Below is a listing of funding opportunities for new/young faculty investigators. Click here to download an Excel version of this list. Updated November 2018.

Also see Hanover Research’s Early Career Calendar.

* indicates a funding opportunity from a private foundation or corporation. Please contact Katherine Kornfeld (katherine.kornfeld@wustl.edu) before applying.

Department of Defense
Default image

Young Faculty Award

DARPA

  • Deadline:
    • Executive summary: September
    • Full proposal: November
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Must be a US citizen, permanent resident, or foreign national at a US institution. Applicant must be a tenure-track Assistant/Associate Professor; must be within 3 years of their tenure clock/appointment start date at a US institution by the full proposal deadline. Previous YFA Awardees are not eligible.
  • Funding: 24 month base period with a maximum of $500,000; 12 month option period with a maximum of $500,000
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Fuzhong Zhang
Default image

Young Investigator Program

Office of Naval Research

  • Deadline: Information for FY2020 program has not been released
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Must be a US citizen, national or permanent resident holding a first or second full-time tenure-track faculty position; additional eligibility requirements for FY2020 program has not been released
  • Funding: $500,000 for 24 months; option for up to $250,000 for an additional 12 months
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Fuzhong Zhang, Vijay Ramani, Katharine Flores
Default image

Young Investigator Program

Air Force Office of Scientific Research

  • Deadline: July (white papers in May)
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Must be a US citizen, national, or permanent resident employed on a full-time basis and hold a regular position
  • Funding: $150,000 per year for 3 years
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Jr-Shin Li, Fuzhong Zhang, Shinung Ching, Brendan Juba
Default image

Young Investigator Program

Army Research Office

  • Deadline: Proposals may be submitted at any time
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: US citizens, nationals, and permanent resident aliens holding tenure-track positions who have held their graduate degrees (PhD or equivalent) for fewer than 5 years at the time of application
  • Funding: $120,000 per year for 3 years
Department of Energy
Default image

Early Career Research Program

Office of Science

  • Deadline:
    • Pre-proposal: February
    • Full proposal: April
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Untenured Assistant Professors on the tenure track and untenured Associate Professors on the tenure track. Must have received PhD within the past 10 years. PIs who have received awards previously under the Office of Science Early Career Research Program are not eligible.
  • Funding: $750,000 over 5 years
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Yixin Chen
Default image

Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards

Oak Ridge Associated Universities

  • Deadline:
    • Funder: January
    • Internal Selections: November
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Open to full-time Assistant Professors at ORAU member institutions within 2 years of their initial tenure-track appointment at the time of application
  • Funding: $5,000 for 1 year. Institution is required to match with at least an additional $5,000
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Rohan Mishra, Fuzhong Zhang, John Fortner, Yinjie Tang, JT Shen
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Default image

Early Career Faculty (ECF) Award

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

  • Deadlines:
    • Notice of intent: February
    • Proposal: March
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: PI must be an untenured Assistant Professor on the tenure track as of award date and must be a US citizen or have lawful permanent residency status no later than August 1 following proposal submission deadline. May not be a current or former recipient of a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers or an STRG Program ECF award.
  • Funding: maximum limit of $600,000 for 3 years
National Institutes of Health
Default image

NIBIB Trailblazer Award for New and Early Stage Investigators R21

National Institutes of Health

  • Deadline: February, June, and October
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Has not previously competed successfully as PD/PI for a substantial NIH independent research award and is within 10 years of completing his/her terminal research degree
  • Funding: $400,000 direct costs over a maximum 3-year funding period. No more than $200,000 may be requested in any single year.
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Amit Pathak
National Science Foundation
Default image

CISE CRII

Computer and Information Science and Engineering Research Initiation Initiative (National Science Foundation)

  • Deadline: August
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Hold a primary appointment in computer and/or information science and/or engineering, or in a related field of computation or data science, be untenured, and be in the first 3 years of a tenure-track or research science or education position. As of the submission deadline, PI may not have received any other grants or contracts in the PI role from any department, agency or institution of the federal government. May submit 2 times and may not submit in the same calendar year as submission of CAREER application.
  • Funding: Up to $175,000 for up to 24 months
Default image

Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program

National Science Foundation

  • Deadline: July
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: PI must hold a doctoral degree by the submission deadline date in a field supported by NSF, hold a tenure-track position as Assistant Professor (or equivalent) as of October 1 after submission, be untenured until October 1 following the deadline, and have not previously received a CAREER award; may only submit 3 times
  • Funding: Must submit a budget request for a minimum of $500,000 for the 5 year duration
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Young-Shin Jun, Jr-Shin Li, Tao Ju, Jung-Tsung Shen, Lan Yang, Sanmay Das, Tae Seok Moon, Yingjie Tang, Caitlin Kelleher, Shantanu Chakrabartty, Yatsutaka Furukawa, John Fortner, Rajan Chakrabarty, Amit Pathak, Srikanth Singamaneni, Brent Williams, Fuzhong Zhang, Barani Raman, Kunal Agrawal, Princess Imoukhuede, Jeremy Buhler, Christopher Gill, Chenyang Lu, Yevgeniy Vorobeychik, William Yeoh, ShiNung Ching, Matthew Lew, Vijay Ramani, Katharine Flores
Non-Federal Agencies/ Private Funding
Default image

Agilent Early Career Professor Award*

Agilent

  • Deadline:
    • Internal Selections: November
    • Nominations: February
    • Final application: May
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Professors who completed their PhDs within 10 years of awarding year; research must align with annual focus published on website
  • Funding: $100,000 over 2 years in unrestricted funds
Default image

American Cancer Society Institutional Research Grant*

Awarded through WUSTL Siteman Cancer Center

  • Deadline: September
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Beginning investigators who have no national peer-reviewed research grant support and who are conducting cancer research pilot projects to obtain preliminary results that will enable them to compete successfully for national research grants.
  • Funding: $30,000 for 1 year, non-renewable
Default image

Beckman Young Investigator Program*

Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation

  • Deadline (Letter of Intent): between June and September
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Candidate must be citizen or permanent resident of the US at the time of application. Must be within the first 3 years of a tenure-track position. May not apply for award more than 2 times. Investigator can have no more than $225,000 in direct, annualized external funding grants during any BYI Program Year (August – July) at time of application.
  • Funding: Projects are normally funded for 4 years in the range of $600,000 over the term of the project.
Default image

Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists*

The Blavatnik Family Foundation

  • Deadline:
    • Internal Selection: August
    • Nominations to Funder: November
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: The nominee must: 1) Be 42 years of age or younger, 2) Hold a doctorate degree, 3) Currently hold a faculty position at an invited institution, 4) Currently conduct research as a principal investigator in one of the disciplinary categories in Life Science, Physical Sciences & Engineering, or Chemistry.
  • Funding: $250,000 in unrestricted funds
Default image

Career Development Award*

American Heart Association

  • Deadline: October
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: At the time of application, must hold a PhD. At the time of award, must hold a faculty position (up to and including Assistant Professor). No more than 4 years may have elapsed since the first faculty appointment. Please see application guidelines for citizenship requirement.
  • Funding: $77,000 per year for 3 years
Default image

Damon Runyon-Dale F. Frey Award for Breakthrough Scientists*

Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation

  • Deadline: July
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Damon Runyon Fellows in the fourth year of their Fellowship or who have terminated their Fellowship early to accept an independent academic faculty position or other non-profit funding
  • Funding: $100,000 paid over 1 year and to be expended within 2 years of the initial award date
Default image

Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award*

Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation

  • Deadline: July
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Tenure-track Assistant Professors within first 4 years of obtaining their initial Assistant Professor position. Applicants are expected to commit a minimum of 80% of their time to conducting research. Applicants may apply no more than 2 times.
  • Funding: Stage 1 award will be for 2 years at $150,000 per year, with the opportunity for up to 2 additional years of funding.
Default image

Faculty Recruitment/Scholar Awards*

Children’s Discovery Institute

  • Deadline:
    • Letter of Intent: February 1 or August 1
    • Full Proposal: April 1 or October 15
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Open to all WUSTL faculty members, but must be nominated by department chair
  • Funding: $300,000 total costs over a 5-year period
Default image

Grants for New Investigators*

Mallinckrodt Foundation

  • Deadline: 
    • Internal Selections: November
    • Funder: January
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Tenure-track faculty in the first through fourth years of their position. Must hold an MD and/or PhD. Applicants with current R01 funding should not apply.
  • Funding: $60,000 per year for up to 3 years
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Amit Pathak
Default image

Informatics Research Starter Grants*

Phrma Foundation

  • Deadline: September
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Tenure-track Assistant Professors (or research-track Research Assistant Professors) with no significant extramural support
  • Funding: $100,000 for 1 year
Default image

Johnson & Johnson WiSTEM2D*

Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, Manufacturing, and Design

  • Deadline:
    • Internal Selections: August
    • Funder: September
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Non-tenured female Assistant Professors working in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Manufacturing, and Design. See website for degree requirements.
  • Funding: $150,000 for a 3-year term
Default image

Moore Inventor Fellows*

Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

  • Deadline: 
    • Internal Selections: November
    • Funder: March
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Faculty or staff within 10 years of receiving the terminal degree in their field
  • Funding: $200,000 per year for 3 years (see website for additional details)
Default image

Packard Fellowships for Science and Engineering*

David and Lucile Packard Foundation

  • Deadline:
    • Internal Selections: November
    • Nominations: March
    • Applications: April
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Candidates must be withing the first 3 years of their faculty careers.
  • Funding: $175,000 per year for 5 years
Default image

Petroleum Research Fund Doctoral New Investigator Grants (DNI)*

American Chemical Society

  • Deadline: March
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Faculty members who are within the first 3 years of their first academic appointment at the rank of Assistant Professor. Must be eligible to serve as the formal, official supervisor of graduate students in graduate degree programs. May only apply 3 times.
  • Funding: $110,000 for a 2-year period
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: John Fortner
Default image

Pew Scholars Program in the Biomedical Sciences*

The Pew Charitable Trusts

  • Deadline:
    • Internal Selections: TBA
    • Funder: October
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Candidates must have been awarded a doctorate in the biomedical sciences, medicine, or a related field. Nominees must hold full-time appointments at the rank of Assistant Professor. Candidates must have been in appointment for less than 3 years. Candidates may be nominated by their institution 2 times in total.
  • Funding: $75,000 per year for 4 years
Default image

Robertson Neuroscience Investigator Awards*

NYSCF Investigator Program

  • Deadline: February
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Must hold a MD, PhD, or D Phil; be within 5 years of starting a faculty position on June 1, 2020
  • Funding:$1,500,000 over 5 years
Default image

Searle Scholars Program*

  • Deadline:
    • Internal Selections: April
    • Funder: September
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Pursuing independent research career in biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, immunology, neuroscience, pharmacology, and related areas in chemistry, medicine, and the biological sciences. Faculty appointment at the Assistant Professor level within 2 years of July 1 of the deadline year. Must be their first tenure-track position at an invited institution.
  • Funding: $100,000 per year for 3 years
Default image

Simons Investigators: Mathematical Modeling of Living Systems*

Simons Foundation

  • Deadline:
    • Internal Selections: August
    • Funder: October
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Previous Simons Investigators are ineligible; must be in early stages of an academic career and within 10 years of the start of his/her first faculty position
  • Funding: $100,000 per year for 5 years
Default image

Sloan Research Fellowships*

Alfred P. Sloan Foundation

  • Deadline: 
    • Internal Selections: TBA
    • Funder: September
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Candidates must hold a tenure-track position and hold a PhD in chemistry, computational or evolutinary molecular biology, computer science, economics, mathematics, neuroscience, ocean sciences, physics, or a related field. Candidate’s most recent PhD must have been awarded on or after September 1, 2012.
  • Funding: $70,000 for the 2-year period
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Caitlin Kelleher
Default image

V Scholar Grant*

V Foundation

  • Deadline:
    • Internal Selections: November
    • Funder: May
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: Yes
  • Eligibility: Junior faculty with at least 2 years of post-doctoral fellowship training. Must hold a tenure-track position and have been appointed to their first full-time Assistant Professorship within the last 5 years and have not been promoted to Associate Professor. Must be a US citizen or permanent legal resident. May not apply if a PI or Co-PI of an R01 or equivalent.
  • Funding: $100,000 per year for 2 years
Default image

Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award*

Health Effects on Air Pollution, Health Effects Institute

  • Deadline:
    • Preliminary application: April
    • Full application: August
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Assistant Professors (or equivalent level) with 2 – 7 years of research experience after earning their terminal degree
  • Funding: $200,000 per study for up to 2 studies over 3 years
Default image

Young Investigators’ Grants*

Human Frontier Science Program

  • Deadline:
    • Initiate online application: March 18, 2019
    • Letter of intent: March 28, 2019
  • Internal Selection/ Limited Submission: No
  • Eligibility: Awarded to international teams of researchers, all of whom are within the first 5 years after obtaining an independent laboratory, but must have obtained their first doctoral degree not longer than 10 years before the deadline for submission of the letter of intent. See guidelines for more instructions about team composition.
  • Funding: Up to $450,000 per year for 3years
  • McKelvey Faculty Awardees: Fuzhong Zhang, Rohit Pappu (both awarded in main category, not Young Investigators)