Internal RFAs

With support from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS), the Committee on Social Science Research (CSSR) is calling for proposals for two internal funding opportunities: the Seed Grant Program and the Grant Development Program, both of which aim to support external grant proposals by faculty working in the social sciences. Tenure system faculty with more than 0% appointment in one of the social science departments in LAS (Anthropology, Communication, Political Science, Sociology, Economics, Criminology, Law & Justice, and Psychology) are eligible to apply. Social scientists in the departments of Gender and Women’s Studies, Global Asian Studies, Black Studies, and Latin American and Latino Studies are also welcome to apply. Proposals must be submitted by March 4, 2024 @5pm, to ensure proposal review and award time and allow faculty to expend the funds by May 31, 2024. The CSSR reviews internal applications with three committee members assigned as reviewers to each proposal. The CSSR chair and any CSSR members with a conflict of interest with the proposal(s) do not participate in the deliberations. The CSSR review aims to improve the fundability of each application.

The Seed Grant Funds (SGF) provide social science faculty with small grants to support the research leading to preliminary evidence for external grant proposals. The Seed Grant Program can provide up to $5,000 to support small-scale pilot research; secondary data analysis; systematic literature reviews; or other small, self-contained research projects. Non-exhaustive examples of expenditures include a graduate or undergraduate hourly appointment, data access costs, software purchases, or online sample fees.

The Grant Development Program (GDF) supports faculty who are writing external grant proposals either: (a) as sole investigators or (b) in multi-investigator collaborations. The GDF can generally provide up to $2,500 to sole investigators and up to $5,000 to multi-investigator collaborations to work with grant-writing companies and developmental editors. The CSSR pairs faculty applying for external grants with a group of vetted developmental editors and/or grant writers who provide targeted and guided support on the content and text of each application before it is submitted to a funding agency. Please note: GDF applicants are required to meet with the CSSR chair to help applicants understand the process of grant development consulting, and to help match applicants with the most appropriate coaches to develop successful external applications.

Grants can be split between SGF and GDF, but the total must not exceed $5,000.

Please see the links below for the online application portal and answers to any questions about both grant programs.