UCF Makes Another $1 Million Available in SEED Funding for Research

UCF is now taking applications for its third round of SEED Funding. The program, made possible through a collaboration between the Office of Research and the Office of the Provost, is aimed at facilitating interdisciplinary research from across the university, which is likely to attract external funding while enhancing the visibility of UCF. A total of $1 million is available, with the first deadline coming up Nov. 15. Proposals may be made in one of three categories: Exploratory Research (ER) Awards up to $600,000 is available for awards.

These awards are intended for UCF researchers to initiate new high-risk, high-reward activities, which will strengthen faculty credentials and make them more competitive by allowing them to collect preliminary data appropriate to their discipline prior to submission of external grant funding applications. Proposals seeking a continuation of existing projects (determined by past funding, including startup or publication record) will not be funded. The program is divided into two tracks:

ER1: Exploratory Research – Funding for preliminary data collection. The focus should be on new concepts that have not yet been funded.
Total available funds: $580k.
Anticipated number of awards: 15-20
Application Deadline: November 29

ER2: Shared Research Facility Usage – Funding to support usage of shared research facility equipment to collect data and demonstrate/test feasibility of unfunded concepts.
Total available funds: $20k
Anticipated number of awards: 10-12
Application Deadline: Open submission until funds exhausted

Interdisciplinary Research (IR) Awards
A total of $400,000 is available.
These awards are meant to encourage new or expanding interdisciplinary teams to engage in convergence activities that lead to externally funded, large grant proposals requiring preliminary data and proof of established multi-PI engagement. This program will promote research that can only be achieved through collaboration. Funding should be commensurate with the total number of principal investigators composing the teams. Teams of 3-4 members are encouraged and must be composed of faculty from multiple disciplines. Larger teams will be considered if well justified.
Proposals focused on conceptualized approaches for the transition of an existing interdisciplinary team into an externally funded research center or equivalent will also be considered.
NOI (Required)
Deadline: November 15
Application Deadline: December 3
Previous winners cannot apply for new funds under the Exploratory Awards categories for five years.

Previous recipients of the IR awards are allowed to compete for new funding but must clearly demonstrate how the new proposal is different from the previous one.

Winning proposals are expected to be announced in mid-December. Application instructions, requirements, submission deadlines, and FAQs are available at the UCF InfoReady portal.