Purchase Orders
A purchase order is a legal contract document issued by Purchasing that obligates the University to purchase certain goods and services.
Purchase Order Process From Requisition to PO Issuance
From receipt of the requisition by Purchasing (step 3) to issuance of the purchase order (step 6), this process typically takes approximately 2 weeks.
Requisition Submitted
Submit requisition through Sharepoint and Colleague. This process will change in Spring 2027 as The Purch is rolled out.
Budget Approval
Budget Officer reviews and approves the requisition, certifying funds are available. The requisition is not visible for Purchasing before this approval.
Purchasing Receives Request
Purchasing receives the requisition.
Procurement Officer Review
Purchasing reviews the requisition for accuracy and completeness ensuring compliance with State and University policies as well as applicable procurements standards.
Purchase Order Issued
A purchase order number is assigned, and the PO is issued to the vendor. A copy of the po is sent to the funding department.
Vendor Signature
If PO meets a requirements for a vendor signature, it will not be marked as complete until a vendor returns the signed document.
Purchase Order Changes
The three Purchase Order Change Forms are Amendments, Closes, and Rollovers. If you need to make changes to a purchase order, please use the Electronic Purchase Order Change Forms and you can request to close, rollover, or amend any open PO.
PO Amendments
Amendments requests should be submitted for an Increase, Decrease, or No Dollar Level Change for situations such as:
- Changing, adding, or deleting an account number or fund type (e.g., changing from a GR account to a Foundation account, or vice versa).
- Adjusting the total PO amount or individual line item amounts (e.g., when an item costs more or less than expected, or when shipping costs change).
- Reallocating funds from one account number to another (including pre-pay accounts).
- Processing addendums.
PO Closes
Closes requests should be submitted when: Closing a BPO/PO due to a $0 Balance or End of Need. Standard POs are closed automatically when they are fully paid. You do not need to submit a close request for standard pos, the only exception is Foundations POs.
PO Rollovers
Rollover requests should be submitted when departments need to roll a BPO/PO into the next fiscal year, including situations such as:
- Multi-year POs.
- Term dates or service dates that extend into the next fiscal year.
- Items that were not received by 6/30.
- Delays that prevent a purchase from being completed or received by fiscal year-end (e.g., construction delays, postponed travel, or physical equipment/furniture that has not yet been received on campus).
- Any $ amount change should not be submitted as a rollover.
These are some of the most common examples, but there may be other circumstances where a BPO/PO should be rolled into the next fiscal year.
Payment of a Purchase Order
All receiving and voucher payments against purchase orders will be initiated and processed by departments.
This process already applies to Blanket Purchase Orders. The department makes payments throughout the fiscal year on invoice-voucher or electronic voucher.
For voucher inquiries, please email: Comptroller@ilstu.edu
Invoices sent directly to Purchasing from vendors will be sent to the department for payment processing. Filling out the Ship to Code field on the REQM screen on Colleague is required so we know where the invoices need to be routed to.