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Personnel Activity Reports
Below is a list of commonly asked questions regarding Personnel Activity Reports. If you do not find the answer to your question, please contact Ms. Belva Dusek at
(Detailed Instructions for completing a PAR)
- What are Personnel Activity Reports?
- Why are PARs required?
- Who receives a PAR and when are they distributed?
- Who is authorized to sign PARs?
- What if the individual listed on the PAR is no longer with the University?
- What if a department receives a PAR for someone in another department?
- Can PARs be recertified?
- What happens if PARs are not returned to OSP?
- How does an auditor use the PARs?
- What if my PAR is incorrect?
1. What are Personnel Activity Reports (PARs)?
Personnel Activity Reports (PARs) are the mechanism the University utilizes to capture the activities performed by an employee after the fact. PARs are generated for faculty, classified staff, graduate students, and those individuals paid via a P14. Wage employees certify their time via their timesheets. Information collected on the PAR form is also used by the Controller's Office to develop the University Indirect Cost Rate.
Any institution who receives federal funding is required to have a certifiable "after-the-fact activity records" per the Office of Management and Budget Circular A-21 Section J8c(2). A-21 states that reports will reflect an after the fact distribution of activity of each employee.
PARs are sent to all employees whose activity is applicable to sponsored research and any category needed to identify Facilities and Administrative costs and functions to which they are allocable. The below table itemizes the PAR schedule.
| Classification | PAR Schedule |
| Faculty | Semesterly |
| Extension | Semesterly |
| Classified Staff | Semesterly(Payband 4 and above) |
| Classified Staff | Monthly(Paybands 1 to 3) |
| Graduate Students | Semesterly |
| P14 Employees | Semesterly |
| Wage Employees | Timesheet used in lieu of PAR |
| Semsester | Regular Issued | Due to OSP | Retro Issued | Due to OSP | Non-Comp Report * |
| Fall | 1-Feb | 10-Mar | 15-Mar | 10-Apr | 25-Apr |
| Spring | 1-Jul | 10-Aug | 15-Aug | 10-Sep | 25-Sep |
| Summer | 1-Oct | 10-Nov | 15-Nov | 10-Dec | 5-Jan |
| * The baseline for the non-compliance report will include regular and retro PARs covering the previous 3 semesters. | |||||
4. Who is authorized to sign PARs?
PARs reports must be signed by the employee, principal investigator, or responsible official using suitable means of verification that the work has been performed. Only one signature is required. Either the employee signs or the PAR is signed by the responsible official, department head, or principal investigator.
5. What if the individual listed on the PAR is no longer with the University?
Someone with knowledge and suitable means of verification of the individual's work should sign if the individual is unable to sign. This may be the principal investigator or a responsible official.
6. What if a department receives a PAR for someone in another department?
PARs are generated and distributed based upon home department. For graduate students, their work may occur in another department other than their home base. If an employee's work occurs in another department other than their home department, please return the PAR to OSP and we will forward the PAR for certification to the correct department.
No. If a person modifies his previous funding via a P10, then a new PAR will be issued and the effort certified. DO NOT CERTIFY A PAR THAT IS NOT CORRECT!
8. What happens if the PARs are not returned to OSP?
Sponsored Programs is the responsible party for collecting and ensuring certification of the PARs. Un-returned PARs may result in University action against any department or center that fails to certify their PARs in a timely manner. Ultimately, costs could be disallowed and charges could be transferred to a department's overhead account.
9. How does an auditor use the PARs?
Both federal and state auditors utilize the PAR system to track an employee's work effort. Typically, the federal auditor will ask to see the after the fact effort reports for all employees paid on a particular grant. OSP retains the signed PARs and forwards copies to the auditors as requested. In the event the PAR was not returned or was uncertified, the auditor will be directed to the department to find documentation to justify that an employee's effort is an allowable cost. On an annual basis, the Auditor of Public Accounts (APA) reviews the PAR system to determine how many PARs are sent out, how many have been returned (in a timely manner) and what percentage are outstanding. This information is used to determine if the University is in compliance with A-21 and costs are properly documented.
10. What if the PAR is incorrect?
The employee should check and sign the following section of the PAR:
"I am returning this personnel activity report because the payroll
date shown are not correct. Attached is an explanation and a correct P-10".
The PAR should be returned to OSP with a copy of the P-10 attached.
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