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Clusters of Excellence

The School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) is pleased to announce the Fall 2026 call for “Clusters of Excellence.” These faculty-led communities are designed to increase SEAS’s external visibility while strengthening connections across departments and disciplines. This seed funding is intended to help launch new interdisciplinary clusters, bringing faculty together around shared interests and opportunities. Proposals that explore new or untested ideas and demonstrate a pathway to institutional partnerships or external funding are encouraged. Eligibility

  • Lead PI must be a SEAS faculty member.
  • Participation from non-SEAS faculty is allowed but not required.
  • Teams should include at least four faculty members and two departments.

Funding

Award size

hr

$50,000 per cluster

Budget duration

hr

12 months with possible renewal

Allowable costs

hr

  • Seminar series (speaker travel and workshop costs)

hr

  • Student/postdoc lunch talks (reasonable meals), where Princeton students and postdocs present their research to others on campus

hr

Website design/content support

Unallowable costs

hr

PI salary, graduate student stipend/tuition, equipment, subawards, general lab supplies, etc.

This is not a research grant!

Program Requirements

Launch a “Cluster of Excellence” webpage (on the SEAS website in coordination with the SEAS Communications team) with a vision, people, events and content.

Host a seminar series to be shared and promoted in advance within SEAS and the broader University research community.

Run student/postdoc lunch talks (at least monthly) during the academic year.

Track simple metrics, outcomes, impact and next steps to be summarized in an annual report.

Proposals should include:

A one-page description of the Cluster of Excellence. This should include why the field is important, how it spans departmental boundaries, what Princeton’s unique strengths are, and how efforts could grow over the coming years. The description must be prepared on standard letter-sized paper (8.5″ × 11″) with 1-inch margins on all sides and use a minimum font size of 11 points.

A detailed budget outlining how the funds will be used. Budgets will be reviewed carefully for reasonable and appropriate expenses.

Two-page CVs for the lead PI and faculty team members.

Guidelines

  • Faculty members are not eligible to apply for a Cluster of Excellence if they currently have an active SEAS Cluster.
  • Awards will be issued to SEAS departments only.
  • New proposals should identify a distinct research theme, community, or opportunity not currently addressed by an existing cluster. Faculty interested in research areas aligned with an existing Cluster of Excellence are encouraged to engage with and contribute to those communities rather than proposing a parallel cluster.
  • SEAS expects that funds will be spent according to the proposed budget. Any major change in budget allocation should be discussed in advance with SEAS.
  • Proposals selected for funding will be required to submit an annual report.
  • Any unspent funds must be returned to SEAS.

Contact:

Submission Deadline: