Central Research Development Fund Application web site

If you have any questions, please contact Tammeka Banks at tbanks@pitt.edu

The Small Grants Program of the Central Research Development Fund (CRDF) is administered by the Office of Research and the University Research Council. The primary goal of the Small Grants program is to enhance opportunities for faculty, especially junior faculty, at the University of Pittsburgh to engage in high-quality research, scholarship, and creative endeavors.

The program is intended to provide funding support that cannot be obtained from other sources (including the faculty member’s department and school and external funding agencies). Small Grants provide:

• seed funding to develop ideas to the point where external funding can be obtained;
• awards in research areas where external funding is extremely limited.

Small Grants awards cannot be used to support or supplement faculty salaries or for travel to meetings and conferences; computer equipment is not given priority. In the past, awards have ranged from $2,000 to $16,000. The maximum that may be awarded is $16,000. Expensive projects have a lower probability of being funded.

Eligibility:

At this time, faculty in the School of Medicine are not eligible to participate in the Small Grants Program. No faculty from outside the University of Pittsburgh are eligible to participate, even as Co-Investigators. All other full or part-time, tenured or tenure-stream faculty at the Pittsburgh (Oakland) and regional campuses may apply. The principal investigator may not be a graduate student, post-doctoral fellow, research associate, or visiting faculty. Grant awardees must have started their Pitt position no later than October 1 prior to the application period. Only one proposal submission is permitted per Investigator.

Review Procedures:

Proposals must be the original work of the proposer and will be subject to peer review. Each will be assigned to one of three committees – Science and Engineering, Health Sciences, or Social Sciences and Humanities. The Vice Provost for Research makes final decisions on funding. Small grants are made from the Central Research Development Fund.

Review committees give preference to proposals submitted by junior-level faculty.

Grant Period:

This is the only application deadline for fiscal year 2009 funding. The award period begins July 1, 2008, and runs through June 30, 2010. Notification of funding decisions will be made in May. Please note that award funding and account number assignment for these awards will be available July 31, 2008. Do not anticipate related trips or purchases prior to this date, as funds will not be available before this time.

Proposal Submission: NO LATER THAN 4 P.M. ON Friday, FEBRUARY 22, 2008.