UCD Accounting Glossary

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z List All Terms

Term Definition

S&E An abbreviation for supplies and expense.

Sales and Services of Educational Activity A recharge activity operated by an academic department, that provides on a regular and continuing basis, at approved rates, goods or services to clients in connection with the training of students or support of research activities.

Sales Tax A tax levied by the State on sales of tangible personal property which is not for resale. UCD pays sales tax on taxable purchases directly to California vendors or out-of-state vendors registered with the State Board of Equalization.

Scholarship An award based on academic excellence, exceptional promise or financial need. Usually awarded to undergraduate students.

Separation of Duties A practice in that no one person has complete control over any financial transaction. Each persons work should routinely serve as a complementary check on anothers work.

Service Department A University department which supplies goods or services to other departments, such as Bulk Mail, Storehouse, Reprographic Services, etc. Costs incurred for these goods or services are recharged to the departments using them.

Short Term Investment Pool (STIP) A cash investment pool available to all UC fund groups. STIP allows fund participants to maximize the returns on their short-term cash balances by taking advantage of the economies of scale of investing in a larger pool. STIP consists primarily of current funds slated for payroll and operating/construction expenses for all UC campuses and medical centers. In addition, funds awaiting permanent investment in one of the long-term pools are invested in STIP to earn maximum daily interest until transferred. The term STIP also refers to the interest income generated by the Short-Term Investment Pool.

Sign-on Bonus Additional payment sometimes made to new employees with unique, critical skills or for critical occupations where there is a documented shortage in the labor market and recruitment or retention difficulty exists.
Sign-on bonuses are generally considered for the highest level staff positions and MSP positions and are only considered in rare circumstances.
The non-base building bonus can be any amount up to no more than 20% of the annual salary for the position. The bonus will generally be made in two payments. The first payment will be made when the employee reports to work. The subsequent payment will be made at the discretion of the hiring manager, as long as the employee is performing satisfactorily or above at the time of payout and is still employed in the same position.
A sign-on bonus agreement with a specific payback provision clause must be prepared and signed by all parties.

Sponsor The organization or entity that funds a research project.

Sponsored Projects Projects which are funded by outside sources as the result of a proposal and award. The term commonly refers to projects funded by the various federal agencies.

Staffing List A listing by department of all academic and staff positions and provisions (all funding); used by departments to align their base budgets with their actual staff & faculty salary commitments.

Statistical Sampling In GL Review, a method whereby a random sample of all low-value transactions (i.e., transactions less than $2,500) is required to be reviewed and validated in order to certify the monthly ledger. The rate of invalid charges and credits must be within established tolerances in order for this method to be acceptable.

Stipend For career staff, a regular or fixed payment made to an individual in recognition of added responsibility.
For graduate students, a non-compensatory payment for the student to use in payment of living expenses and other costs of attendance unrelated to tuition and fee payment.

Strategic Planning An approach to long-term planning that aligns the unit's mission with its specific courses of action and results measurements.

Sub Account An optional sub-division or cost center of an account. A sub account allows an account manager to break down an account into multiple smaller accounts in order to better track detailed budget and expenses.

Sub Fund Group An attribute of an Account, which is a further breakdown of the Fund Group. It is an alpha representation of the specific funding source for an account. Example: Sub Fund group CAARB designates that the funding source is the State of California (CA) and the funding agency is the Air Resource Board (ARB). It is a high level attribute used to get information regarding the status of all accounts within an organization that are funded by a single source.

Sub Fund Group Type Represented by a single, alphanumeric character, these consist of a collection of sub fund groups under a more general heading of the funding source. All funds with similar income sources will have the same sub fund group type designation. For example, the sub fund group CAARB belongs to sub fund group type S - State Government. Sub fund group types are used to classify revenue in the annual financial schedules.

Sub Object An optional, more detailed definition of an Object. For example, a sub-object for Air Travel might be created for use with a Travel object. Sub-objects are created for an account by the Account Manager.

Supply Generally, a supply item is classified as being expendable with an acquisition value under $5000.00, and a normal life expectancy of under a year.

Term	Definition
S&E	An abbreviation for supplies and expense.
Sales and Services of Educational Activity	A recharge activity operated by an academic department, that provides on a regular and continuing basis, at approved rates, goods or services to clients in connection with the training of students or support of research activities.
Sales Tax	A tax levied by the State on sales of tangible personal property which is not for resale. UCD pays sales tax on taxable purchases directly to California vendors or out-of-state vendors registered with the State Board of Equalization.
Scholarship	An award based on academic excellence, exceptional promise or financial need. Usually awarded to undergraduate students.
Separation of Duties	A practice in that no one person has complete control over any financial transaction. Each persons work should routinely serve as a complementary check on anothers work.
Service Department	A University department which supplies goods or services to other departments, such as Bulk Mail, Storehouse, Reprographic Services, etc. Costs incurred for these goods or services are recharged to the departments using them.
Short Term Investment Pool (STIP)	A cash investment pool available to all UC fund groups. STIP allows fund participants to maximize the returns on their short-term cash balances by taking advantage of the economies of scale of investing in a larger pool. STIP consists primarily of current funds slated for payroll and operating/construction expenses for all UC campuses and medical centers. In addition, funds awaiting permanent investment in one of the long-term pools are invested in STIP to earn maximum daily interest until transferred. The term STIP also refers to the interest income generated by the Short-Term Investment Pool.
Sign-on Bonus	Additional payment sometimes made to new employees with unique, critical skills or for critical occupations where there is a documented shortage in the labor market and recruitment or retention difficulty exists. Sign-on bonuses are generally considered for the highest level staff positions and MSP positions and are only considered in rare circumstances. The non-base building bonus can be any amount up to no more than 20% of the annual salary for the position. The bonus will generally be made in two payments. The first payment will be made when the employee reports to work. The subsequent payment will be made at the discretion of the hiring manager, as long as the employee is performing satisfactorily or above at the time of payout and is still employed in the same position. A sign-on bonus agreement with a specific payback provision clause must be prepared and signed by all parties.
Sponsor	The organization or entity that funds a research project.
Sponsored Projects	Projects which are funded by outside sources as the result of a proposal and award. The term commonly refers to projects funded by the various federal agencies.
Staffing List	A listing by department of all academic and staff positions and provisions (all funding); used by departments to align their base budgets with their actual staff & faculty salary commitments.
Statistical Sampling	In GL Review, a method whereby a random sample of all low-value transactions (i.e., transactions less than $2,500) is required to be reviewed and validated in order to certify the monthly ledger. The rate of invalid charges and credits must be within established tolerances in order for this method to be acceptable.
Stipend	For career staff, a regular or fixed payment made to an individual in recognition of added responsibility. For graduate students, a non-compensatory payment for the student to use in payment of living expenses and other costs of attendance unrelated to tuition and fee payment.
Strategic Planning	An approach to long-term planning that aligns the unit's mission with its specific courses of action and results measurements.
Sub Account	An optional sub-division or cost center of an account. A sub account allows an account manager to break down an account into multiple smaller accounts in order to better track detailed budget and expenses.
Sub Fund Group	An attribute of an Account, which is a further breakdown of the Fund Group. It is an alpha representation of the specific funding source for an account. Example: Sub Fund group CAARB designates that the funding source is the State of California (CA) and the funding agency is the Air Resource Board (ARB). It is a high level attribute used to get information regarding the status of all accounts within an organization that are funded by a single source.
Sub Fund Group Type	Represented by a single, alphanumeric character, these consist of a collection of sub fund groups under a more general heading of the funding source. All funds with similar income sources will have the same sub fund group type designation. For example, the sub fund group CAARB belongs to sub fund group type S - State Government. Sub fund group types are used to classify revenue in the annual financial schedules.
Sub Object	An optional, more detailed definition of an Object. For example, a sub-object for Air Travel might be created for use with a Travel object. Sub-objects are created for an account by the Account Manager.
Supply	Generally, a supply item is classified as being expendable with an acquisition value under $5000.00, and a normal life expectancy of under a year.

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