Commentary
From AY2023, ” Use of Individual Research Allowance in the following academic year” will be available (see item 4. below for details).
1. Overview
Individual Research Allowance is a research fund issued to each department in order to support the individual academic research conducted by Tenured Faculty, Assistant Professor (non-tenure-track)（助教）, Research Associate（助手）. The Individual Research Allowance issued to each department are as follows.
- Individual Research Allowance assigned to individual faculties
- Copy fee subsidy fee
Execution management of Individual Research Allowance will be conducted at your department’s office.
Budget execution starts from April 1st. For the end of the academic year, please check the closing date set by your department’s office. You are not supposed to carry over the budget for that academic year to the next academic year.
Even if one person is reassigned to Waseda University within the same academic year, such as “from Research Associate to Assistant Professor (without tenure)”, the number of faculty members for calculating the Individual Research Allowance is not increase. If a department has already issued the Individual Research Allowance for the current academic year in the first qualification, they can issue the unused amount as the Individual Research Allowance for the year in the new qualification in the same academic year.
2. Scope of Use
1. Individual Research Allowance assigned to individual reseachers
An amount calculated by multiplying the “individual unit price” by “the number of faculties*” is issued for each department and the department distributes it to each eligible researcher. This is called “Individual Research Allowance assigned to individual reseachers”. This allowance should be used for research expenses (book materials, supplies, consumables, print binding, communication, repair, rental, miscellaneous expenses) and travel expenses in line with the purpose of the Individual research allowance. Please use it systematically and effectively.
* Researcher who has eligibility is, Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, Teacher, Professor (tenure-track), Associate Professor (non-tenure-track), Associate Professor(tenure-track), Associate Professor(non-tenure-track), Assistant Professor(tenure-track), Assistant Professor(non-tenure-track)（講師（任期付））, Assistant Professor(non-tenure-track)（助教）, Research Associate（助手）(Except for Research Associate（研究助手）). However, followings are not eligible.
- Those who are on leave of absence from school throughout the relevant year
- Those who are employed with external funding
- Those whose primary affiliation is a Center for Research Strategy
2) Copy fee subsidy fee
In principle, it is intended to be used for part of the copy fee, and is issued for each location according to the number of affiliated researchers.
3. Purchase of research property by Individual Research Allowance
The properties that can be purchased with Individual Research Allowance are directly related to research within the scope of each faculty’s major field. As the research fields of each researcher are different, it is not possible to identify those that can not spend. But there are some examples for which the allowance should not be spent.
However, depending on each research topic, special properties or properties exemplified as “should not be spend” may be required. If you need to purchase them like above, explain the necessity for carrying out your research. In some cases, you need to submit some documents which shows the contents of product in detail, like catalog, to your department office and purchase it after obtaining their approval. If you have any questions, please contact your department office.
Please keep in mind that you can not combine with private expenses and other expenses at the time of purchasing asset property (book material treated as Supplies expenses) for Waseda’s asset control.
In addition, research expenses are used for expenses necessary for research activities in the relevant academic year. Expenditures for research activities in the previous and next academic years are not permitted in principle. Please refer to the reference materials “Use of research expenses” in the Research Funds Manual.
| Subjects | Use range (example) | Required documents |
|---|---|---|
| Supplies expenses | Purchase price of one item or unit with durability of one year or more is 100,000 yen or more but less than 300,000 yen. You can not combine with private expenses and other expenses at the time of purcahesing asset property (book material treated as Supplies expenses) for Waseda’s asset control. | Comply with procurement rules |
| Consumable supplies expenses | Purchase price of less than 100,000 yen or durability of less than 1 year. *Even if it exceeds 100,000 yen, what is generally judged not to be usable for more than one year is a consumable item. | Comply with procurement rules |
| Books materials expenses | Books materials expenses treated as supplies and supplies: One book whose price exceeds 100,000 yen (Preservation age 10 years) You can not combine with private expenses and other expenses at the time of purchasing asset property (book material treated as Supplies expenses) for Waseda’s asset control. |
Comply with the book procurement regulations |
| Consumables-treated materials: One book whose price is 100,000 yen or less | ||
| Communication and transport expenses | Communication fee required for research | Comply with procurement rules |
| Printing and binding expenses | Required printing cost for research | Comply with procurement rules |
| Travel expenses | Research business trip, academic business trip *Calculation of travel expenses is according to “Guidelines for travel expenses for attending academic meetings and conducting research activities” in the Research Funds Manual. | *Please apply along with the Waseda’s e-Trip system.
*Please refer to related page of International Office for overseas business trip. |
| Repair expenses | Repair of Machinery and appliances (applicable to properties purchased with other research expenses, etc.) | Comply with procurement rules |
| Expenses for consignment contract | Translation fee etc. requested to corporation | Comply with procurement rules
Requests, etc. (certifying the contents of the request), 1 copy of the product |
| Rent expenses | Rent expenses of machinery, equipment, etc. | Comply with procurement rules |
| Fees and remuneration | Translation, proofreading fees, examinee reward, data input rewards, tape raising rewards, etc paid to individuals | Please refer to the spending criteria in Annex table 3 (related to Article 11) in Reference materials 9:”Guidelines regarding the disbursement of labor costs and remuneration related to commissioned projects” in the Research Funds Manual. |
| Miscellaneous expenses | Other expenses required for research
Annual meeting fee, convention participation fee, dissertation fee, computer fee, visa fee for business trip, disposal fee for machine tools etc. (applicable for properties purchased with other research expenses etc.) |
Comply with procurement rules |
Less than 100,000 yen is Consumable supplies expenses, more than 100,000 yen is Supplies expenses. Data software costs is fall into a category of “Books materials expenses”.
*2 Please contact the Salaries and Welfare Section regarding the handling of income tax related to the questionnaire response reward.
*3 As a rule, payment of Fees and remuneration and Administrative Staff labor costs can not be settle by advance payment
*4 Examples which can not be spent
◆ Goods which is difficult to distinguish between public and private
Mobile phones, passports, travel suitcases, seals, whales, diaries, electronic diaries, diaries, calendars, music software such as CDs, DVDs, membership fees for online shops, etc.
◆ Goods which is related to pertaining to the improvement of laboratory environment
Desks, chairs, shelves, furniture, coolers, fans, stoves, installation costs for new telephone lines, TVs, satellite antennas, desk lamps, refrigerators, pots, wagons, stepladders, treads, etc.
◆ Goods which is not directly related to research
High-grade fountain pen, tea, drinking water, tea confectionary charges always in the laboratory, heartwarming and souvenir charges, etc.
◆ Goods used for educational purposes
Whiteboard, projector, website creation (including domain acquisition costs, maintenance and operation costs), etc.
◆ Other
Unnecessarily high-class goods, various school tuition, application fee for acquiring various qualifications, training fee, admission fee to museum etc.
4. Use of Individual Research Allowance in the following academic year ※From AY2023
If the following requirements are met, and if the Dean of the Research Promotion Division confirms and approves the necessity of the increase, an increase will be approved for the following academic year, using the current academic year’s remaining Individual Research Allowance as the source of funding. Details of the application procedure for each academic year will be announced separately.
＜Requirements for use in the following academic year＞
| Purpose | Travel expenses (transportation, accommodation, and daily allowance) for overseas business trips |
| Amount | 100,000 yen or more (Applications are in units of 10,000 yen) |
| Possible period of use | Only in the following academic year of application. *Re-application or use in the academic year after is not allowed. |
| Application Period | September 23, 2024 – October 31, 2024 |
| How to apply | Application form |
Please be aware of the following items when submitting your application.
-
- The amount applied for will not be available for execution during the current academic year (after approval of the application, the amount will be reduced from your budget for the current academic year).
- If there is a balance remained in the amount applied for, the balance will be returned to WASEDA University.
- When using the funds, please make it clear that they are for “Use of Individual Research Allowance in the following academic year”.
5. About business trip
Please apply along with the Waseda’s e-Trip system. For standard and procedure of payment amount, please refer to “Guidelines for travel expenses for attending academic meetings and conducting research activities” in the Research Funds Manual.