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The NULab holds two rounds of grant applications, with deadlines in March and November; applications for travel grants for conferences that fall outside of these two rounds will be considered as funds are available. CFPs will be announced on the NULab News feed and the NUDIGITAL list.

Information on previously-funded projects is available here. The proposal form is here.

Information on How to Apply

Seedling and community collaboration grant proposals should be no more than 2 pages, and travel and co-sponsorship proposals no more than 1 page.

Seedling Grants (up to $5000) are intended to support pilot research to begin a longer-term research project. Grant funds could be used for costs such as:

  • to pay for RA time on research projects
  • to purchase data sets needed for research
  • to purchase access to tools, software, or other resources
  • to fund travel costs for meetings that are essential to initiate or further a research project

Community Collaboration Grants (up to $5000) are for digital and computational projects that support community engagement, citizen science, or community co-creation. Projects that may be directly integrated with classroom experiences are particularly welcome. Grant funds could be used for costs such as:

  • to compensate community partners for time engaged in collaborations
  • to provide stipends for research assistants on research projects
  • to purchase data sets needed for research
  • to purchase access to tools, software, or other resources
  • to fund travel costs for meetings that are essential to initiate, further, or present a research project

For both seedling and community collaboration grants, no grant of more than $5000 will typically be awarded in any given case nor will grants totaling more than $5000 be awarded to any single individual in a given academic year. Any NULab faculty or research affiliate may apply. Graduate students from CSSH, CAMD, and Khoury are also eligible to apply for NULab seedling and community collaboration grants, although any projects involving a budget for graduate or undergraduate student labor should have a faculty advisor. Faculty advisors on graduate student projects should be able to commit both to mentoring the graduate PI in managing their student workers and also to providing support for administering student hires.

Any project proposals that include staffing costs should remember to factor in fringe benefits (an additional 7.65% for hourly student work) where appropriate when calculating requested funds. Grants involving requests for physical equipment (e.g., hard drives, video equipment) should explain why the purchase is essential for the work of the project. Physical equipment expenses should typically be less than $500.

Recipients of NULab seedling and community collaboration grants are expected to: provide a project description for inclusion on the NULab website soon after the award, write a blog post on the project once it is underway, and present on the project in an informal work-in-progress session for the Digital Humanities Open Office Hours series. 

As the gap between the applications we receive and the resources we have continues to grow, we ask applicants to frame their proposed projects as piloting new initiatives and articulate their potential for future growth. That is, proposals should outline the development of new projects (rather than supporting ongoing work in established projects) and should also indicate how these projects might lead to larger initiatives and additional funding opportunities. Given the demand for this program, the NULab is rarely able to award the $5,000 maximum to any single project; we encourage proposals to scope their budgets relative to the precise resources required to enable necessary project work.

Where funds are awarded by transfer, spending updates will be required twice yearly. Project personnel must be up-to-date on all required reporting to submit subsequent grant proposals.

Travel Grants (up to $1000) are intended to support presentation of NULab-related research at conferences, or substantive NULab-relevant professional development, such as attending a workshop. Grant recipients are expected to provide a blog post for the NULab site on the event or on their research, and are also expected to give a presentation at a NULab meeting. Graduate students and postdocs from CSSH, CAMD, and Khoury are eligible to apply. Assistant professors from any department are eligible to apply.

No travel funding of more than $1000 will ordinarily be awarded in any given case nor will grants totaling more than $2000 be awarded to any single individual in a given academic year. Application is not contingent upon having been accepted to upcoming conferences; we encourage faculty and graduate students to apply for travel grants relating to conferences that they have applied to, even in cases where the conference acceptance notification falls after the NULab grant deadline.

Co-sponsorships (up to $1000) are intended to support NULab-relevant speakers and events, ideally open to the public or bringing a multi-institutional or regional audience to Northeastern. Any NULab faculty or research affiliate can apply. Larger requests should make clear the benefit to a broader NULab audience.  
 
For all grants, awarded funds should be spent within one calendar year of the award date.

Proposal Requirements

Seedling and travel grant proposals should be submitted as .pdf or .docx via the proposal form. While there are no formally required sections, proposals should include the contents described below. 

Seedling grants

Seedling grant proposals should be no more than 2 single-spaced pages. Proposals should describe the context and goals for the project, outline the main work to be accomplished under the proposal, indicate the potential impacts of the project for the Northeastern community and beyond, and provide a summary budget. The budget should include a brief outline of all projected expenses under the seedling grant (factoring in fringe of 7.65% for all proposals involving student work). 

Any grants led by graduate students that include undergraduate or graduate student work should provide the name of the faculty advisor and should indicate that the advisor is able to support the project by: mentoring the PI in managing the student workers, providing a budget index into which grant funds can be transferred, and coordinating as needed with departments on managing the hires (e.g., posting jobs, hiring students, and approving timesheets).

As noted above, proposals from established projects should explain how the work under the seedling project would enable new development. 

See this sample seedling grant proposal.

Community collaboration grants

Community-engaged grant proposals should be no more than 2 single-spaced pages. Proposals should describe the context and goals for the project; outline the main work to be accomplished under the proposal; indicate the potential impacts of the project for the Northeastern community and beyond; explain how the project will involve community engagement, citizen science, or community co-creation; and provide a summary budget. The budget should include a brief outline of all projected expenses under the seedling grant (factoring in fringe of 7.65% for all proposals involving student work). 

Any grants led by graduate students that include undergraduate or graduate student work should provide the name of the faculty advisor and should indicate that the advisor is able to support the project by: mentoring the PI in managing the student workers, providing a budget index into which grant funds can be transferred, and coordinating as needed with departments on managing the hires (e.g., posting jobs, hiring students, and approving timesheets).

Travel grants

Travel proposals should be no more than 1 single-spaced page. Proposals for conference travel should include the name & location of the conference, the date of the conference, and the title and abstract of any papers or posters to be presented. Proposals for workshop or other professional-development-related travel should describe the workshop and explain how the skills to be taught will further the submitter’s research or teaching plans. 

All travel grants should include a brief budget outlining projected expenses and should offer a description of the potential impacts of the travel for the submitter and the Northeastern community. Proposals should also indicate whether the submitter has been accepted by the workshop or conference and, if not, provide the expected date of acceptance notification.

Event Co-Sponsorship

Event co-sponsorship proposals should describe the planned event, explain how it would benefit the Northeastern community, and outline how it connects with the activities of the NULab. Proposals should be as specific as possible on the details for the event: for example, name any speakers or workshop facilitators and indicate whether they have confirmed ability to participate, provide a draft schedule, list the goals for the event and how they will be met by the planned activities, share when the event would be held, and confirm the format (virtual/in-person/hybrid). Proposals should also include a brief budget.