OVPR Funded Opportunities
OVPR provides select funding opportunities related to innovation, scholarship, and the diverse research endeavors of Penn’s faculty.
University Research Foundation: Research Grant
The University Research Foundation (URF) is an internal funding program that supports the research mission of the university. While the details of structure and funding have evolved over its 37-year existence, the goals have remained the same: to support faculty as they start their careers; to help established faculty pivot into new research directions; to compete for external funding; and, to facilitate collaborations across disciplines
Award Amount
Up to $75,000
Deadline
October 13, 2023
Period
1 year
University Research Foundation: Conference Grant
The University Research Foundation (URF) Conference Support program is designed for scholarly meetings that will be convened on Penn’s campus, thereby providing enrichment opportunities to interested faculty, students, and staff, most frequently in the format of a 1–2-day colloquium. The intent is to support meetings that are designed to enhance existing research and scholarly programs, particularly in disciplines where external funding is difficult to obtain. It should highlight the scholarship of Penn faculty and bring distinguished scholars to Penn’s campus.
Award Amount
Up to $3,000
Deadline
October 13, 2023
Period
1 year
Discovering the Future Research Grant Program
Fundamental scientific research has been the cornerstone of the continuous improvement in quality of life over the last century. Scientific research is also the origin of technological advances that underpin our national economy. During the last decade, the federal financial support for scientific research has decreased by 25% in real dollars. Simultaneously, traditional sources of fundamental research support have become increasingly conservative, i.e., low risk. Peer review processes require some certainty in outcomes; foundations (though they state otherwise) often veer toward sure wins; and corporate sponsors focus on translational work. It has been argued, e.g., by the National Academies, that the nation is missing opportunities for discoveries that would change the world. The Discovering the Future Grant aims to fill this gap in funding opportunities by supporting the Penn faculty in blue sky, high risk/high reward research.
Award Amount
Up to $400,000
Deadline
May 24, 2024
Period
1-2 years
Accelerating from Lab to Market Pre-Seed Grant Program
Penn makes significant commitments to academic research as one of its core missions, including investment in faculty research programs. In some disciplines, the path by which discovery makes an impact on society is through commercialization. Pre-seed grants are often the limiting step for new ideas to cross the “valley of death” between federal research funding and commercial success. The Accelerating from Lab to Market Grant aims to help to bridge this gap. Accelerating from Lab to Market pre-seed grants are awarded to Penn faculty for promising inventions disclosed to Penn Center for Innovation (PCI) and to Penn faculty with existing Penn spinout companies based on Penn-owned intellectual property.
Award Amount
Up to $50,000
Deadline
April 24, 2024
Period
1-2 years