experiences?

Question: For GRAs employed under a grant, how is their insurance paid/processed? Do they complete a SNOA for it since the GRA insurance is billed to ASAP/tuition and fees? Would the funds come out of the Tuition and Fees Budget or the Fringe budget?

Thanks,

Justin