Visa Sponsored Job:

No

Relocation Assistance Eligible:

No

Job Location:

Boulder Colorado

Position Type:

Full time Regular

$77486 - $96860

*Final salary and rates are based on education experience and skills relevant to the role.*

Job Description Summary

The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) is excited to welcome a Sponsored Programs Budget Analyst II to our Business Shared Services (BSS) team! The BSS team centralizes the financial management of research proposals and awarded funds within UCAR Community Programs (UCP) delivering consistent high-quality support for all pre- and post-award activities.

In this role youll support the Cooperative Programs for the Advancement of Earth System Science (CPAESS) Program which partners with federal agencies and businesses to hire critical scientific staff enabling a more robust workforce. As a trusted advisor and partner to principal investigators youll administer every stage of the award lifecycle. From coordinating proposals to managing active awards youll provide expert level financial analysis for contracts cooperative agreements and grants including expense monitoring forecasting reconciliation and reporting.

This is a fast-paced and dynamic team-oriented role where problem solving and effective communication are paramount. Youll collaborate closely with Center and Program leadership to support our sponsored programs and maximize program outcomes through strategic financial insight. Youll translate complex financial data into actionable guidance and ensure compliance with federal and sponsor requirements and institutional policies.

If you love numbers learning new things and helping others succeed youll thrive here. Were looking for someone who can juggle multiple priorities adapt quickly and embrace challenges. The successful candidate will be able to identify and resolve grants administration issues through strong knowledge and application of the OMB Uniform Guidance FAR sponsor requirements and generally accepted cost principles.

The BSS team is a close-knit mission-driven team that values collaboration growth and great relationships. We support one another celebrate wins and see every challenge as a chance to learn.

If this sounds like fun wed love to get to know you. Come bring your expertise and energy to a team thats shaping the future of Earth System Science.

Job Description

Application Deadline: This position will be posted until 11:59:59 pm MT on Day Thursday January 1 2026 . Applications will not be accepted past this date.

Required application materials (preferably in PDF Format):

• Resume

• Cover Letter - In lieu of a traditional cover letter answer the following prompts that address the critical skills needed for this position. Your answers will be read and weighed equally to your Resume/CV and should provide specific detailed and informative responses based on your direct and previous work experiences. Please keep responses to 1-2 paragraphs per prompt.

  • Financial Analysis
    Tell us about a time when you used financial data or analysis to help a Principal Investigator (PI) make a decision about their award. What was the situation and how did your insights help

  • Compliance & Regulations
    Share an example of a time when you had to navigate complex rules or requirements (from a sponsor federal agency or your institution) to keep an award compliant. How did you approach it

  • Sponsor & Award Type Experience
    We work with many different types of sponsors and award vehicles - federal grants contracts cooperative agreements foundation funding and more. What types of sponsors and award vehicles have you worked with and what stands out to you about managing different award types

Background checks are conducted for candidates selected for hire. Learn more.

Work Location Expectations: This position is open to candidates seeking in-person and hybrid (combination of in-person and remote) opportunities. UCAR requires ALL positions to be performed within the U.S. excluding U.S. Territories.

What You Will Do

Here is a summary of what one would expect to be generally responsible for in this role.

Key Responsibilities

Post-Award Management

• Manage the award lifecycle for a portfolio of direct awards primarily issued via contract vehicles. Provide backup support on cooperative agreements grants or other funding vehicles.

• Utilize UCAR financial systems to conduct timely monthly monitoring of accounts reviewing for accuracy and managing the tracking reconciling and forecasting of expenses/staff allocations.

• Design and conduct monthly and ad hoc review and analysis of award portfolios to monitor award activity compliance with UCAR policies federal and sponsor requirements OMB Uniform Guidance Federal Acquisition Regulations and generally accepted cost principles and audit requirements.

• Design and conduct recurring and ad hoc financial reporting to sponsors and CPAESS leadership.

• Proactively identify issues/risks and develop data informed recommendations/actions. Appropriately inform/consult with CPAESS leadership.

• Coordinate administrative actions including data entry and maintenance of business systems and files and the coordination of programmatic award reports.

Pre-Award Management

• Serve as lead proposal administrator for proposals within the assigned portfolio.

• Collaborate with Principal Investigators on development of proposal timeline and roles/responsibilities.

• Lead development of budget and budget narrative and coordinate team members on other proposal supporting documents.

• Enter proposal data in UCAR business systems and sponsor platforms.

• Partner with UCP Proposal Office and UCAR Contracts as needed.

• Ensure proposal compliance with sponsor requirements.

Liaison to Federal Stakeholders

• Serve as a financial subject matter expert to various federal stakeholders in areas of award allowability and compliance.

• Track and coordinate sponsor inquiries and requests associated with assigned award portfolios.

• Prepare budgets and projections requested by sponsors.

• Develop and present recurring and ad hoc budget reports analysis and other information to sponsors.

Data Management and Analysis

• Develop and conduct reporting for monthly quarterly and year-end statistics and trends.

• Maintain statistics and metrics and ensure that consistent and accurate data are used.

• Contribute to the development and implementation of data tracking and analysis as needed.

Additional Duties and Responsibilities

• Co-create complex business processes with an eye toward continuous improvement efficiencies and customer service.

• Develop and maintain documented desk procedures with examples for work activities.

• Contribute to the ongoing development and refinement of standardized best practices for BSS.

• Conduct and participate in BSS meetings trainings and serve on BSS Working Groups.

• May represent BSS or CPAESS on committees that influence organizational policies and procedures. Analyze new policies and procedures for relevance and/or impact to the CPAESS business model.

• Perform other special projects as required by management or sponsoring agencies.

• Foster a collaborative respectful and inclusive work culture within the program and with other parts of the organization.

Who Wed Love To Join Our Team

Successful candidates will ensure their application materials speak to the following criteria:

Education & Experience

• Bachelors degree in a relevant academic discipline plus;

• 5 years of related experience or;

  • A Masters degree plus three 3 years of related experience;

• Or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.

Knowledge Skills and Abilities

• Advanced skill in administering task orders / contracts and adhering to strict requirements.

• Advanced skill in proposal/budget preparation and submission via federal and UCAR proposal platforms and management systems.

• Advanced skill in budget development and analysis cost control and development of relevant statistics.

• Advanced skill in financial analysis and the use of spreadsheet applications to develop and present status reports.

• Intermediate working knowledge of government award requirements (cooperative agreements grants and contracts) including knowledge and application of OMB Uniform Administrative Guidance and UCAR policies and procedures.

• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing including proven ability to translate complex information into easily understood language.

• Sensitivity and discretion in handling confidential information.

• Ability to work independently and also able to work effectively in a team situation.

• Ability to identify information sources for solving problems and anticipate organizational problems before they arise and respond appropriately.

Desired but not required:

• Experience working with NOAA contractual vehicles.

Benefits Overview

UCAR affirms its commitment to employees through competitive benefits. In addition to medical dental vision retirement and life insurance UCAR offers a variety of programs focused on work-life balance and professional and personal development. These include:

• Tuition Assistance time off allowance to attend classes and other professional development opportunities.

• UCAR contributes 10% of your eligible pay into your retirement account; 100% fully vested on day one.

• Starting minimum accrual of 20 days of personal time off each year (prorated for less than full-time positions).

• 10 paid holidays.

• 12 weeks of paid parental leave.

• Short-term medical leave paid at 100% of your regular salary.

• EcoPass for local Colorado residents to use the Denver and Boulder-area transit system at no cost.

Commitment to Job Application Fairness

Applicants are not required to provide age or age-related information and may redact information related to age date of birth or dates of attendance at or graduation from an educational institution from any submissions during the initial application process.

Some Final Considerations

At NSF NCAR UCAR UCP you will work alongside a dedicated team of professionals conducting critical research and community outreach to solve complex Earth system science problems including climate change air pollution extreme weather floods drought wildfires and space weather all with the goal of improving human life and reducing economic loss. Each of us from scientists to the professionals who support their work serves the public and a collaborative community of scientists in our mission to understand the complex processes that make up the Earth system from the ocean floor to the Suns core.

Flexible Work

At UCAR we are committed to supporting our mission by giving staff the flexibility to find the schedule and location that works best to maintain their own work-life circumstances and reach their full potential as professionals. Many positions within our organization are eligible for fully on-site hybrid (three days per week) and/or flexible work hours.

Equal Opportunity Employer

UCAR is committed to providing equal opportunity for all employees and applicants for employment and does not discriminate on the basis of race age creed color religion national origin or ancestry sex gender disability veteran status genetic information sexual orientation gender identity or expression or your intersection of identities you are welcome at UCAR.

Export Control

All positions are required to comply with U.S. export compliance regulations and work location requirements regarding access to facilities and research systems.

Work Location

UCAR requires ALL positions to be performed within the U.S. excluding U.S. Territories.

AI Software

ChatGPT and similar AI software are powerful tools that are changing theway society receives processes and leverages information promptly. While we acknowledge its benefits and do not restrict leveraging it with job applications we highly encourage a majority of the applicant material to be original work.