Toolkits

To help with grant writing, OCRD has developed a number of grant writing toolkits focusing on either a specific federal funding agency or a specific funding program within a federal funding agency. These toolkits include templates and guidance documents to help write proposals. You can access any of the toolkits with your Duke NetID. If there is a funding opportunity you are interested in which does not have a corresponding toolkit listed below, you can contact OCRD to request a customized toolkit. 

FOR FACULTY
Standard Grant Programs
Special Grant Programs
  • NIH Ruth L. Kirchstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Institutional Research Training Grant (T32) to enhance predoctoral and postdoctoral research training, including short-term research training, and help ensure that a diverse and highly trained workforce is available to meet the needs of the nation’s biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research agenda. Deadline: See NIH Standard Due Dates; next deadline: May 25, 2023
  • NSF Accelerating Research through International Network-to-Network Collaborations (AccelNet) supports strategic linkages between U.S. and international research networks to identify knowledge gaps and develop research roadmaps that will stimulate and foster future research advances in science, engineering, and STEM education. 
    Deadline: October 9, 2023
  • NSF Addressing Systems Challenges through Engineering Teams (ASCENT) supports high-quality and ambitious fundamental research projects that involve the research areas of 1 or more of the Division of Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems clusters. Deadline: April 19, 2023
  • NSF Algorithms for Modern Power Systems (AMPS) supports research projects to develop the next generation of mathematical and statistical algorithms for improvement of the security, reliability, and efficiency of the modern power grid. Deadline: February 12, 2024
  • NSF BIO Divisions Core Programs. Toolkit can be used to prepare proposals to the following BIO Divisions: Division of Environmental Biology Core Programs (DEB), Division of Integrative Organismal Systems Core Programs (IOS), and Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences Core Programs (MCB). Deadline: Proposals accepted anytime
  • NSF Broadening Participation in Engineering (BPE) is a dedicated program supporting the development of a diverse and well-prepared engineering workforce through enhancing the diversity and inclusion of all underrepresented populations in engineering. Funding is available in four tracks: Track 1: Planning and Conference Grants, Track 2: Research in Broadening Participation in Engineering, Track 3: Inclusive Mentoring Hubs (IM Hubs), and Track 4: Centers for Equity in Engineering (CEE). Deadline: November 15, 2023 (Tracks 3 and 4); accepted anytime (Tracks 1 and 2)
  • NSF Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE): Core Programs supports research and education projects that develop new knowledge in all aspects of computing, communications, and information science and engineering, as well as advanced cyberinfrastructure. Deadlines: Small Projects: Accepted Anytime; Medium and OAC Core Projects: October 23, 2023
  • NSF Conference supports conferences in special areas of science and engineering that bring experts together to discuss recent research or education findings or to expose other researchers or students to new research and education techniques. Deadline: Open (A conference proposal should generally be submitted at least a year in advance of the scheduled date.)
  • NSF Cyberinfrastructure for Sustained Scientific Innovation (CSSI) supports three project types in development, deployment, and sustainability of cyberinfrastructure (CI) within and across NSF disciplines. Deadline: December 1, 2023
  • NSF Design for Environmental Sustainability in Computing (DESC) brings together teams to address the substantial environmental impacts that computing has through its entire lifecycle from design and manufacturing, through deployment into operation, and finally into reuse, recycling, and disposal. Deadlines: Type I and Type II projects: September 13, 2024; Type III: Accepted anytime
  • NSF Division of Materials Research: Topical Materials Research Programs (DMR:TMRP) supports projects that advance the fundamental understanding of materials, materials discovery, design, synthesis, characterization, properties, and materials-related phenomena. Deadline: Proposals accepted anytime (except not during the following window: April 15th to June 15th)
  • NSF EHR Core Research (ECR CORE) for fundamental research that contributes to the general, explanatory knowledge that underlies STEM education in one or more of three broadly conceived Research Areas: Research on STEM Learning and Learning Environments, Research on Broadening Participation in STEM fields, and Research on STEM Workforce Development. Deadline: October 5, 2023
  • NSF Ethical and Responsible Research (ER2) to use fundamental research to produce knowledge about what constitutes or promotes responsible or irresponsible conduct of research and why, as well as how to best instill this knowledge into researchers, practitioners, and educators at all career stages. Deadline: January 22, 2024
  • NSF Experiential Learning for Emerging and Novel Technologies (ExLENT) supports experiential learning opportunities for individuals from diverse professional and educational backgrounds that will increase access to, and interest in, career pathways in emerging technology fields. Deadline: September 14, 2023
  • NSF Future Manufacturing supports convergent research and education that will enhance U.S. leadership in manufacturing by providing new capabilities, expanding job opportunities to a diverse STEM workforce, and reducing the impact of manufacturing on the environment. Deadline: April 19, 2023
  • NSF Future of Semiconductors (FuSe) supports fundamental research that enables the co-design of semiconductor materials, devices, and systems and that grows the semiconductor workforce talent pool. Deadline: April 24, 2023
  • NSF Future of Work at the Human-Technology Frontier: Core Research (FW-HTF) supports convergent research that advances understanding of how technology and people interact, distribute tasks, cooperate, and complement each other in different specific work contexts of significant societal importance. Deadline: March 30, 2023
  • NSF Growing Convergence Research (GCR) targeting multi-disciplinary team research that crosses directorate or division boundaries and is currently not supported by NSF programs, initiatives, and research-focused Big Ideas. Deadline: February 5, 2024
  • NSF Incorporating Human Behavior in Epidemiological Models (IHBEM) supports research on social and behavioral processes in mathematical epidemiological models to minimize unintended outcomes of public health interventions. Deadline window: April 3, 2023 – April 14, 2023
  • NSF Pathways to Enable Open-Source Ecosystems (POSE) supports the formation of new open-source ecosystems (OSE) that impact specific societal or national needs. Phase 1 OSE Scoping and Planning Awards and Phase 2 OSE Establishment and Expansion Awards proposals accepted. Deadline: September 7, 2023
  • NSF Research Coordination Networks (RCN) supports projects that foster new collaborations for creation of one network. Deadline: Proposals accepted anytime
  • NSF Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) in Engineering and Computer Science to support authentic summer research experiences for K-14 educators to foster long-term collaborations between universities, community colleges, school districts, and industry partners. Deadline: October 11, 2023
  • NSF Research in the Formation of Engineers (RFE) to advance our understanding of professional formation and to transform the engineer-formation system. Deadline: open
  • NSF Racial Equity in Stem Education (EHR Racial Equity) to support bold, ground-breaking, and potentially transformative projects addressing systemic racism in STEM through research (both fundamental and applied) and practice. Deadline: October 10, 2023
  • NSF Smart and Connected Communities (SCC) to accelerate the creation of the scientific and engineering foundations that will enable smart and connected communities to bring about new levels of economic opportunity and growth, safety and security, health and wellness, accessibility and inclusivity, and overall quality of life. Deadline: Proposals accepted anytime until April 1, 2024
FOR GRADUATE STUDENTS AND/OR POSTDOCS
Standard Grant Programs
  • NIH K99 to help postdocs develop the K99/R00 application.
  • NSF Grants for Graduate Students includes separate toolkits for:
    • GRFP (updated annually each summer)
    • DDRIG (given the program-specific nature of DDRIGs, OCRD will update this toolkit upon request). Currently, the CA DDRIG toolkit is available.
  • NIH F Grants to help PhD students and postdocs develop: