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Innovation Grants

The School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) is pleased to announce the Fall 2024 Call for Innovation proposals. This endeavor is made possible through the generosity of donors to Princeton, enabling SEAS to offer an assortment of grants to distinguished faculty who work on pioneering and cutting-edge research across diverse areas. The grants will support SEAS initiatives, promote bold research ideas with significant potential for societal impact, and encourage interdisciplinary collaborations encompassing not only SEAS faculty but also colleagues from other academic disciplines and collaborations with industry partners. Furthermore, the grants aim to facilitate nascent research, allowing faculty members to generate sufficient preliminary results/data that enhance the chances of securing outside funding, establishing the foundation for securing large external grants, such as an NSF Center.

Innovation research grants are designed to allow faculty members to engage in research that is not easily fundable through standard outside channels, or to provide sufficient preliminary research to enhance chances to secure continued outside funding. Proposals that demonstrate a clear path for outside grant application will be given preferential attention. Grant amount: up to $250K for up to two years of research. Proposals with a budget over $150K require teams of 2-4 principal investigators.

Research areas of interest:

  • Innovative Engineering Research
  • Robotic and Autonomous Systems
  • Next-Gen Networks
  • Decentralization of Power through Blockchain Technology
  • Human Health and Neuroscience
  • Technology, Policy, and Society 
  • Artificial Intelligence for Engineering Design and Discovery (Funding will be considered for a limited number of projects that are unable to secure support through AI at Princeton)

Proposals should include

  • Detailed overview of the proposed research (three-page maximum)
  • Detailed budget (up to $250K) outlining how the funds will be used (budgets will be reviewed carefully for reasonable and appropriate expenses)
  • Two-page CV and a list of current and pending research support for all team members

Proposals will be reviewed by a faculty committee and funding decisions will be announced in March.

Guidelines

  • Faculty members are not eligible to apply for a SEAS Innovation Research Grant if they currently have an active Innovation grant from SEAS.
  • At most, each faculty member could have one SEAS innovation research grant and one SEAS seed grant at the same time, provided that the two are on different topics.
  • Large proposals (over $150K) require teams of 2-4 PIs.
  • 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.
  • Extensions (including no-cost extensions) to project duration will not be granted unless exceptional circumstances arise; please choose appropriate research start and end dates during the application process. Please note projects can range from three months to two years.
  • Proposals selected for funding will be required to submit a summary report annually to provide an update on research objectives and fund expenditures, as well as a final report at the conclusion of the project.
  • Any unspent funds at the end of a project must be returned to SEAS.
  • Preferably, proposals should include a minimum of one SEAS faculty member.