External Affiliate

An external affiliate is an individual who is employed by or affiliated with an organization who has a formal, written agreement with Caltech where the agreement contemplates that the individuals from the organization will be granted physical or remote access to Caltech facilities and systems.

Note: Access is subject to export control and research security restrictions, determined by where the external affiliate is from (e.g., foreign country) or, if accessing systems only, where the external affiliate is physically located while accessing systems (e.g., foreign country).

Formal agreements include but are not limited to:

• subawards, contracts, consulting agreements, facilities use agreements, sponsored research agreements, collaboration agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MOU)

External affiliate groups include: AWS, Amazon Quantum, Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Thirty-Meter-Telescope (TMT), California Association for Research in Astronomy (CARA), Caltech Y, Caltech Employees Federal Credit Union (CEFCU), Caltech Childcare Center (CCC), JPL Child Education Center (CEC), Glendale Community College or Pasadena Community College work study students, temp employee agencies, and other organizations that have MOUs or contracts with Caltech as described above.

External affiliate assignments must be reviewed to ensure that the organization's agreement with Caltech includes appropriate provisions for insurance and the protection of Caltech's intellectual property and confidential information.

Before any individual is on-boarded as an external affiliate, they will have the opportunity to review the IP agreement and provide objections or alternative provisions for consideration by the Office of Technology and Corporate Partnerships (OTTCP). Additionally, OTTCP will review the request to determine if an IP agreement needs to be signed by the individual. In certain cases, the formal agreement between Caltech and the external affiliate organization or group will govern IP rights, while in other cases, a California Institute of Technology Patent and Copyright Agreement may be appropriate. All external affiliate assignments are subject to export compliance review.

If the external affiliate will be on campus for ten days or less, a VAR does not need to be processed, and the sponsoring division/department is responsible for maintaining information on the individual for safety and security purposes. If there are potential export control concerns regarding the visitor, the division/department is responsible for contacting researchsecurity@caltech.edu prior to the visit.

External affiliate assignments can be up to two years. To renew, the sponsoring division/department must initiate the recertification process in VAR to review and update visit details. This is subject to review and approval.

For any questions, please contact Human Resources at (626) 395-3300 or HRinfo@caltech.edu.