Project Planning & Execution Flashcards
7 cards from real CPI practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Project Planning & Execution flashcards as text
A PI needs to rebudget $15,000 from personnel to equipment costs. Under most federal grants, this requires prior sponsor approval when the rebudget exceeds what threshold?
Answer: 10% or $25,000 of the award
NIH and most federal agencies require prior approval when rebudgeting exceeds 25% of the total award or $250,000; however, many institutional policies set a stricter internal threshold around 10% or $25,000.
Which cost is considered 'unallowable' under the Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200) for federally funded research?
Answer: Alcoholic beverages purchased for a laboratory celebration
Alcoholic beverages are explicitly listed as unallowable costs under 2 CFR 200 and cannot be charged to a federal grant under any circumstances.
A no-cost extension (NCE) is used primarily to:
Answer: Allow additional time to complete research objectives without additional funds
A no-cost extension provides extra time beyond the original project period to finish work using already-awarded funds, without requesting more money.
When building a research project timeline, the 'critical path' refers to:
Answer: The sequence of tasks that determines the minimum project duration
The critical path is the longest chain of dependent tasks; any delay in a critical-path task directly delays the entire project's completion date.
A PI is preparing a budget justification. Personnel effort must be expressed in terms of:
Answer: Percent effort (person-months) dedicated to the project
Federal sponsors require effort to be reported as a percentage of total professional effort, often converted to person-months for clarity.
Which risk management strategy involves deliberately accepting a risk because the cost of mitigation outweighs the potential impact?
Answer: Risk acceptance
Risk acceptance is a planned decision to tolerate a risk when its probability or impact is low enough that mitigation efforts are not cost-effective.
A sponsor requires that all original source documents be retained for at least 15 years after study completion. This is an example of which project planning element?
Answer: Records retention policy
Records retention policies specify how long study documents must be kept after completion to support regulatory inspection and data verification.