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Research Resource Hub

Welcome to the Research Resource Hub, your one-stop shop for Ascend 2.0 research resources!

Quick Reference Guides 

Click the title of the BruinBuy Plus quick reference guides below to learn about what is covered in each guide.​

This guide includes best practices and tips related to subaward/subcontract invoice approvals, notifications, system access, and other helpful information for PIs and fund managers. Access the Subaward/Subcontract Tips & Resources Guide.

This quick reference guide explains the steps a PI needs to take to review a subaward/subcontract invoice directly from the BruinBuy Plus-generated email – no system login required! Access the PI QRG.

On-Demand Training

Access these trainings to familiarize yourself with UCLA’s procure-to-pay system, BruinBuy Plus.

Learn how to complete invoice approvals and receiving and assign a substitute subaward/subcontract invoice reviewer by completing the Fund Manager on-demand training.

Learn how to complete mobile invoice approvals (no system login required) and assign a substitute subaward/subcontract invoice reviewer by completing the PI on-demand training.

Ascend 2.0 Research Videos

Use the quick links below to access popular research videos on the Ascend 2.0 YouTube channel.

Access the Introduction to Project Portfolio Management (PPM) Subledger and POETAF video in which to Ascend 2.0 Program Owner and Senior Director of Extramural Fund Management, Yoon Lee, describes the transition from UCLA’s current FAU to its future state Chart of Accounts and Research-specific POETAF string.

Newsletter Archive

Access past editions of the Ascend 2.0 Research Newsletter below.​ To add yourself to the newsletter mailing list, complete this brief Research Newsletter Mailing List form.

Frequently Asked Questions

Click each question below to view the corresponding answer.​ You can also access the Research Administration Forum website to review FAQ from past RAF meetings.

Bruin Finance

In Bruin Finance, most transactions will begin in subledgers which will contain subledger-specific information. All sponsored contract and grant costs will begin in the Project Portfolio Management (PPM) subledger. In PPM, detailed individual transactions will be recorded using POETAF. All costs in subledgers will be recorded to the General Ledger based on Subledger Accounting Rules (SLA). In the General Ledger, summary-level information will be recorded using the Chart of Accounts (CoA) chart string; in this sense, the General Ledger will remain “general.”

POETAF is an abbreviation for the six fields within the PPM subledger: Project Number, Organization, Expenditure Type, Task, Award, and Funding Source.

  • Project Number: A unique number assigned to identify each project. Contains budget by expense category.
  • Organization: Unit that owns a given project expenditure. Department must be designated as an expenditure-owning organization.
  • Expenditure Type: Identifies the specific type of transaction. Corresponds with Natural Account segment in the Chart of Accounts (CoA).
  • Task: Identifies the project activity.
  • Award: Umbrella record that contains overall financial and demographic information with projects associated underneath.
  • Funding Source: The funding source supporting a specific expenditure. Options generally include sponsor and an internal source, such as a cost share fund.
  • Project Number: For the converted data, a unique combination of Account, Cost Center, and Fund values in FAU (Full Accounting Unit) will have one unique project. Project Number (8 digits) will be assigned in a sequential order by system. 
  • Organization: Organization value is derived from Financial Unit values that have been confirmed through CoA mapping. The lowest level of the value in the financial unit will be used. 
  • Expenditure Type: Expenditure Type value is derived from Object Code value in FAU.
  • Task: Task has one to one relationship with Project. Task value is derived from Project Number value. No connection to any segment in FAU.
  • Award: Award is set up in PPM for each unique sponsored award. Award value is derived from Fund Number in FAU and award information in PATS. For a single fund number, one fund in FAU will be one award in PPM. For the cases where multiple fund numbers are assigned to one award, one award will be set up in PPM with multiple projects. 
  • Funding Source: Funding Source values indicate if it is from sponsor, UCLA (cost sharing), Program income, or other source (e.g., STIP). The Funding Source values will be the sponsor name for sponsored funding, or Financial Unit in the case of cost sharing.

​​​​​​We aim to convert all detailed costs from inception to date on the open funds that will convert to Oracle and will continue to test and evaluate a feasibility of this plan through rounds of testing.

​​​​​​​Oracle was selected as the best modern financial system to meet UCLA’s complex requirements. Most modern financial systems do not contain “free form” fields like today’s Project and Source fields. Free form fields are not accommodated in new systems because they hinder data accuracy and related reporting. To prepare for this upcoming change, the Program Team is working with over 300 campus mapping experts across every organization to understand how these fields are used today. The Grants team has reviewed use cases submitted by campus, grouped similar use cases, identified the source system(s) involved in each scenario, and are in the process of finding solutions to address these use cases. Based on the information gathered from campus, the following options exist for elements held in Project and Source today: 

  • Some data elements will not be held in the Chart of Accounts but will instead be held in subledgers or other sub systems. For example, one current use of the Source field is to identify how receipts come in (e.g., ACH, Wire, etc.). In the future, this same information will be identified in the Cash Management module of Oracle. 
  • Other data will admittedly be required to be tracked in separate systems if it is not appropriate for a financial system. For example, identifying information for staff members attending a conference will not be held in the central finance systems.

BruinBuy Plus

When a subawardee or subcontractor submits an invoice to noreply@invoices.ucla.edu, it will first enter AP workflow for AP to process the invoice. Then it will route to the fund manager & PI associated to the Fund for review and approval.  If the invoice is incorrect, either the fund manager or the PI can reject the invoice, but they need to communicate to the Subawardee or Subcontractor what needs to be fixed on the invoice before they resubmit it to the noreply email address.

For an invoice that is currently in workflow with the incorrect PI/fund manager, please email help@it.ucla.edu and indicate the correct PI/fund manager. The most effective way to update PI/fund manager information for an invoice not currently in workflow is to create an amendment to the subaward/subcontract and update the field, “Who are the UCLA PI/Fund Manager?”

While BruinBuy Plus generates POs for subawards/subcontracts, the system does not automatically send the PO to the subawardee/subcontractor associated with the PO:

  • If the PO is for a subaward, it routes to OCGA. OCGA uses their documents and contracts to add the PO number, and then manually sends it to the subawardee.
  • If the PO is for a subcontract, it routes to UCLA’s contracts group within Central Procurement. The contracts group completes the requisition and prepares a PO. The team adds the PO number to the contract, then manually sends it to the subcontractor.

Departments will not be cc-ed on these emails; however, department contacts can locate copies of these POs in BruinBuy Plus.

The individual who prepared the subaward/subcontract can complete the receiving. Alternatively, anyone with a BruinBuy Plus login who has viewable access to that transaction can also complete the receiving.

​​​​​​Yes! Check out the Subaward/Subcontract Tips & Resources Guide.