Request Research Assistance (UCHRSS)

The University Committee on Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences (UCRHSS) provides small grants to eligible faculty members in the Humanities and Social Sciences to support their research and scholarly work. Grants are made for a great variety of purposes and the Committee tries to make it as easy as possible to apply for support.Among the most frequent purposes are:

  • Travel and cost of living support for research away from home
  • Student research assistants
  • Subvention of publication

The University Committee on Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences (UCRHSS) is a faculty executive committee appointed by the Dean of the Faculty. The UCRHSS administers several funds described below which provide assistance for scholarship and research to eligible members. Specific eligibility criteria must be met to qualify for support and all expenses must have a valid business purpose. The Executive Committee (EC) meets two times a year to consider grant requests of more than $700. The EC Secretary may authorize grants of up to $700 at any time throughout the year depending upon the availability of funds. Requests for more than $700 in support of research to be undertaken during the academic year should be submitted in time for the Fall meeting. Similar requests in support of research to be undertaken during the summer should be submitted in time for the Spring meeting. Projects to be undertaken in the early fall of the next academic year and prior to the Fall meeting, should be submitted in time for the Spring meeting. To be eligible to apply for the Spring meeting, the applicant must continue to serve in an eligible full-time rank in the following academic year.

Who is Eligible

Full time, non-visiting, Professors, Associate Professors, Assistant Professors, Emeritus faculty, Instructors, Senior Lecturers, Lecturers and members of the Society of Fellows.

Form:

UCRHSS: Request Form for Research Assistance

Funds Administered by UCRHSS

The UCRHSS administers several funds described below and strongly encourages you to apply directly to one of the funds.

  • University Research Fund

    This fund can provide limited assistance for scholarship and research.

  • Anonymous, Undergraduate Research Assistants in Humanities and Social Sciences Fund

    Support from this fund is restricted to undergraduate research assistants only. The Committee encourages you to consider utilizing undergraduate research assistants for your research project by applying for this fund.

    The proposal and award must meet the following criteria:

    A student holding a research assistantship supported by the Anonymous Fund may be paid for doing as many as, but no more than, 320 hours of research assistance in an academic year and for as many as, but not more than, 520 hours of research during the summer. The hourly rate for research assistance must be finalized with Student Employment through their new hiring system called JobX prior to submitting a request to the Committee. Eligibility for an assistantship supported by the Fund shall normally be limited to students who are candidates for the degree of Bachelor of Arts at Princeton.

  • William Hallam Tuck ’12 Memorial Fund

    Requests for support from the Tuck Fund must include a description of how your work abroad will be incorporated into your instructional activities. The fund can be used to provide resources to “faculty members who desire to travel abroad to enhance their knowledge of their teaching capabilities. Consideration is also given to those members working in the study of developing countries and applying their skills to helping those countries.”

Deadlines and Award Notification

Deadline Date Meeting Anticipated Award Notification date
October 15th Fall December 1st
March 15th Spring May 1st

If the deadline date falls on a weekend, the due date will be the next business day. Applications received after the deadline date may be deferred to the next meeting of the EC. Applications for under $700 may be submitted at any time. All department applications over $700 should be submitted at the same time using the DOF dropbox. To submit documents to the Dean of the Faculty:

Application Guidelines

1. Requests for grants should be submitted on application forms available on the Dean of the Faculty website. The application should be completed in detail and must be submitted to the chair of your department for his/her endorsement. Requests without a chair’s endorsement will not be considered by the EC. The chair should submit all applications at one time along with the summary memo requested by the EC.

2. All applications must include the following sections and should be limited to 4 – 6 pages. 

a. Title and description of the project
b. Results from previous grants
c. The following items must be addressed in your proposal:

i.  Present state of the project
ii.  Probable duration of the project in its current phase
iii.  How you are utilizing your discretionary research fund for the current year
iv.  The amount of your discretionary research fund available to support the proposal

d. Endorsement by the department chair
e. Other sources of support (see #3 below)
f. Proposed budget

3. Your application must include details related to other sources of support to which you have applied or have already received a commitment of support from. Applicants are expected to fully explore other sources of support, both inside and outside the University and including your department, before requesting support from the UCHRSS, particularly in connection with projects requiring sizable expenditures. This should include work-study funds for research assistance. The EC is favorably disposed to match departmental support and grants to complement other support will be made whenever possible.

Specifically, the EC is interested to know if your application has been submitted to the following sources and in some cases may refer your application to these sources for consideration prior to review by the EC or in lieu of review by the EC.

a.   250th Anniversary Fund for Innovation in Undergraduate Education (Dean of the College)
b.   Barr Ferree Foundation Publication Fund (Art & Archaeology)
c.   Global Collaborative Networks Fund (Council on International Teaching and Research)
d.   PIIRS Research Communities (Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies)
e.   Stanley J. Seeger Fellowships for Research in Greece (Program in Hellenic Studies)

4. In general, lower priority will be assigned to repeated requests for support of what is essentially the same phase of the same research project. However, the EC recognizes the complex needs of long-term projects. The scope of such projects should be outlined in the initial request for support so that the EC can gauge the extent of support it may be able to provide over time. By the same token, requests for additional support of a multi-phased project must include a detailed statement that outlines what was accomplished during the earlier grant phases and how the new proposal differs from previous phases.

5. The UCRHSS will not consider:

a. Requests for archaeological projects.
b. A new application when the applicant has not submitted the reports on previously completed grants.
c. An application from a member who will not continue to serve in an eligible full-time rank in the following academic year. Eligible ranks are listed in the ‘Who is Eligible’ section of these guidelines.
d. More than one research project per applicant per meeting.
e. Any research project that is part of a doctoral dissertation prior to the completion of the degree.
f. An application without an endorsement statement from the chair.
g. Requests for research assistance that result in a commercial product such as a textbook.
h. Requests for travel assistance for anyone other than the applicant except in the case of a finalizing meeting with a collaborator which may be permitted for one trip on a case-by-case basis.
i. Requests for assistance to fund Festschrifts.
j. Requests to purchase equipment of any kind.
k. Requests for assistance of less than $150.
l.  Requests for travel to attend conferences, learned society meetings or for residence in or near the applicant’s home.

Application Budget

For details regarding the proposed budget, review our benefits page.