On this page:

• Essential information
• eGFAF routing
• Enter Graduate Appointment details - for preparers
• eGFAF queries - for preparers
• Change eGFAF details - for preparers
• Delegated signing authority
• Access to eGFAF forms

 

Essential information

• All data entry for and approval of graduate employee appointments must be completed in SPIRE. Automated routing for approvals is managed by SPIRE, allowing everyone involved to process information quickly to ensure that graduate student employees receive their first paychecks promptly. See eGFAF Routing below.
• Pop-up blockers must allow pop-ups from SPIRE for anyone who needs to prepare or approve eGFAF appointments.
• Before preparers can create an eGFAF appointment, the student must agree to the Terms and Conditions of Appointment in SPIRE. To complete the agreement, students must log in to SPIRE using their student role and click Graduate Employment Terms in the To Do List details.
• See Access to eGFAF Forms below to learn whose access is granted automatically and whose access requires approval.
• For help with eGFAF topics or issues, email gfaf@grad.umass.edu.

eGFAF routing

Graduate appointment routing follows this path:

1. eGFAF preparer completes data entry and submits a form. SPIRE automatically notifies all designated faculty and staff approvers.
2. Faculty & staff approvers respond to notification by logging in to SPIRE, reviewing the form, and clicking Approve or Deny. If everyone in this step approves the appointment, SPIRE automatically notifies the student.
3. Graduate student employee responds to notification by logging in to SPIRE and approving the appointment.
4. Graduate Assistantship Office identifies fully approved appointments, processes them, and routes them to Human Resources.
5. Human Resources uploads the processed appointments into the Human Resources data system and uses it to establish or update students' employee records.

The eGFAF routing process relies on SPIRE IDs entered on the eGFAF form. Preparers must be careful about selecting the correct IDs to ensure that only the intended individuals can access the appointment details. Magnifying glass lookup buttons next to each ID field on the form help preparers to identify the correct SPIRE IDs for their approvers.

Enter Graduate Appointment details - for preparers

1. Click the NavBar icon in the top right corner of SPIRE. Navigate to Student Financials > Graduate Appointments > GFAF Workflow Entry. The Grad Appts GFAF Entry Workflow page opens.
2. Click Add. The online Graduate Fellowship and Assistantship form opens.
3. Fill in all required fields marked with an asterisk (*). Several fields fill in automatically after you enter the Graduate Student Employee Spire ID and tab or click out of the field. If the automatic data appears in a white box, you can edit it if necessary. Name and Degree Program are examples of data you can edit, while Employee ID is an example of data you cannot edit once it appears.
4. Enter position details. Accuracy counts! Pay special attention to HR Account and Fund values, as well as Project/Grant values if applicable.
5. Click Calculate to fill in calculated fields. Note: You can recalculate as many times as you like until you click Submit, which triggers a final calculation.
6. Click Job Description. The GFAF Job Description page opens.
7. Choose whether to upload and attach a pdf file of the job description or to enter job description text in the text box.
8. Click Return to GFAF Entry.
9. Enter SPIRE IDs as needed to route the form to the department head, the principal investigator, or whomever needs to approve it. GPD Spire ID is near the top of the page with Degree Program, and PI Spire ID is in the middle on the line below Project/Grant. Enter other approver IDs near the bottom of the page.
   
   • Note: You can enter up to two additional approvers who do not fit into a predefined approver category.
   • You may add the same approver more than once on the same form if, for example, the department head is also the principal investigator.
   • Important! Be careful to enter the correct SPIRE ID for each approver. Use the lookup buttons to search for current faculty or staff by name. If the search provides more than one choice, use the department information in the search results to identify the correct approver.
10. Click Save. Saving only stores appointment details. It does not route the eGFAF to approvers.
11. Review details for accuracy. Tip: Click Print unofficial copy to view a neatly formatted pdf version of the form.
12. Click Submit to initiate routing to all approvers except the student.
13. Remember to provide the student employee with a blue GEO dues deduction form. This essential step still relies on paper.

Note:

• If you are both a preparer and an approver, you must use a different page for approvals. Navigation for the approvers' page is Main Menu > Student Financials > Graduate Appointments > GFAF Department Review. The approvers' notification email will remind you of the navigation.

eGFAF queries - for preparers

Use eGFAF queries to track the status of graduate appointments after you submit them. Refer to Use the Query Viewer to get started, if needed. Tip: in Query Viewer, search for queries that begin with UM_EGFAF_DPT to get a list of available queries. They should include the following options:

Query Name	Description	Use this query to get a list of...
UM_EGFAF_DPT_BY_STU_PROG	Appts sent to HR-by Stdnt Prog	all fully approved eGFAFs submitted to HR for students in a specific graduate program, regardless of appointing department
UM_EGFAF_DPT_GAO_APPROVED	GAO Approved - Ready for HR	all fully approved eGFAFs submitted to HR for positions under your Dept ID
UM_EGFAF_DPT_GAO_REVIEWING	Ready for GAO Review	all eGFAFs under your Dept ID that are being reviewed in the Graduate Assistantship Office (GAO) and have not yet gone to HR
UM_EGFAF_DPT_PENDING_1	Pending by Employing Dept ID	all eGFAFs under your Dept ID that are still waiting for faculty or staff approval
UM_EGFAF_DPT_PENDING_2	Pending by Preparer email	all eGFAFs submitted by a specific preparer that are still waiting for faculty or staff approval
UM_EGFAF_DPT_PENDING_APPROVER	Pending - by Approver ID	all eGFAFs that are still waiting for approval by a specific faculty or staff member
UM_EGFAF_DPT_PENDING_STU	Pending Stu by Stdnt ACAD PROG	all eGFAFs that are still waiting for approval by students in a specific graduate program
UM_EGFAF_DPT_ALL_BY_APPROVER	All statuses - by Approver ID	all eGFAFs regardless of approval status approved (or waiting to be approved) by a specific faculty or staff member
UM_EGFAF_DPT_BY_DEPT_ID	All statuses - by DeptID	all eGFAFs by DeptID regardless of approval status and within specified time frame
UM_EGFAF_DPT_ALL_BY_STU_PROG	All statuses - by Acad Prog	all eGFAFs by students' Academic Program regardless of approval status

 

Change eGFAF details - for preparers

The procedure for changing details about an eGFAF depends upon its current status in the workflow. Contact the Graduate Assistantship Office (GAO) staff if you need help identifying the correct procedure. Generally, if you need to make changes:

• before you click Submit, replace existing details with new information using the Grad Appts GFAF Entry Workflow page.
• after you have clicked Submit and before the student has approved the appointment, contact the GAO.
• after the student has approved the appointment and before it has gone to Human Resources, contact the GAO to cancel the appointment and submit a paper multi-part Change and Appointment Form.
• after the GAO has submitted the form to Human Resources, use the Change and Appointment Form.

Delegated signing authority

Department chairs and others who typically approve graduate appointments often choose to designate someone else in the department to sign eGFAFs on their behalf. In such cases, the department must be careful to create and maintain a so-called “auditable paper trail” to demonstrate that the designated approver had the appropriate authority to sign.

• Each department will keep on file any and all memos delegating signature authority. Departments should be prepared to produce any such memo upon request. 
• To enable approval by someone who has delegated authority, enter that person's SPIRE ID in the appropriate space for the Dept Head’s or PI’s SPIRE ID, for example, and not in one of “Additional Approver” lines.

Sponsored grant projects - special considerations

Anyone who needs to sign in place of a Principal Investigator on a sponsored grant:

• must have a current signature delegation form on file with the Controller’s Office.  Be sure to use the most recent version of the Sponsored Project Delegation Form, which was implemented on 09/01/2014.
• must take the OWL Training for Cost Allowability for sponsored grants. If you need to take this training or complete a new form, please contact Joanne Wheeler at the Controller’s Office at wheeler@admin.umass.edu.

Access to eGFAF forms

eGFAF preparers have different rules compared to approvers for gaining access to the forms in SPIRE.

• Preparers' access depends on completing a two-step procedure:

1. The new preparer must complete FERPA Certification. See FERPA Certification.
2. Log in to SPIRE and select the Profile tile. Under the Access & Privacy heading, select the SPIRE Access Request page. Select "Prepare Grad Student Appointments (GFAFs)." Your request will be sent to your department head and the Graduate School Assistantship Office for approval.

• Approvers' access is automatic, but may not be immediate. Approver notifications include instructions about how to approve an appointment.
  
  • Faculty or staff who have never approved an eGFAF in SPIRE will need to allow a little time after they receive their first email notifying them that their approval is needed. Their access will update shortly after the preparer submits the eGFAF to trigger the notification. New approvers' access in SPIRE usually updates within six hours (usually less) after they receive notification. Approver access remains active indefinitely; subsequent approval notifications may be addressed immediately once the initial access has been activated.
  • Graduate student employees receive email notification to approve their own appointments as soon as all designated faculty or staff approvers have recorded their approval. Their SPIRE access to record approval is available immediately.
    
    • Note that students' navigation to their GFAF appointments does not go through SPIRE's Main Menu. Their link to Review Graduate Appointments is on their Student Center in the Finances section, along with other Graduate Student Employee links.