URC FAQs

Eligibility

Who may submit a URC grant application?

  • Tenured, tenure-track, or non-tenure track, full-time faculty of Emory University are eligible to submit a proposal for a URC award. URC eligibility follows criteria for “full-time faculty” as defined within each school. 
  • Fellows, adjunct, visiting, and part-time faculty are not eligible to apply for the URC grant.

If I receive a URC award, may I submit a URC grant proposal in the next cycle?

  • If you have received previous URC funding, then please note that you cannot receive new URC funds until after 3 URC annual grant cycles have passed from the completion date of your previous URC grant.
  • If a no-cost extension (NCE) was approved for your previous grant, then the end date of the NCE is considered the completion date.
  • To receive funding after 3 URC grant cycles have passed, you can apply to the URC in the 3rd cycle after completion of your last URC grant. Example: If you submitted a URC application during the URC 2019-2020 cycle and received project funding in 2020-2021 (and didn’t use a no-cost extension), then you would “wait out” submission/award cycles 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 and then be eligible to submit an application in the URC grant cycle 2023-2024, which would provide project funding in 2024-2025.

What is required of a URC grant recipient after the grant has ended?

URC grant recipients are required to serve as URC application reviewers for 3 consecutive years following completion of their URC grant.  Recipients will review URC grant applications for the subcommittee to which they submitted their awarded proposal.  In addition to reviewing grant applications, the subcommittee chairperson may call an in-person subcommittee meeting to finalize the subcommittee's proposal selections. 

Application Submission

Where do I submit the University Research Committee grant application?

All University Research Committee grant applications are submitted through EMORY's INFOREADY ONLINE APPLICATION PORTAL

All documents pertaining to the URC grant application will be uploaded to the online application template.  (See RFP for detailed application instructions.)

Are multiple submissions permitted?

No. One application per applicant per cycle year, regardless of role (PI, co-PI, or Investigator).

Can URC awarded funds be budgeted to support the salary of the PI and co-PI (if applicable)?

No, URC funds cannot be used to pay the salary of the PI or the co-PI; however, funds may be used to buy course release time.

Award Reallocation

Is it possible to reallocate a URC award?

Yes, in some circumstances. For example, the PI of the award is leaving Emory prior to the end of the URC project. A detailed justification in support of the request to reallocate URC funds to another Emory faculty must be submitted, in writing, to the URC coordinator for approval by the URC co-chairs.  A budget, current at the time of the request, must be submitted with the Justification.  The justification must be signed by the PI's department chair." 

* Reallocation of URC funds is ONLY granted to another Emory faculty member, not to another institution.

Letters of Support

Is there a requirement?

No. Letters of Support are not required by any of the URC committees.

End of Award Reporting

Does the URC require a report of research results upon completion of the 12-month award period?

Yes. Thirty days following the completion of the 12-month award cycle (or, no-cost extension period) has ended, award recipients are required to complete the End of Award Report (EOAR).  Recipients will be notified by an email containing a link to the Report, which is submitted online through the URC portal. Failure to submit the EOAR will deem the award recipient ineligible to apply for future URC funding until the Report is submitted and approved. Monthly reminders will be sent for up to 12-months until the report is completed and submitted.

Project Progress Report - Required of All URC Grant Recipients

For 3 consecutive years following the close of a URC award, grant recipients will be required to complete a project progress report. An email notification, with instructions for accessing the report, will be sent to each award recipient. The report is to be completed and submitted through the online portal within 30-days of receipt of the notification. If the report is not submitted by the end of the 30-day period, reminder emails will be sent.

Course Release

What is required?

Individuals requesting course releases should include a maximum of $12,500 per course within the proposed URC budget, up to a maximum of $25,000 for two courses. Check first with your school Dean before including a budget request of less than $12,500 per course. The application must include a formal school-generated document designating approval for course release. It is the responsibility of the applicant to obtain formal approval for course release from your Dean, and, as appropriate, through your unit head (e.g., Department Chair). Applications including a request for course release funds that lack supporting documentation with a Dean’s formal approval will not be considered.  Participating schools have a school-defined required amount of funding per course release.  If the URC budgeted amount is not sufficient to support the school’s expectation for funding the requested course release(s), the applicant and the applicant’s Chair in consultation with their Dean are responsible to find other (non-URC) funds to fill the gap. The format for documenting Dean (and Chair) approval is left to each of the participating schools.

  • Course Release funds are designated to cover expenses associated with teaching needs related to a faculty member’s course release time;
  • Course Release funds may NOT be used to pay the salary of a full-time faculty member to whom URC funds with a course release designation are awarded;
  • A transfer of awarded course release funds will be made directly from the URC to the relevant school and will be designated for the compensation of substitute/temporary personnel to teach while the awarded faculty member is on course release leave.

What is an Interdisciplinary application?

Interdisciplinary research is a mode of investigation by teams, or individuals, that integrates information, data, techniques, tools, perspectives, concepts, methods and/or theories from two or more disciplines or bodies of specialized knowledge to advance the fundamental understanding of a topic, or to solve problems whose solutions are beyond the scope of a single discipline or area of research practice (adapted from a National Academies’ report, 2004). 

In a given funding year, Emory can fund up to two primary co-investigators per project proposal, and the role and contribution of each investigator must be clearly defined.  This is the only URC grant open to pairs of collaborating investigators in which up to $40,000 (per application) may be requested.  In the case of a single investigator who submits a proposal classified as Interdisciplinary, the maximum award remains at $30,000.

  • Each investigator must make a substantial contribution to the research in her/his academic discipline.
  • At a minimum, collaboration must innovatively bring together two disciplines that are traditionally considered distinct, or different from each other (e.g., sociology and history) or schools (e.g., medicine and business), or otherwise justified as articulated here.
  • Proposed research cannot be adequately addressed by a single discipline or approach; however investigators need not be from different departments or units, as long as they meet the other criteria for interdisciplinary work.
  • Single investigators may also apply as long as the application makes clear how the research innovatively draws upon approaches from distinct disciplines.

May Interdisciplinary applicants submit a proposal to another URC committee in the same cycle year?

No. As part of the University Research Committee grant program, Interdisciplinary proposals follow the same guidelines as other URC committees. Each applicant may submit only one proposal, to one URC committee, per 12-month award cycle. If awarded, the grant recipient is not eligible to apply for another URC grant until three 12-month award cycles have passed.