Spring 2024 Mid-Career Faculty Small Grants Program Request for Proposals

Introduction

This small-grants program is designed to support Schools’ diversity plans, by advancing the career success of outstanding mid-career faculty who have received tenure for the first time in the previous seven years, have made a recent, significant contribution to their field, and who contribute to the diversity goals of the University by their research, teaching, and mentoring activities.

Learn More

Meet the Previous Mid-Career Faculty Awardees

Applications will be accepted for:

  • Support of new or ongoing research and scholarship
  • Seed funding for innovative research for which external funding would be difficult to obtain
  • Curricular development projects that focus on issues of diversity

Requests for proposals occur during the spring semester annually. The maximum award is $37,500 total over three years.

Deans and Department Chairs should alert eligible faculty members about this RFP. Given the limited number of slots, Schools are strongly encouraged to develop a process for determining which mid-career faculty proposals will be prioritized and put forward in this round. Departments planning to nominate a mid-career faculty member should coordinate with their Dean. Proposals must be submitted with the support and sign-off by the School’s Dean.

Eligibility

Support is intended for mid-career faculty who have strong support from their Departments or School on the Morningside campus. In most cases, this refers to tenured faculty members who have received tenure for the first time in the previous seven years. Some Schools may choose to nominate clinical faculty or professors of practice, provided that these faculty members have recently been promoted, hold a full-time professorial appointment, have primary involvement in the conduct of original scholarship and research, and that their Departments are committed to their long-term development. The applicant should also have a commitment to diversity as demonstrated in their research, teaching, or mentoring activities.

NOTE: Faculty members who have previously received this award are not eligible to apply.

Scope of Commitments and Budget

The Office of the Provost will provide up to $37,500 per successful mid-career faculty applicant. The typical project period will be 1-3 years, although projects lasting longer will be considered. The number of awards made will be contingent on the number and quality of proposals received, as well as the amount requested and allocated per proposal.

Funds may be used for purposes that directly support a mid-career faculty member's new or ongoing research and scholarship, seed funding for innovative research for which external funding would be difficult to obtain, and/or curricular development projects that focus on issues of diversity. Additionally, funds may be used to support participation in professional or leadership development programming that enhances the mid-career faculty member's overall career development. If requesting funds to participate in professional or leadership development programming, the mid-career faculty member must include a brief statement addressing how the program will contribute to their overall career trajectory. 

Budget items may include, but are not limited to, research assistance, computational resources, procurement of research materials, professional or leadership development program costs (up to $7,500), equipment, travel to scholarly meetings or to conduct research, and supplies. The funds may not be used as salary support for the applicant, support for an unpaid leave of absence, summer salary, or housing supplement. Office of the Provost funds should not be assessed administrative fees.

Funding Application Requirements

The application package must include: 

  • School/Department contact details, with the necessary signatures 
  • Letter of support from the Dean (and Department Chair, if applicable) that includes the following (each section denoted with a separate header):
    • Qualifications, accomplishments, and future promise of the applicant
    • School’s/Department’s long-term commitment to the applicant
    • How the proposed project will further the career goals of the applicant (e.g. progress toward promotion or generating additional funding from other sources)
    • How the proposed project and/or applicant contributes to the diversity mission of the University/School/Department
    • Support efforts the School/Department is undertaking to advance the applicant’s professional career development
    • The applicant’s commitment to diversity as demonstrated in their research, teaching, or mentoring activities
  • Applicant’s proposal (not to exceed 3 pages) describing:
    • Planned project and anticipated outcomes
    • How the project will further the career goals of the applicant
      • NOTE: The proposal should be written in such a way that it is understandable to an interdisciplinary review panel
  • Budget and budget narrative, to include explanation of why central funds, as opposed to School, Departmental, or external funds, are needed for the planned activity 
  • Applicant’s curriculum vitae

Selection Criteria

A committee will review the applications and make recommendations to the Provost. Attention will be given to supporting applicants from Schools where the need to enhance diversity is most acute. Proposals will be judged according to the following criteria:

  • Scholarly excellence of the applicant
  • Quality of the proposed project
  • Potential for this award to have a notable impact on a candidate’s career success
  • Potential for the proposed work and/or to contribute to the diversity mission of the University, by advancing the career success of a faculty member in a department where the composition of the faculty is not reflective of the composition of the national pool of qualified applicants
  • Support efforts the School/Department is undertaking to advance the professional career development of the applicant
  • The applicant’s commitment to diversity as demonstrated in their research, teaching, or mentoring activities

Reporting Requirements for Awardees

A report should be submitted to the Office of the Provost at the end of the term of the grant. The report should include a summary of accomplishments (activities and outcomes); final budget report summarizing how funds were expended; and additional supporting materials (for example, publications, reports or conference presentations). Further details on reporting requirements will be provided at the time awards are made. Acceptance of the award indicates a willingness to be featured on our website and in other Columbia University publications. Departments and Schools are asked to inform the Office of the Provost of newsworthy announcements related to work supported by the Office of the Provost Grants Program for Mid-Career Faculty.

Submission Instructions and Deadline

The entire application must be submitted via the online submission form.

If you need to share the application-in-progress with others in your academic unit, please follow these steps:

  1. Open the application
  2. Click “Save” at the bottom of the page
  3. Select “Get shareable link”
  4. Paste and email the link to yourself and the corresponding colleague(s)

The submission deadline is Tuesday, March 5, 2024. Notifications will be made by mid-April.

If you have any questions during the submission period, please contact our office at [email protected].