From the perspective of the audit of the management of university research funds

[Abstract] of university Research funds from the audit perspective, management of Research funding in the system, concept, cost and so there are problems. Audit departments should audit of early intervention, through the special inspection, performance evaluation and other means to keep abreast of scientific Research and the use of funds, Research funding on the implementation of effective supervision to ensure safe and effective use of Research funding.

[Keywords:] audit; research funding; problem; Strategy

In recent years, with the increasing development of the Higher Education, university research increasingly diverse sources of funding, level, university research funding has become increasingly complex management problems. The author of university research funds for special audit, the audit Research Fund found that the prevalence of the management of five questions, by exploring the research, presented five research funding management solutions.


First, the university research funding problems found in audit

(A) funding Misunderstandings: The presence of false project budget
The audit found that the budget does not issue common refinement, approval is not strict, scientific research budget greater flexibility to more easily lead to research projects concluding the issue is not closing. If a university research fund in 2007 to conduct special audits found 373 Finished research projects in 231 research projects are not closing, about 62%, a larger proportion. At present, there is a serious research funding misconceptions, most people think are their own wallets research funding, to the neglect of its budget management, project head of his own budget, the school authorities have not audited, resulting in unrealistic budgets, budget is not detailed, the actual expenditure and budget for greater access.

(B) cost-consciousness is weak: there is no actual cost accounting
From the audit, the majority of schools belonging to pass the cost of scientific research in Education funding are charged to operating expenses. If the cost of which should be included in the research funding of scientific research related to utilities, space rental, equipment depreciation are all included in the Education business expenses in the expenses. Currently, the university research funding generally poor sense of cost accounting, project expenditures not in accordance with the provisions of financial management practices to control in proportion, not costing of research funding, and even many schools not on the research funding 到账mention management fees, all dominated by the researchers themselves in full, which deepened the researchers on personal awareness of research funding.

(C) lack of management systems: there is no real accounting of expenditures
Audit found that there is research funding expenditures true daily reimbursement issues, a lot of labor costs, meals, personal or family consumption of goods and so the research fee charged, generally not accompanied by physical invoice list, can not know the specific purchase kind, which can not be used to confirm whether the research project, funded research projects and even some 100% in the copying fee, are pure research projects can be completed by copying data? The researchers exposed some of the special issue of funds for cash in copying fee invoice. As is currently no comprehensive research funding for the financial management laws and regulations, conducting financial management, internal audit, lack of legal basis. researchers generally believe that research funding is hard to fight to their own, the money is their own, others the right to interfere, like how to spend to how to spend, so that the serious loss of research funding, a considerable portion of the gray into personal income.

(D) management areas off the hook: there is no checkout knot
Finished research projects do not settle long-standing problem of university. The audit found that many aspects of scientific research and financial accounts there is a disconnect, even from project to project acceptance Finished applications such links do not have detailed information on the files, the audit is often difficult to obtain evidence , resulting in research funding management is also difficult to regulate.

(E) low efficiency of scientific research: the absence of Projects Evaluation
Most university research funds are not carried out on the benefit evaluation, such as a university research funding allocated by the school year more than 800 million, one year, to more than 700 published articles and received several awards, in fact, more than 800 million investment dollars, revenue how, there is no effect and so on, these issues are not seriously, people are concerned is one year, the number of individuals to get research funding to research efficiency is very low.

Links to Research Papers Download http://www.hi138.com Second, play the role of internal audit and deepen Research Fund Management

(A) decentralized control of funds, attention and budget adjustment of Research Project
To audit sooner, research project management at the grasping, grasping budget management Audit Office, Treasury funds allocated catch, the audit department closely with scientific research departments and financial departments, strictly "off budget." Researchers at the project through the approval the project budget audit, the audit of its feasibility and rationality, so that management should attach importance to scientific research and project funding should also attach importance to the budget, so that more scientific research budget, reasonable and realistic.

(B) information and communication, enhance awareness of scientific research costs
Use of computer information technology to build a good information exchange platform, auditing, research and finance departments to strengthen exchanges, communication, work closely with the use of funds for research projects the whole process of supervision. Also step up publicity to ensure that each faculty be able to correct understanding of research funding, leaders at all levels should fully understand the importance of cost accounting research funding. so as to enhance research funding cost accounting to improve the efficient use of research funding.

(C) segregation of duties controls, strengthen the internal control system research projects
Improving the research and funding approval system, strict control of the division of responsibilities, for each research project, research at an audit, the Audit Division II audit, the Treasury accounted for audit, the audit department with the financial and scientific research departments, strictly "off spending." strict implementation of research and the financial reimbursement system, and strictly control the expenditure of funds subject of the scope and standards, and project research firm does not reimburse expenses not related to state explicitly prohibits the consumption of prohibited items in the expenditure in research funding. so as to enhance the management of research funding, as far as possible reduce the illegal or non-compliance, the occurrence of unreasonable expenditure to ensure the healthy operation of financial activities.

(D) The independent inspection controls to ensure that research projects while also closing knot
Audit department with the financial sector and scientific research departments, strictly scientific "Finished off", research departments specifically responsible for recording transactions and matters of Economic research projects, the audit department staff for Economic transactions have been recorded and matters of verification or validation, as well as business with the project internal control procedures related to the fulfillment of the inspection, do research projects at the same time concluding checkout, strengthen management of balances to improve the efficient use of research funding.

(E) the establishment of performance evaluation mechanism to improve the effect of research projects
Establishment of scientific research performance evaluation mechanism, on the one hand, requiring researchers to do the project when concluding performance analysis, performance evaluation of scientific research carried out at; the other hand, the annual year-end financial departments should make use of research funding analysis table, to do research at the Performance analysis of good research funding. After the audit department to conduct performance audits of research funding, the use of a number of financial criteria, Economic indicators and some non-financial indicators used to evaluate, such as the number of papers, paper quality, the patent situation, and technology awards innovative capacity, comprehensive and integrated analysis of efficiency in the use of scientific research funds to improve the scientific research results.


Third, the summary

In short, the audit department should be involved in all aspects of advance, advance to play the role of internal audit, finance and research departments and work closely with management throughout the research funding has always been a clear Economic responsibility research funding, strengthen research projects in the implementation of periodic monitoring and inspection to ensure implementation of norms and research funding research projects effectively, thereby enhancing research efficiency in the use of funds.


[References]
[1] China Institute of Internal Auditors. Norms of internal audit in China [M]. China Economic Times Press, 2005.

[2] of Guangdong Department of Education. Guangdong Education audit specification [M]. Guangdong Higher Education Press, 2007.

[3] Ministry of Education, Ministry of Finance. On Further Strengthening the management of research funding a number of views [S]. Education Finance (2005).

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