A subaward is a formal written agreement made between Stanford and another entity to perform a portion of the SOW (Statement of Work) under a sponsored project awarded to Stanford. The work the non-Stanford entity provides must be intellectually significant, and typically uses the subrecipient's personnel, resources, and facilities. 

The subrecipient takes full responsibility for adhering to the terms and conditions of the subaward including those flowed down from Stanford's sponsor, and assumes creative and intellectual responsibility and leadership as well as financial management for performing and fulfilling the subrecipient's SOW within the subrecipient's approved budget.

Subawards may be referred to as subcontracts, subgrants, or subagreements. Subawards differ from procurement contracts used to acquire goods or services from vendors. The process is as follows:

1. The subrecipient must submit a proposal to Stanford. It must include the following.

• SOW (Statement of Work)
• Budget and justification
• Any other documents required by Stanford or by Sponsor
• Signed Subrecipient Commitment Form

2. The Stanford PI will then incorporate the subrecipient’s material into his/her proposal following the sponsor’s instructions.

3. The potential subrecipient’s budget should be incorporated into the Stanford budget as a line item.

4. The Stanford proposal (with the subrecipient component) is endorsed by an IO (Institutional Official) and submitted to the sponsor.