DST Launch Seed Grants 2023-2024

Request for Proposals

Purpose

These funds are directed toward supporting nascent collaborative, interdisciplinary projects, with a preference for projects that advance science and technology. The goals of this program are to enable faculty from multiple disciplines to initiate high-impact projects that could lead to additional external funding.

Eligibility

At least two Duke Co-PIs with primary faculty appointments in different schools (or divisions within Trinity). Collaborations that involve science are strongly encouraged.

Budget

Budget submissions should be in line with the project's scope. Budgets may request up to $100,000 with an award term of one year.

Please note: This is an internal award that will not require an SPS record; No overhead should be included in the budget.

Applicable to School of Medicine (SOM) faculty only: SOM does not assess G&A on DST expenditures.

Allowable Costs

Funds may be used for salary/stipend and fringe of personnel (including PI, students, post-docs, technicians, etc.), equipment, travel, and/or consumables. Funding of collaborators outside of Duke will not be allowed.

Proposal Requirements

• Title of project, name of PI, appointment information (current department or division, school, faculty title), date and title of first Duke faculty appointment, five (5) keywords (will be used to identify proper reviewers)
• Up to two (2) pages describing the project and should include:
  • Where would future funding for the project come from.
  • Justification of why this project would be difficult to fund from other sources.
  • A plan to make substantial progress toward their aims within the one-year term.
  • Paper size no larger than 8 ½" x 11"
  • At least one-half inch margins (1/2") – top, bottom, left, and right for all pages.
  • Font size is at least 11 pt in size and generally recommend Arial, Georgia, Helvetica, or Palatino Linotype.
• A short CV or biosketch of up to five (5) pages for each PI.
• A one-page budget and budget justification.

Review Criteria

Applications will be reviewed by an internal committee, and will be judged on:

• Responsiveness to the RFA (ineligible applications will be returned unreviewed).
• Creativity of the proposal.
• Potential impact of the project, if successful.
• Potential for future funding.

Reporting Requirements

• One-page summary at the end of the grant period.
• Annual queries to award recipient will be made to ascertain whether any external funding, papers, books, performances, etc. have derived from this award.

Timeline

Submission Tips

• Click here to access MyResearchProposal and log in or choose “Create New User” to apply. Proposals must be submitted under the Principal Investigator’s name.
• Enter access code ‘DST’ then select Apple for the “DST Launch Seed Grants 2023-2024 - Interdisciplinary Collaborative Projects” and follow the funding opportunity instructions.
• A step-by-step user’s guide for applying via the MyResearchProposal platform is available online here.

Questions

For any questions regarding your proposal or MyResearchProposal, please contact Anita Grissom by email at anita.grissom@duke.edu or by phone at (919) 668-4774.