Dear Faculty,

I am pleased to share in the messaging about a new early-career research excellence award program being funded by UCOP. The program is open to Assistant Professors, Assistant Professors of Teaching, and Assistant Professors in Residence. Selected awardees will receive a one-time $50,000 allocation to support their proposed research plan and associated allowable activities during the upcoming academic year.

Each campus will use a local selection committee to nominate up to ten faculty for consideration based on confirmation of their eligibility and determination of good standing, and an internal application and selection process of their design. The local selectin committee at UCR consists of the VPAP, VCDEI, and VCRED.   

Up to 60 awards will be made systemwide on an annual basis. A systemwide selection committee, that includes an element of external review, will identify the top two applicants from each campus, who will receive the first 20 awards. The remaining awards will be made without regard to campus affiliation.

The due date for proposals is November 1, 2025. More details on how to submit your proposal for review are forthcoming within the next couple of weeks. This early notice is to provide you with as much time as possible to prepare your proposal according to the components listed below.  

All proposals should significantly advance an applicant’s career by helping to enable the completion of a milestone accomplishment (first book, major series of experiments, article(s) in major journals, a museum exhibit, etc). Besides that, they should be important contributions to the advancement of knowledge and/or significant creative achievements. The final selection will also bear in mind:

• Projects for which access to extramural funding is generally limited.
• Projects for which the federal funding environment has changed, making federal grants difficult to obtain or for which grants have been lost.
• Projects for which access to extramural funding may prove challenging because they entail a new research direction for the applicants and, thus, some proof of concept or establishing a track record in the area is needed.

For 2025-26 awards, funds should be spent by June 30, 2027, with the possibility of a 12-month no-cost extension approved by the campus Provost or a designee. At the conclusion of each annual funding cycle, a final report will be required from awardees.

Proposal Components

1. Project Summary: A brief overview of the project (1700 characters, approx. 250 words)
2. Project Description: A statement of the proposed research, including the significance of the project to relevant scholarship (7000 characters, approx. 1000 words)
3. Career Significance: The goals for the award term and the impact of its completion (a) the project outlined in the Project Description and (b) the career of the applicant (3400 characters, approx. 500 words)
4. Budget and Budget Narrative: Details regarding the use of proposed funding, for example, preparation of research articles/books, PI salary, visits to archives or field sites, support for graduate students/post-docs, development of alternative funding sources for existing research, etc. (3400 characters, approx. 500 words).
5. Optional: If applicable, please describe how any of the following pertain to your project (1700 characters, approx. 250 words):
   • A project for which access to extramural funding is generally limited.
   • A project for which the federal funding environment has changed, making federal grants difficult to obtain, or for which grants have been lost.
   • A project for which access to extramural funding may prove challenging because they entail a new research direction for the applicants and, thus, some proof of concept or establishing a track record in the area is needed.
6. Related Awards and Grants: Please list prior and current grants/awards that support this project.
7. Abbreviated CV (10 pages max)
8. Budget (1 page max.)
9. References Cited (1 page)

More to come on this soon.