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  1. Faculty and Staff
  2. Formalize Your Partnership

Familiar with the International Partnership Agreement process?

Access the Partnership Agreement Request Form directly

For detailed instructions on completing the Agreement Approval Form, please access the User Guide.


Phase 3: Submission & Approval of Contract Proposal

Once formal exploration is conducted by both entities and it has been determined that the partnership is worth exploring, the contract proposal submission can begin. The University of Pittsburgh’s Global Operations Support has created a robust website of resources at https://globaloperations.pitt.edu. In addition to the Partnership Request Form (mentioned in Step 2 below), this site offers a wide variety of information on international travel, visas, guidelines for researching abroad, welcoming international visitors and more. In Phase 3, the PA will work with the Global Operations Support Manager to submit a Partnership Agreement Request Form and begin the formal process in the online contract management system called Contraxx. The PA will work with the Global Operations Support Manager and GP&E team on any items related to this Contraxx system.

  • Establish how to set up initial steps in contract management software & illustrate next steps project administrator will need to take to submit the contract proposal .
  • For additional assistance, please refer to the user guides for Pitt’s contract management software, Contraxx, which can be found at: https://upitt.contraxxhost.com/UPPortal/Dashboard/Default.aspx
  • The Chair and Dean of the respective school/college review the agreement request and sign through DocuSign if approved.
  • Health Science requests require an additional signature of approval from the Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic and Global Affairs, Health Sciences.
  • The Director of Global Partnerships and Partner Engagement will be notified once the chair, dean, and AVC for Health Sciences (if applicable) have signed and given their approval. The Director will then review the request and determine how to proceed.

GP&E will run Restricted Party Screening (RPS) on potential partner institutions and collaborators.  This RPS must be successfully completed before moving to Phase 3. Discussions cannot continue further until this has been returned with no hits and/or any hits have been resolved by GP&E.

  • If RPS returns no hits, move to Step 6.
    • Note: Approx 95% of cases will come back with no issue and continue
  • If there is a hit on the RPS screening:
    • The Director of Global Partnerships will need to meet with the PA to discuss additional steps.

The Director of Global Partnerships determines if the contract is atypical or typical.

  • If typical, the Director of Global Partnerships will determine if the request can skip ahead to Step 11 and seek review from Director of Global Partnerships. (Note: Typical contract types are noted in Phase 1).
  • If atypical, the Director of Global Partnerships will meet with the PA to discuss additional steps. Atypical contracts must complete Step 7 and proceed through the remaining steps.
  • The Director of Global Partnerships and the project-specific advisory group meet to discuss, and a white paper assessment is produced.
  • The white paper assessment is reviewed, feedback and comments/edits are given.
  • Pitt Global makes any necessary changes to the white paper recommendation before moving to step 8.
  • A project-specific advisory group is convened by Pitt Global, which includes the Project Administrator and representatives from the PA’s respective unit, the unit’s administration, and may include the Office of Trade Compliance, Office of Sponsored Projects, Office of University Counsel, the Associate Vice Chancellor of Academic and Global Affairs, Health Sciences, and/or other applicable stakeholders to identify red flags and to gain insight into the partnership and strategic importance.
  • Committee reviews the assessment and provides a recommendation.
  • Depending on the nature of the agreement, the GRHSS committee will meet to review the proposed partnership in accordance with the University's policies on international travel.
  • Once the committee gives its recommendation, this recommendation is lifted by the Vice Chancellor of Global Affairs to the Provost who reviews and then provides a recommendation that is sent to the Chancellor.
  • The Chancellor reviews the committee’s recommendation and the Provost’s recommendation and gives the final decision on the approval or denial of the request.
    • If the request is denied, a memo is sent and the workflow ends.
    • If the request is approved, the committee’s recommendation along with the Provost’s and the Chancellor’s recommendations are sent out by the Director of Global Partnerships to the PA and to the shared project-specific advisory group. Pitt Global will store these recommendations electronically.
  • Once the request has been sent through the approvals above, it is ready for a final review by the Director of Global Partnerships.

Phase 3 Note: Do NOT move to Phase 4 until your request has been approved fully.

The University of Pittsburgh must be in full approval before the PA can discuss details of the partnership with the partner. Under certain circumstances, the PA may be advised differently by the project-specific advisory group. If a partnership passes all screenings and has been determined to align with Pitt’s mission, goals, and resources, the PA may move to Phase 4.