RFPs
A request for proposals (RFP) is a funder’s written announcement inviting proposals, usually for a specific grant program.
- Our office serves as a clearinghouse for many RFPs. Current opportunities can be found below.
- We disseminate select RFPs via email directly to faculty and administrators in relevant schools and centers.
- If an RFP is a limited funding opportunity, for which a limited number of applicants per institution may apply, it is generally announced by the Stanford Research Development Office and an internal selection committee decides on the final candidate(s). UCFR manages a small number of limited RFPs, as indicated below.
- Additional RFP resources are listed on the Funding Search Tools page.
Funding Opportunities & Resources
November Deadlines
California Humanities
California Documentary Project Grants
The California Documentary Project (CDP) is a competitive grant program that supports the research and development and production stages of film, audio, and digital media projects that seek to document California in all its complexity. Projects should use the humanities to provide context, depth and perspective and reach and engage broad audiences through multiple means, including but not limited to radio and television broadcasts, podcasts, online distribution and interactive media, community screenings and discussions, in classrooms and libraries, at cultural centers, film festivals, and beyond.
CDP Research and Development grants are designed to strengthen the humanities content and approach of documentary media productions in their earliest stages. Projects must actively involve at least two humanities advisors to help frame and contextualize subject matter throughout the research and development phase. Eligible applicants may apply for funding up to $10,000.
CDP Production grants are designed to strengthen the humanities content and approach of documentary media productions and help propel projects toward completion. Projects must be in the production stage, have a work-in-progress to submit, and actively involve at least two humanities advisors to help frame and contextualize subject matter throughout the production process. Eligible applicants may apply for funding up to $50,000.
Eligible applicants must be nonprofit organizations or municipal/public agencies (including public libraries, museums, schools, universities and colleges, and tribal governments). California Humanities does not make grants directly to individuals; however, individuals may apply through an eligible tax-exempt fiscal sponsor.
Funding Amount: Up to $10K (Research & Development grants); Up to $50K (Production grants)
Deadline: November 1, 2021
Guidelines: https://calhum.org/funding-opportunities/california-documentary-project/
Simons Foundation
Simons Early Career Investigator in Marine Microbial Ecology and Evolution Awards 2022 Request for Applications
The Simons Foundation is now accepting applications for its Simons Early Career Investigator in Marine Microbial Ecology and Evolution Awards. Microbes inhabit and sustain all habitats on Earth. In the oceans, microbes capture solar energy, catalyze biogeochemical transformations of important elements, produce and consume greenhouse gases, and provide the base of the food web. The purpose of these awards is to help launch the careers of outstanding investigators in the field of marine microbial ecology and evolution who will advance our understanding through experiments, modeling or theory. Investigators must be currently active in research on microbial ecology and/or evolution, excluding research focusing on the microbiomes of animals or plants. Investigators with backgrounds in different fields are encouraged to apply.
Applicants must hold a Ph.D. or equivalent degree and a tenure-track or tenured position in a U.S. or Canadian institution. They must also be the principal investigator (PI) or co-PI currently or within the past year on a research grant on microbial ecology and/or microbial evolution from a national governmental agency or major national or international foundation that awards direct funding to their institution for their research in the field of marine microbial ecology and/or microbial evolution.
Funding Amount: $222K/yr for up to 3 yrs
Deadline: November 5, 2021 (Letters of Intent)
Russell Sage Foundation
Core Programs and Special Initiatives
The Russell Sage Foundation is devoted exclusively to research in the social sciences. RSF will accept letters of inquiry (LOIs) under these core programs and special initiatives: Social, Political, and Economic Inequality; Future of Work; and Behavioral Science and Decision Making in Context.
The program in Social, Political, and Economic Inequality focuses on whether rising economic inequality has affected social, political, and economic institutions in the U.S., and the extent to which increased inequality has affected equality of opportunity, social mobility, and the intergenerational transmission of advantage.
The Future of Work program is concerned primarily with examining the causes and consequences of the declining quality of jobs for less- and moderately educated workers in the U.S. economy and the role of changes in employer practices, the nature of the labor market and public policies on the employment, earnings, and the quality of jobs of American workers.
The program on Behavioral Science and Decision Making in Context is focused on examining economic, social, political, and psychological decision-making processes, attitudes, behaviors, and institutional practices in public and private contexts such as policing/criminal legal systems, employment, housing, politics, racial/ethnic relations, and immigration.
In addition, RSF will also accept LOIs relevant to any of its core programs that address at least one of the following issues:
- Research on the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting recession in the U.S.
- Research focused on systemic racial inequality and/or the recent mass protests in the U.S.
Grants are available for research assistance, data acquisition, data analysis, and investigator time for conducting research and writing up results. We are particularly interested in analyses that make use of newly available data or demonstrate novel uses of existing data, to answer emerging or long-standing questions of interest in the foundation’s program areas and special initiatives. We also support original data collection. Proposals to conduct field experiments, in-depth qualitative interviews, and ethnographies are also encouraged. All applicants (both PIs and Co-PIs) must have a doctorate.
Funding Amount: Up to $175K
Deadline: November 10, 2021 (Letter of Inquiry)
Guidelines: https://www.russellsage.org/how-to-apply/application-deadlines
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Health Policy Fellows
The RWJF Health Policy Fellows program provides the nation’s most comprehensive learning experience at the nexus of health, science, and policy in Washington, D.C. It is an outstanding opportunity for exceptional midcareer health professionals and behavioral/social scientists with an interest in health and health care policy. Fellows participate in the policy process at the federal level and use that leadership experience to improve health equity, health care, and health policy. The fellowship requires a full-time commitment with a minimum 12-month residence in Washington, D.C., which prepares individuals to influence the future of health and health care in the nation.
Fellowship placements generally begin no later than January 31. During these assignments, fellows are full-time, contributing participants in the policy process with members of Congress, a congressional committee, or in the executive branch. Solely under the supervision of the office in which they are placed, fellows typically will:
- Help develop legislative or regulatory proposals;
- Organize hearings, briefings, and stakeholder meetings;
- Meet with constituents;
- Brief legislators or senior administration officials on a range of health issues; and
- Provide staff support for House-Senate conferences.
Eligibility includes:
- Exceptional midcareer professionals from academic faculties; government (including military; U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs; U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps; and state offices who are not considered government officials under Section 4946 of the Internal Revenue Code); and nonprofit organizations, who are interested in experiencing the health policy process at the federal level, are encouraged to apply.
- Applicants must have earned an advanced degree in one of the following disciplines: medicine; nursing; public health; allied health professions; biomedical sciences; dentistry; economics or other social sciences; health services organization and administration; social and behavioral health; or health law.
Funding Amount: Up to $165K
Deadline: November 12, 2021
American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS)
Luce/ACLS Program in Religion, Journalism & International Affairs Collaborative Programming Grants
ACLS invites proposals for Collaborative Programming Grants offered by the Luce/ACLS Program in Religion, Journalism & International Affairs, made possible by the generous support of the Henry Luce Foundation. The program aims to deepen public understanding of religion by advancing innovative scholarship on religion in international contexts and equipping individual scholars and institutions of higher education with the capacities to connect their work to journalism and the media and to engage audiences beyond the academy.
Proposals are sought for collaborative projects hosted at US-based accredited institutions of higher education with research and curricular strengths in journalism and communication and in the humanistic and social science fields concerned with the study of global religions (including, but not limited to, anthropology, area studies, history, languages and literature, political science, religious studies, and sociology). ACLS will award grants of up to $45,000 to institutions proposing interdisciplinary or cross-institutional collaborations that connect scholarship on religion to journalistic training and practice.
While the grants may support one or more of a broad range of objects for funding, applicants must propose activities that connect humanities and social science programs within their institution with journalism schools, departments, or initiatives, or with external media organizations. Applicants are encouraged to propose activities that build on or extend current curricular and research strengths in relevant disciplinary areas. Successful approaches to such work might include a multimodal slate of campus programming that brings together journalists and religion scholars in workshops, seminars, courses, and public events; a symposium that blends thematic reflections on global religions with practice-oriented sessions on reaching out to audiences beyond the academy; or a course that offers humanities or social science students and/or faculty hands-on training as religion reporters. Proposals may propose a combination of approaches, provided that applications demonstrate how the proposed activities complement one another.
Grants may support projects of 12-18 months in duration. Projects must be initiated between July 1, 2022 and August 31, 2022 and completed no later than April 30, 2023. Applications should outline a concrete timeline and identify discrete stages of the project as appropriate.
Funding Amount: Up to $45K
Deadline: November 15, 2021
December Deadlines
Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, The Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research, and The Kavli Foundation
2022 Kavli Prize
The Kavli Prize was established in 2005 in a partnership among The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, The Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research and The Kavli Foundation. The Kavli Prizes recognize breakthrough scientific achievements in astrophysics, nanoscience and neuroscience. The Kavli Prize in Astrophysics is awarded for outstanding achievement in advancing our knowledge and understanding of the origin, evolution and properties of the universe, including the fields of cosmology, astrophysics, astronomy, planetary science, solar physics, space science, astrobiology, astronomical and astrophysical instrumentation, and particle astrophysics. The Kavli Prize in Nanoscience is awarded for outstanding achievement in the science and application of the unique physical, chemical and biological properties of atomic, molecular, macromolecular, and cellular structures and systems that are manifest in the nanometer scale, including molecular self-assembly, nanomaterials, nanoscale instrumentation, nanobiotechnology, macromolecular synthesis, molecular mechanics and related topics. The Kavli Prize in Neuroscience is awarded for outstanding achievement in advancing our knowledge and understanding of the brain and nervous system, including molecular neuroscience, cellular neuroscience, systems neuroscience, neurogenetics, developmental neuroscience, cognitive neuroscience, computational neuroscience, and related facets of the brain and nervous system. Up to five individuals can be recognized for their work on the same breakthrough. Multiple nominations recognizing different breakthroughs are permitted. Anyone can nominate, but self-nominations are not accepted.
Funding Amount: $1M prize
Deadline: December 1, 2021
Guidelines: https://kavliprize.org/about
Spencer Foundation
Research Grants on Education: Small
The Small Research Grants Program supports education research projects that will contribute to the improvement of education, broadly conceived, with budgets up to $50,000 for projects ranging from one to five years. This program is “field-initiated” in that proposal submissions are not in response to a specific request for a particular research topic, discipline, design, method, or location. Our goal for this program is to support rigorous, intellectually ambitious and technically sound research that is relevant to the most pressing questions and compelling opportunities in education.
We anticipate that proposals will span a wide range of topics and disciplines that innovatively investigate questions central to education, including for example education, anthropology, philosophy, psychology, sociology, law, economics, history, or neuroscience, amongst others. Moreover, we expect and welcome methodological diversity in answering pressing questions; thus, we are open to projects that utilize a wide array of research methods including quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, ethnographies, design-based research, participatory methods, and historical research, to name a few. We are open to projects that might incorporate data from multiple and varied sources, span a sufficient length of time as to achieve a depth of understanding, or work closely with practitioners or community members over the life of the project.
Principal Investigators (PIs) and Co-PIs applying for a Small Research Grant on Education must have an earned doctorate in an academic discipline or professional field, or appropriate experience in an education research-related profession. While graduate students may be part of the research team, they may not be named the PI or Co-PI on the proposal. The PI must be affiliated with a non-profit organization or public/governmental institution that is willing to serve as the administering organization if the grant is awarded. The Spencer Foundation does not award grants directly to individuals.
Funding Amount: Up to $50K
Deadline: December 1, 2021
Guidelines: https://www.spencer.org/grant_types/small-research-grant
McKnight Foundation
Technological Innovations in Neuroscience Awards
Technological Innovations in Neuroscience Awards support scientists who work on novel and creative approaches to understanding brain function. The program seeks to advance and enlarge the range of technologies available to the neurosciences. It does not support research based primarily on existing techniques.
The foundation is especially interested in how technology may be used or adapted to monitor, manipulate, analyze, or model brain function at any level, from the molecular to the entire organism. Technology may take any form, from biochemical tools to instruments to software and mathematical approaches. Because the program seeks to advance and enlarge the range of technologies available to the neurosciences, research based primarily on existing techniques will not be considered. A goal of the Technological Innovations awards is to foster collaboration between the neurosciences and other disciplines; therefore, collaborative and cross-disciplinary applications are explicitly invited. Applications must work as an independent investigator at a not-for-profit research institution in the United States, and must hold a faculty position at the rank of Assistant Professor or higher.
Funding Amount: Up to $100K/yr for 2 yrs
Deadline: December 6, 2021 (Letter of Intent)
Guidelines: https://www.mcknight.org/programs/the-mcknight-endowment-fund-for-neuroscience/technology-awards/
Ploughshares Fund
Grants for a Nuclear Weapons-Free World
Ploughshares Fund supports organizations and individuals working to build a safe, secure, nuclear weapons-free world. Funding priorities are to promote the reduction and eventual elimination of nuclear weapons, prevent the emergence of new nuclear states, and build regional peace and security. Please note that we do not fund the production of films, videos, books, art projects, provide scholarships or the research and writing of academic dissertations.
Funding Amount: Funding amount varies
Deadline: December 15, 2021
Guidelines: https://www.ploughshares.org/what-we-fund/applying-grant
Ongoing Deadlines
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Evidence for Action: Innovative Research to Advance Racial Equity
Evidence for Action prioritizes research to evaluate specific interventions (e.g., policies, programs, practices) that have the potential to counteract the harms of structural and systemic racism and improve health, well-being, and equity outcomes. We are concerned both with the direct impacts of structural racism on the health and well-being of people and communities of color (e.g., Black, Latina/o/x, Indigenous, Asian, Pacific Islander people, and other races and ethnicities)—as well as the ways in which racism intersects with other forms of marginalization, such as having low income, being an immigrant, having a disability, or identifying as LGBTQ+ or a gender minority.
This funding is focused on studies about upstream causes of health inequities, such as the systems, structures, laws, policies, norms, and practices that determine the distribution of resources and opportunities, which in turn influence individuals’ options and behaviors. Research should center on the needs and experiences of communities exhibiting the greatest health burdens and be motivated by real-world priorities. It should be able to inform a specific course of action and/or establish beneficial practices, not stop at characterizing or documenting the extent of a problem.
E4A seeks grantees who are deeply committed to conducting rigorous and equitable research and ensuring that their findings are actionable in the real world. In addition to research funding, RWJF also supports grantees with stakeholder engagement, dissemination of findings, and other activities that can enhance their projects’ potential to “move the needle” on health and racial equity. Only through intentional and collaborative efforts to disrupt racism and translate research to action can we hope to build a more just and equitable society and a Culture of Health.
Grant periods are flexible up to 36 months; rare exceptions may be made for projects needing up to 48 months if sufficient justification is provided. Our preference is for projects that produce findings in the near term.
Funding Amount: Varies
Deadline: Rolling
Charles Koch Foundation
Trade Policy Research
The Charles Koch Foundation is pleased to invite proposals for research and related projects that bridge the gap between theory and practice and contribute to contemporary debates around important trade-policy issues. We are especially interested in research related to the topics below.
- Examining the potential impact of China’s mega-initiatives on the United States, such as the Belt and Road Initiative or China’s large-scale investments in Africa. This could be along economic, social, diplomatic, and/or security lines.
- Exploring issues and topics related to U.S-China trade and foreign direct investment and implications for national security.
- Examining how to better protect U.S. intellectual property in China and other markets.
- Exploring the impact of Chinese tech theft and commercial espionage on American businesses.
- Examining the real threat of China as compared to the threat claimed by domestic interest groups, businesses, think tanks, and the media.
- Exploring opportunities for U.S.-China economic cooperation.
- Exploring the role of the WTO in dispute settlement.
- Assessing the historical track record of national industrial policy in the United States.
- Conducting a comparative analysis of countries’ industrial policies, with a focus on possible lessons for the United States.
- Exploring alternative means of achieving the stated goals of national industrial policy, e.g. increasing innovation, productivity growth, unemployment gains, etc.
- Examining the impact and value of Free Trade Agreements, especially in comparison to managed trade agreements.
- Presenting solutions to any concentrated costs that may be caused by Free Trade Agreements.
Funding Amount: Varies
Deadline: Rolling
Guidelines: https://charleskochfoundation.org/grants/trade-policy-research/
Smith Richardson Foundation
Domestic Public Policy Program
The mission of the Smith Richardson Foundation is to contribute to important public debates and to address serious public policy challenges facing the United States. The foundation seeks to help ensure the vitality of our social, economic, and governmental institutions. It also seeks to assist with the development of effective policies to compete internationally and to advance U.S. interests and values abroad. The Domestic Public Policy Program supports projects that will help the public and policy makers understand and address critical challenges facing the United States. To that end, the foundation supports research on and the evaluation of existing public policies and programs, as well as projects that inject new ideas into public debates.
Funding Amount: Varies
Deadline: Concept papers accepted anytime
Guidelines: https://www.srf.org/programs/domestic-public-policy/
Simons Foundation
Targeted Grants in Mathematics and Physical Sciences
The Simons Foundation’s Mathematics and Physical Sciences (MPS) division invites applications for its new Targeted Grants in MPS program. The program is intended to support high-risk projects of exceptional promise and scientific importance on a case-by-case basis. A typical Targeted Grant in MPS provides funding for up to five years. The funding provided is flexible and based on the type of support requested in the proposal. Indirect costs are limited to 20% of direct costs, with the following exceptions: equipment, tuition, and any subcontracts with budgets, including indirect expenses. Indirect costs paid to a subcontractor may not exceed 20% of the direct costs paid to the subcontractor. Expenses for experiments, equipment, or computations, as well as for personnel and travel, are allowable. Applications may be submitted by established U.S. and foreign public and private educational institutions and stand-alone research centers.
Funding Amount: Varies
Deadline: Letter of Inquiry accepted anytime
Limited Programs:
2022 Andrew Carnegie Fellows Program Competition
Limited submission program for sabbatical-eligible faculty (see eligibility) - a university-wide internal nomination process is required. The fellowships of $200,000 each enable recipients to take sabbaticals of one or two years from their institution to focus on research and writing.
Award Purpose:
The Carnegie Fellows Program supports high-caliber scholarship in the social sciences and humanities by enabling extraordinary senior or junior scholars, journalists, and public intellectuals to pursue research on pressing issues and cultural transitions, facing us at home and abroad. Institutions are encouraged to nominate those “whose proposals incorporate, among other elements, historical precedents, cultural underpinnings, and moral arguments.”
2022 topics:
Candidates should be proposing work on one of the following topics (additional information available here)
https://www.dropbox.com/s/k266ps4mxaxu21b/AC%20Fellows%20Topics%202021.pdf?dl=
- Global connections and global ruptures
- Strengthening U.S. democracy and exploring new narratives
- Environments, natural and human
- Technological and cultural creativity—potential and perils
# of nominations:
Two nominations are permitted from each university: one junior scholar and one senior scholar. (See eligibility below)
Timeline:
Internal university deadline: Fri., Oct. 29, 2021, 5:00 pm (see the internal nomination process below)
The nominee(s) selected to represent Stanford will be notified: Fri., Nov. 5, 2021
Sponsor’s deadline: Nov. 22, 2021
Fellows announced: April 2022
Start of the fellowship: by September 1, 2022
Guidelines:
https://www.carnegie.org/news/articles/andrew-carnegie-fellows-2022/
Eligibility:
- Senior, junior, and emerging scholars; journalists; and public intellectuals
- A “junior” scholar (sabbatical-eligible faculty) will have received the PhD (or terminal degree in the field) ten years ago or fewer (2011-2021). A junior scholar may hold any title, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Professor. The junior status is determined by the year his/her degree was earned.
- A “senior” scholar (sabbatical-eligible faculty) is more than ten years out from the PhD or terminal degree
- U.S. citizenship or permanent U.S. residency status
- See the award terms below.
Award terms
- Fellowships of $200,000 each, enabling recipients to take sabbaticals of one or two years from their institution to focus on research and writing. Fellowships may be used for such expenses as salary, fringe benefits, project-related travel, research assistants, and translators. No indirects are provided to the university.
- While the fellowship can be paid directly to the individual or through the home institution, Stanford highly recommends that it be paid to the individual. (Please consult your financial advisor and department manager on tax implications, benefits, contributions, etc.)
- Carnegie does not fund dissertations, debt repayments, lobbying efforts, the purchase of equipment, or rent.
- In accepting the nomination, candidates are affirming that, if chosen for the fellowship, s/he will accept the fellowship.
- Recipients may not accept other fellowships in addition to the Carnegie fellowship for the same time period.
Carnegie’s Selection Criteria and Process:
- Originality and promise of the idea, as it relates to the four program topics
- Quality of the proposal
- Potential impact on the field
- Record of the nominee
- Plans to communicate findings to a broad audience
- Carnegie’s selection process will consist of two stages. First, anonymous, nationally prominent experts in various fields will conduct a preliminary evaluation of nominees’ proposals. Then the top proposals will be forwarded to the members of the jury for their scrutiny and ultimate decision.
STANFORD NOMINATION SELECTION PROCESS:
By Fri., Oct. 29, 2021 5:00pm please send one PDF file containing the following in the order listed below via email attachment to:
Amanda Reilly
Associate Director
University Corporate and Foundation Relations
650-498-7726
File name: Last Name_Carnegie.pdf
1) Title page
2022 Andrew Carnegie Fellows Program
Name of nominee
Nominee Scholar Category: junior or senior
Title
Department
Email address, phone number
2) Nomination letter from your Department Chair or Dean printed on department letterhead and addressed to the Carnegie Fellows Program Review committee which provides a brief description of the candidate’s qualifications and potential, and how his or her contributions will address pressing issues and cultural shifts affecting us at home and abroad. (This letter is for internal review only.)
3) Internal Application materials
- 3-5 page prospectus describing the project, including a projected work plan and approximate time frame. The prospectus should be double-spaced and set at a minimum 12-point font. NB: jurors will not read any prospectus beyond the five-page limit (footnotes and bibliography excepted).
- CV
- Budget in Carnegie’s format: Carnegie’s budget template and instructions are located here
https://www.carnegie.org/news/articles/andrew-carnegie-fellows-2022/
Selection Process
A committee appointed by the Provost will review applications and select up to two nominees. Applicants will be notified by Nov. 5. The selected nominee(s) will then be asked to provide additional materials (1-page summary of the prospectus, a description of the project in 75 words or fewer, 1-page summary of the CV [bulleted form], a short narrative biography (250-400 words), relevant social media links, and a high-resolution photo). The University Corporate and Foundation Relations office will help assemble and submit the application by November 22, including the necessary institutional letter of nomination.
Please click here for limited program announcements