Funding - Programs

Funding programs are administered by the Research Initiatives & Infrastructure (RII) office and align with the university’s strategic research priorities. For information on all research-related services offered by RII, please visit our homepage. Grant proposal applications must be submitted via RII’s Grant Portal.

For questions related to any of the funding opportunities or eligible expenses, or if you are experiencing technical issues with this website please contact rii@usc.edu. We are here to help!

Silvia da Costa, PhD
Director, Research Initiatives & Infrastructure

Funding Programs - At a Glance

Funding Program	Award Caps	Review	Award Notification	Start Date
RESEARCH & INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING
Instrumentation Award		April 17, 2024	May-June	June	August
Shared Instrumentation Award Preparation and matching funds for instrumentation grant submission	$250,000
Dean's Matching Fund Instrument acquisition	No Cap
Institutional Training Planning Award		Feb 25, 2024	March-April	June	August
Institutional Training Planning Award Preparation for institutional training grant submission	$100,000
Collaborative Research Planning Award		May 15, 2024	May-June	June	August
Small Program Award Planning grant	$50,000
Large Program Award Planning & proposal submisson	$100,000
RESEARCH
Zumberge Preliminary Studies Research Award		Feb 5, 2024	March-April	June	August
Large Program Award Seed funding for research	$100,000
STEM Program Award Seed funding for research	$50,000
DEI in Research Award Seed funding for research	$50,000
President’s Sustainability Initiative Award		March 18, 2024	April-May	June	August
Small Program Award Seed funding for research	$50,000
Large Program Award Seed funding for research	$250,000
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Mentorship Award		Oct 2, 2023	Oct-Nov	Nov-Dec	December
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Mentorship Award Research and mentoring leading to HHMI investigator application	$85,000
Ming Hsieh Institute Research Award		Jan 29, 2024	Feb-March	June	August
Pre-Clinical Study Seed funding for research	$150,000
Translational Research Project Seed funding for research	$300,000
Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) Research Program		Sept 4, 2023	Sep-Nov	Nov	December
Building GenAI Research Networks Seed funding for research	$100,000
GenAI Research Award Seed funding for research	$50,000
Collaborative GenAI Research Award Planning & proposal submission	$100,000
TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER
SBIR/STTR Planning Award		March 4, 2024	June	July - Aug	August
SBIR/STTR Planning Award Preparation & research for SBIR/STTR grant submission	$300,000
CREATIVITY & SCHOLARSHIP
Humanities & Humanistic Social Sciences Award		May 29, 2024	May-June	June	August
HHSS Scholars Award Creativity, Scholarship, & Excellence in the Humanities & Humanistic Social Sciences	$110,000
HHSS Initiative Award Creativity, Scholarship, & Excellence in the Humanities & Humanistic Social Sciences	$140,000
Associates Award for Creativity in Research and Scholarship		Sept 25, 2023	Oct-Nov	Dec
Associates Award for Creativity in Research and Scholarship Highest honors the university can bestow on its members for their distinguished achievements	Call for Nominations
SPECIAL SOLICITATION - RESEARCH (2023 ONLY)
Alternative Methods to Animal Research Award		Sept 11, 2023	Sept-Oct	Nov	December
Alternative Methods to Animal Research Award Seed funding for research	$125,000