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 ProgramAward CapsProposal DeadlineReviewAward NotificationStart Date
RESEARCH PLANNING & INFRASTRUCTURE
Instrumentation AwardMar 18, 2025March-AprilApril-MayMay
Shared Instrumentation Award
Preparation and matching funds for instrumentation grant submission
$250,000
Dean's Matching Fund
Instrument acquisition
No Cap
Institutional Training Planning AwardFeb 18, 2025March-AprilApril-MayMay
Institutional Training Planning Award
Preparation for institutional training grant submission
$100,000
Collaborative Research Planning AwardFeb 5, 2026March-AprilApril-MayMay
Small Program Award
Planning grant
$50,000
Large Program Award
Planning & proposal submisson
$100,000
RESEARCH
Zumberge Preliminary Studies Research AwardJan 15, 2025March-AprilApril-MayMay
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 AwardMar 4, 2025March-AprilApril-MayMay
Small Program Award
Seed funding for research
$50,000
Large Program Award
Seed funding for research
$250,000
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Mentorship AwardOct 16, 2025November-JanuaryFebruaryMarch
HHMI Mentorship Award
Research and mentoring leading to HHMI investigator application
$85,000
Ming Hsieh Institute Research AwardJan 29, 2025February-MarchJuneJuly-August
Pre-Clinical Study
Seed funding for research
$150,000
Translational Research Project
Seed funding for research
$300,000
Student Empowerment AwardMar 25, 2025March-AprilApril-MayMay
Innovation Prize
Seed funding for research
$15,000
Entrepreneurship
Seed funding for research
$15,000
Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) Research ProgramOct 9, 2025November-JanuaryFebruaryMarch
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 AwardOct 2, 2025November-JanuaryFebruaryMarch
SBIR/STTR Planning Award
Preparation & research for SBIR/STTR grant submission
$350,000
CREATIVITY & SCHOLARSHIP
Humanities & Humanistic Social Sciences AwardSep 23, 2025November-JanuaryFebruaryMarch
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 ScholarshipSep 25, 2025October-NovemberDecember
Associates Award
Highest honors the university can bestow on its members for their distinguished achievements
Call for Nominations

Thank you for your interest in the Office of Research Innovation award programs.

All award programs are currently on hold pending confirmation of our FY25 budget.

Subvention funds supporting ORI’s award programs are made at the highest level of the university. Once we have confirmed our FY25 budget, we will re-activate this website.

 

For information regarding the Associates Award nominations, please click here or contact rii@usc.edu.

Thank you for your patience.

Silvia

 

SILVIA DA COSTA, PH.D.

University of Southern California

Director, Research Initiatives and Infrastructure