This monthly newsletter features funding opportunities compiled by the Research Development team in the Office of Research. For a more comprehensive listing of opportunities, we encourage researchers to use the Pivot-RP database.
Questions or feedback? Email research@bu.edu.
Grant Spotlight
Gates Foundation Grand Challenges in Maternal, Child Nutrition, and Women’s Health (12/16)
The Gates Foundation Global Grand Challenges are a family of initiatives fostering innovation to solve global health and development problems.
- The Accelerating Innovation in Vaginal Formulations in Support of Women’s Health Grand Challenge focuses on prevention and treatment of female-specific conditions.
- The Accelerating Development of Innovative, Exceptionally Low-Cost Maternal and Child Nutrient Ingredients and Products Grand Challenge focuses on maternal and child nutrition in low- and middle-income countries.
Full applications for both Grand Challenges are due Tuesday, December 16 by 11:30 pm PST.
BU Ignition Awards (12/1)
Faculty Entrepreneurship, a new initiative under Technology Development, is accepting pre-proposals for the 2026 cycle of the BU Ignition Awards through Monday, December 1. This internal funding program supports faculty in advancing research innovations toward real-world application and commercialization.
Limited Submissions
Med/STEM
NIH High-End Instrumentation Grant & Shared Instrumentation Grant (12/2)
Up to $2 million to purchase high-priced research instruments for shared use across biomedical research. Apply by Tuesday, December 2 via InfoReady Review.
STEM/Soc Sci
RRF Foundation for Aging Research Grants – August Cycle 2026 (12/8)
Funding to identify interventions, policies, and practices to improve the well-being of older adults and/or their caregivers, including interventional trials, translational studies, health services, and policy research. Apply by Monday, December 8 via InfoReady Review.
Limited submissions are funding opportunities that limit the number of applications an institution may put forward. Faculty may not apply directly for an opportunity without institutional endorsement. All current competitions can be found at bu.infoready4.com.
Other Upcoming Deadlines
Grants – STEM & Medicine
- The Grass Foundation Fellowship supporting early-career research at the Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory (12/1)
- McKnight Foundation for Neuroscience Scholar Award for early-career research (12/1)
- Microsoft Research Fellowship for opportunities to collaborate on AI research challenges that advance scientific understanding, drive innovation, and deliver societal benefit (12/2)
- Paralyzed Veterans of America Education Foundation Grant for research on spinal cord injury or disease (12/2)
- Health Resources in Action Deborah Munroe Noonan Memorial Research Fund to improve the lives of children and adolescents with disabilities (12/4)
- Rita Allen Foundation Scholars Award in Pain for early-career molecular biologists (12/10)
- Massachusetts Life Sciences Center Neuroscience Consortium to fund pre-clinical neuroscience research (12/15)
- Simons Foundation Fellows-to-Faculty Award for early-career researchers studying autism and neuroscience (1/14)
- Huntington’s Disease Foundation Transformative Research Award for collaborative research teams (letter of intent due 1/14)
- Great Lakes Fishery Commission Research Grants for cross-cutting research (1/15)
- Simons Foundation Scientific Software Research Faculty Award for new faculty in mathematics, astronomy, or theoretical physics (letter of intent due 1/21)
- American Epilepsy Society Junior Investigator Award (1/22)
- Health Effects Institute Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award for early-career investigators interested in the health impacts of air pollution (1/23)
- Foundation for Food & Agricultural Research Rapid Outcomes from Agricultural Research to support research on emerging or unanticipated threats to the U.S. food supply or agricultural systems (rolling)
- Daiichi-Sankyo Open Innovation Call for Proposals across six research areas in medicine and biomedical science (rolling)
- Cisco Research Open Call for Proposals across AI, security, and quantum networks (rolling)
- NVIDIA Accelerating Innovation in Academia (rolling quarterly)
Grants – Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences, and Education
- The Teagle Foundation Cornerstone: Learning for Living Initiative to revitalize the role of humanities in general education (concept paper due 12/1)
- Microsoft Research Fellowship for opportunities to collaborate on AI research challenges that advance scientific understanding, drive innovation, and deliver societal benefit (12/2)
- Aspen Institute & Pivotal Ventures Workplace Innovation Now Challenges to discover and scale ideas that will help eliminate barriers for women in the workplace (12/11)
- American-Scandinavian Foundation Norwegian Visiting Lectureship for researchers in public policy, conflict resolution, environmental studies, multiculturalism, or healthcare (1/1)
- Louisville Institute First Book Grant for Scholars of Color for early-career, pre-tenure researchers interested in religious trends and movements (1/15)
- National Bureau of Economic Research Call for Proposals on Advancing Economic Measurement to promote research on the measurement of prices, output, labor market outcomes, and technology (1/15)
- Social Science Research Council African Peacebuilding & Developmental Dynamics Research Fellowship (1/16)
- Library Company of Philadelphia Short-Term Fellowships (1/16)
- Herzog August Bibliothek Fellowship Research Grants for medieval and early modern studies (1/31)
- Wake Forest University Educating Character Initiative for developing campus moral, civic, and intellectual character (letter of inquiry 2/20)
Nomination Opportunities
- Union of the German Academy of Sciences and Humanities Bavarian Pioneer Awardfor communications technology (11/30)
- Gruber Foundation Prizes in Genetics, Neuroscience, and Cosmology (12/15)
Reach out to the Foundation Relations team member for your academic unit and Industry Engagement for support with foundation and industry opportunities, respectively. All proposals for external funding must be submitted to Sponsored Programs at least five business days before the sponsor deadline.
Events
NSF Broader Impacts in a Different Climate (12/11)
Join Research Development for an interactive panel discussion on how National Science Foundation (NSF) reviewers are approaching broader impacts in today’s shifting funding climate. The virtual webinar will be held on Thursday, December 11 from 12-1 pm. Register on the Office of Research website.
Community Voices: Building Stronger Partnerships Between Academia and Community (12/12)
Join an upcoming event from BU’s College of Arts and Sciences Research Office, which will bring the BU research community together with prominent leaders from two Boston community organizations.
This session will highlight:
- Community organization experiences working with academia
- Best practices for building trust and equity in research collaborations
- Lessons on how academia can better support and learn from community expertise
The event will take place on December 12 from 1-3 pm in the Wheelock Auditorium at 2 Silber Way, Room 130. Register here.
Resources
Information & Updates on Federal Actions
The Office of Research has created a page of resources, updates, and frequently asked questions about the latest developments impacting federal funding. As of now, research should continue as planned. The University will continue to monitor and share information relevant to researchers on that webpage. For award-specific questions, Sponsored Programs (ospera@bu.edu) remains the best point of contact.
Foundation Funding Tables
BU Foundation Relations now compiles foundation grants by category, including neuroscience, education, environment and sustainability, biomedical and life sciences, and more.
BU Proposal Library
The Office of Research curates a proposal library, organized by funder and grant component, as a resource for researchers preparing grant applications. We are currently seeking successful faculty proposals to the following funders:
- Carnegie Corporation
- Ford Foundation
- Gates Foundation
- Schmidt Futures
- Simons Foundation
- Spencer Foundation
We are also looking to add successful PhD and postdoc proposals for any grant. Please send your proposals to research@bu.edu.
Pivot-RP Database
BU offers all faculty and staff a free subscription to Pivot-RP, a database updated daily with a wide variety of federal, non-federal, foundation, and private funding opportunities in every discipline. With the BU subscription, members can save search criteria and receive weekly updates on new and upcoming funding opportunities. Learn how to set up your account to get started on the Office of Research website.
More Funding & Grants