Opportunities for New and Junior Faculty
The following is a list of sponsors that offer specific funding programs for new and junior investigators who are at the rank of assistant professor or equivalent. This index is not exhaustive but does represent some of the agencies that offer awards specifically geared toward junior faculty.
Click on the name of the award to access the official announcement and related guidelines. You can also click on the funding agency to learn more about the organization that is supporting the award. Always use the official announcement when preparing a final application. Please note that these funding opportunities are available on an annual basis.
Federal Agencies
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Early Stage Investigator Policies, Next Generation Researchers Initiative, NIH Grants & Funding
The NIH Early Stage Investigator Policies page includes:
- Policy Summary
- NIH Director’s New Innovator Award (DP2)
- NIH Director’s Early Independence award (DP5)
Research Training and Career Development
Resources for early career researchers include:
National Science Foundation (NSF)
Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program | National Science Foundation
Deadline: mid July
Synopsis: The intent of this foundation-wide program is to provide stable support
in all NSF-supported disciplines to enable awardees to develop careers as outstanding
teacher-scholars. The minimum CAREER award, including indirect costs, will total $400,000
for the five-year duration with the following exception: proposers to the Biological
Sciences Directorate must submit budget requests for a minimum of $400,000 for the
five-year duration.
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Deadline: Varies by program area
Synopsis: The Food and Agricultural Science Enhancement (FASE) Grants component includes funding
for new investigators. A new investigator is defined as an individual who is beginning
their career, does not have an extensive scientific publication record, and has less
than five years postgraduate career-track experience. The new investigator may not
have received competitively awarded Federal research funds as Project Director with
the exception of pre- or postdoctoral grants or AFRI Seed Grants.
U.S. Department of Defense (DOD)
ONR Young Investigator Program, Office of Naval Research
Deadline: August/September
Synopsis: ONR’s YIP seeks to identify and support academic scientists and engineers who are
in their first or second full-time tenure-track or tenure-track-equivalent academic
appointment and who show exceptional promise for doing creative research. Typical
awards are $510,000 over a 36-month period of performance. Additional funding may
be requested up to $250,000 to cover equipment costs, testing, ship time, etc.
AFOSR Young Investigator Program, Air Force Office of Scientific Research
Deadline: Summer
Synopsis: The Air Force YIP supports scientists and engineers who have received Ph.D. or equivalent
degrees within the last seven years and show exceptional ability and promise for conducting
basic research. The objective is to foster creative basic research in science and
engineering; enhance early career development of outstanding young investigators;
and increase opportunities for the young investigator to recognize the Air Force mission
and related challenges in science and engineering. Most YIP awards are funded up to
$150,000 per year for three years. Exceptional proposals will be considered individually
for higher funding levels and longer duration.
Young Faculty Award, DARPA
Deadline: December
Synopsis: The YFA program objective is to identify and engage rising stars in junior research
positions, emphasizing those without prior DARPA funding, and expose them to DoD needs
and DARPA’s program development process.
Broad Agency Announcement - Young Investigator Program, Army Research Office
Deadline: Open
The ARO Young Investigator Program is included in the ARO Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for Fundamental Research. The objective of the YIP is to attract outstanding young university faculty members
to pursue fundamental research in areas relevant to the Army, to support their research
in these areas, and to encourage their teaching and research careers. This program
is open to U.S. citizens, U.S. Nationals, and Permanent Resident Aliens holding tenure-track
positions at U.S. universities and colleges, who have held their graduate degrees
(Ph.D. or equivalent) for fewer than five years at the time of application. YIP awards
are up to $120,000 per year for three years.
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
Early Career Research Program | Office of Science
Deadline: See details on program page
Synopsis: This program supports the development of individual research programs of outstanding
scientists early in their careers and stimulates research careers in the following
program areas: Advanced Scientific Computing Research, Basic Energy Sciences, Biological
and Environmental Research, Fusion Energy Sciences, High Energy Physics, Nuclear Physics,
Isotope R&D and Production, and Accelerator R&D and Production. No more than ten years
can have passed between the year the Principal Investigator’s Ph.D. was awarded and
the year the application was issued.
National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA)
New (Early Career) Investigator Program in Earth Science (ROSES program element)
Deadline: See details on program page
Synopsis: The NIP in Earth Science is designed to support outstanding scientific research and
career development of scientists and engineers at the early stage of their professional
careers. The program aims to encourage innovative research initiatives and cultivate
scientific leadership in Earth system science. A NIP proposal PI must be a U.S. citizen
or have lawful status of permanent residency, and be a recent Ph.D. recipient, defined
as having graduated on or after January 1 of the year that is no more than five years
before the issuance date of the ROSES NRA.
New Early Career Fellowship Program
Deadline: Varies
Synopsis: The Early Career Fellowship (ECF) program supports the development of individual
research programs of outstanding scientists early in their careers and stimulate s
research careers in the areas supported by the Planetary Sciences Division.
Nancy Grace Roman Technology Fellowships for Early Career Researchers
Deadline: Varies
Synopsis: The goals of the RTF program in Astrophysics are to provide early-career
researchers the opportunity to develop the skills necessary to lead astrophysics flight
instrument development projects; to develop innovative technologies for space astrophysics
that have the potential to enable major scientific breakthroughs; and to foster new
talent by putting early career instrument builders on a trajectory towards long-term
positions. To be eligible, PIs must have received a Ph.D. on or after January 1 of
a year that is no more than eight years before the issuance date of the ROSES NRA.
Early Career Faculty (ECF) (SpaceTech-REDDI), STMD Early Career Faculty
Deadline: Varies
Synopsis: NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate solicits proposals for innovative,
early-stage space technology research. The PI must be an untenured Assistant Professor
on the tenure track at the sponsoring U.S. university at the time of award. The PI
must be a U.S. citizen or have lawful status of permanent residency no later than
August 1 following the proposal submission deadline.
Non-Federal Agencies
Young Investigators Award | Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy
Deadline: Varies; applications are solicited every 2 years
Synopsis: The Fund for Discovery awards up to $500,000 over three years to young investigators
(tenure track assistant professors) conducting innovative exploratory research.
Next Gen Grants | American Association for Cancer Research
Deadline: varies by program
Synopsis: Funding initiative to stimulate highly innovative research from young investigators.
This grant mechanism is intended to promote and support creative, paradigm-shifting
cancer research that may not be funded through conventional channels.
Petroleum Research Fund Doctoral New Investigator Grants (DNI) | American Chemical Society
Deadline: early fall, mid-winter, and late spring
Synopsis: Award of $100,000 over two years for scientists and engineers who are within
the first three years of their first academic appointment.
Fellowships | American Council of Learned Societies
Deadline: September or October
Synopsis: Fellowships support research in all disciplines of the humanities and humanities-related
social sciences. The ultimate goal of the project should be a major piece of scholarly
work by the applicant. Awards provide up to $35,000 for assistant professor-level
investigators for six to twelve months of research.
Junior Faculty Award, Career Development Award| American Diabetes Association
Deadline: mid January and mid July
Synopsis: Junior Faculty support new investigators who are establishing their independence
in diabetes research; applicants can have any level of faculty appointment up through
assistant professor. Career Development Awards are designed to assist outstanding
assistant professor level faculty investigators in conducting diabetes-related research.
AFAR Research Grants | American Federation for Aging Research
Deadline: December
Synopsis: The major goal of this program is to assist in the development of the careers
of junior investigators committed to pursuing careers in the field of aging research.
Applicants must be in the first four years of a junior faculty appointment. Awards
are up to $75,000 for one or two years.
Centennial Fellowships | American Mathematical Association
Deadline: December 1
Synopsis: One-year fellowships awarded for excellence in mathematical research. The
stipend for 2009-2010 is expected to be $75,000, with an additional expense allowance
of about $7,500. Recipients shall have held the doctoral degree for at least three
years and not more than twelve years at the inception of the award.
Congressional Fellowship Program for Political Scientists | American Political Science Association
Deadline: December
Synopsis: Gives early to mid-career political scientists an opportunity to learn more
about Congress and the legislative process through direct participation. Fellows work
as full-time legislative aides in the House of Representatives or Senate. Applicants
must have completed a PhD in the past 15 years. Fellowships include a stipend of $38,000
for nine months.
Research Awards | American Society for Mass Spectrometry
Deadline: November 30
Synopsis: Academic scientists within four years of joining the tenure track faculty
or equivalent in a North American university are eligible for award of $35,000 for
research in mass spectrometry.
New Investigators Research Grant | American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation
Deadline: varies
Synopsis: New scientists earning their latest degree in communication sciences within
the last five years are eligible to compete for $5,000 grants to pursue research in
audiology or speech-language pathology.
Young Investigators Program| Beckman Foundation
Deadline: August
Synopsis: This award provides research support to the most promising young faculty
members in the early stages of their academic careers in the chemical and life sciences,
particularly to foster the invention of methods, instruments and materials that will
open up new avenues of research in science.
US National Awards for Young Scientists|Blavatnik
Requires Internal Limited Submission Deadline. Restricted to one faculty member in each of the three categories.
Synopsis: This award honors America's most innovative young faculty-rank scientists
and engineers. These awards celebrate past accomplishments and future potential of
young faculty members working in Life Sciences, Physical Sciences and Engineering,
Chemistry. Provides $250,000 in unrestricted funds
PATH Program |Burroughs Welcome Fund
Deadline: November
Synopsis: The Investigators in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease (PATH) award
provides $500,000 over five years to support accomplished investigators at the assistant
professor level to study pathogenesis.
Career Development Awards | Foundation Fighting Blindness
Deadline: March
Synopsis: The award is for junior investigators to pursue research to find the therapies
and cures for inherited retinal degenerative diseases. In general, each five-year
award will be for a total of $325,000. Clinical scientists possessing an MD, DO, or
equivalent foreign degree and who are in their first, second, or third year of a junior
faculty appointment are eligible.
Young Scholars Program | Foundation for Child Development
Deadline: Early November
Synopsis: Supports both basic and policy-relevant research about the early education,
health and well-being of children living in immigrant families from birth to age ten,
particularly those who are living in low-income families. Eligible researchers will
have earned their doctoral degrees within the last 15 years, and be full-time faculty
members. Three to four fellowships of up to $150,000 for use over one to three years
will be awarded.
Faculty Scholars Program|The Greenwall Foundation
Requires Internal Limited Submission Deadline. Restricted to two applicants from the University. Priority given to applicants
who have not been considered for tenure, and whose work will have an impact on public
policy, biomedical research, or clinical practice.
Synopsis: The Greenwall Faculty Scholars Program in Bioethics is a career development
award to enable junior faculty to carry out innovative bioethics research.
Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award | Health Effects Institute
Deadline: December
Synopsis: The award provides three years of funding for a small research project on
the health effects of air pollution to a new investigator at the assistant professor
or equivalent level.
Young Investigators’ Research Grants | Human Frontier Science Program
Deadline: March
Synopsis: Supports collaborative research in the life sciences involving biologists
together with scientists from other disciplines such as chemistry, physics, mathematics,
computer science and engineering. Grants are awarded to teams of researchers from
different countries, all of whom are within the first five years after obtaining an
independent laboratory (e.g., assistant professor, lecturer, or equivalent).
Research Funding | Infectious Diseases Society of America
Deadline: TBD
Synopsis: Various opportunities
Scholars in Health Policy Research | Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Deadline: October
Synopsis: Each year the program selects up to 12 highly qualified individuals for
two-year fellowships at one of three nationally prominent universities. The program
invites recent graduates of doctoral programs in economics, political science and
sociology, including junior faculty, to apply. The program will give preference to
applicants who have not previously worked extensively in health or health policy research.
Fellowship Awards in the Neurosciences | Esther A. and Joseph Klingenstein Fund
Deadline: January
Synopsis: Supports a young investigator in tenure track academic rank engaged in basic
or clinical research that may lead to a better understanding of epilepsy. The award
of $150,000 is payable over a three-year period.
Research Fellowship Program | Janet H. and C. Harry Knowles Foundation
Deadline: June for preproposal
Synopsis: Supports early career scholars engaged in critical research in education,
more specifically, those who can contribute to understanding recruitment, preparation,
induction, mentoring and/or retention of high quality mathematics and science teachers.
The award is $110,000, typically $55,000 per year for two years.
Fellowships | Lymphoma Research Foundation of America
Deadline: September
Synopsis: Research may be laboratory or clinic based, but relevant to the treatment,
diagnosis, or prevention of Hodgkin’s and/or non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Applicants must
have completed two years of their fellowship, or not more than two years as a junior
faculty instructor or assistant professor at the start of the award period. Provides
$50,000 for the first year and $55,000 for the second year.
McKnight Scholar Awards | McKnight Foundation
Deadline: January
Synopsis: These awards were established to encourage early-career neuroscientists
to focus on disorders of learning and memory. Applicants must demonstrate interest
in solving important problems in relevant areas of neuroscience, including the translation
of basic research to clinical neuroscience. Awards are $75,000 per year for three
years.
Young Investigator Award | Brain & Behavior Research Foundation
Deadline: July
Synopsis: One and two year awards up to $30,000 per year are provided to enable promising
investigators to either extend research fellowship training or begin careers as independent
research faculty. Basic and/or clinical investigators are supported, but research
must be relevant to schizophrenia, major affective disorders, or other serious mental
illnesses.
Young Investigators Award | National Ataxia Foundation
Deadline: September 1
Synopsis: Provides $50,000 per year for two years for research studies in the field
of Friedreich’s ataxia and Spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA 3). Applicants must
have a junior faculty appointment.
Career Development Award | National Hemophilia Foundation
Deadline: November for letter of intent
Synopsis: Funds studies at the subcellular, cellular, animal, or patient levels contributing
to a cure for bleeding disorders. Candidates must hold an MD, PhD, or equivalent degree,
with no more than six years of experience since completing doctoral training.
Young Investigator Grant Program | National Kidney Foundation
Deadline: December
Synopsis: Grants support research in the fields of nephrology, urology, or related
disciplines. Grants are for up to $50,000 for one year for faculty who are within
the first four years of their appointment. Candidates must be dues-paying members
of the National Kidney Foundation.
Harry Weaver Neuroscience Scholar Awards | National Multiple Sclerosis Society
Deadline: September
Synopsis: Supports candidates who have begun academic careers as independent investigatorsin
an area of the neurosciences related to multiple sclerosis. Maximum funding is $30,000
in the first year, increasing to $40,000 by the last year of the five-year award.
Cottrell Scholar Awards | Research Corporation
Deadline: September
Synopsis: Applicants should be tenure-track beginning faculty members in astronomy,
biochemistry, biophysics, chemistry, or physics. Eligibility is limited to those in
the third year after their first tenure-track appointment. Awards are in the amount
of $100,000.
Faculty Starter Grants | Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America Foundation
Deadline: September 1 for Informatics and Pharmacology/Toxicology; October 1 for Health
Outcomes and Pharmaceutics
Synopsis: Grants provide funding (usually $30,000 per year for two years) for individuals
at the rank of instructor or assistant professor.
Scholars Grants in Public Health | Pfizer, Inc.
Deadline: January
Synopsis: Grants of $130,000 each, paid over 2 years, support junior faculty within
2 years of appointment as an instructor, an assistant professor, or an equivalent
junior faculty rank employed by an accredited school/program of public health.
New Investigator Grant | Scleroderma Foundation
Deadline: September
Synopsis: Supports new investigators who hold faculty or equivalent positions and
who wish to pursue a career in research related to systemic sclerosis. Applicants
may request up to $50,000 for up to three years.
New Investigator Grant | Scoliosis Research Society
Deadline: October
Synopsis: This grant is specifically targeted to new investigators. The maximum award
is $25,000 for up to two years.
Research Fellowship|Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Deadline: September
Synopsis: This 2-year fellowship seeks to stimulate fundamental research by early-career
scientists and scholars of outstanding promise in recognition of distinguished performance
and a unique potential to make substantial contributions to their field.
External Faculty Fellowships | Stanford Humanities Center
Deadline: October
Synopsis: Junior fellowships for research projects in the humanities are for scholars
who will be at least three and no more than ten years beyond receipt of the PhD by
the start of their prospective fellowship year. Fellows are awarded stipends of up
to $60,000 and a housing and moving allowance of up to $15,000, dependent upon need.
Start-Up Grant Program | U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation
Deadline: November
Synopsis: Projects must have a strong element of cooperation between an Israeli and
an American scientist(s) and fall within the areas of research supported in that year
by the BSF. At least one of the principal investigators should have attained his/her
PhD, MD degree or equivalent, no more than seven years prior to submitting the proposal.
Grants-in-Aid | Whitehall Foundation
Deadline: January 15, April 15, and October 1 for letter of intent
Synopsis: Funds researchers at the assistant professor level in the life sciences.
The foundation is currently interested in basic research in neurobiology.
