Undergraduate Research and Independent Projects

Major Grant

Students combing through mulch

 

Major grants support student-driven, full-time immersive projects supported by a faculty mentor, with priority given to Juniors.

  • Major Grants provide a 10-week stipend in support of full-time immersive Summer project commitments
  • Most Major Grants are awarded to students beginning an honors thesis, a senior project in the arts, or senior synthesis project between their junior and senior years.
  • Decisions are typically made within 6 weeks 
  • Funding is usually disbursed Week 1 of the quarter in which the project is executed 

Timeline

  • Application Deadline: Friday, March 1, 2024, 11:59pm PST 
  • Faculty Mentor Letter Deadline: Friday, March 8, 2024, 11:59pm PST
  • Project Execution: Summer 2024 
  • Stipend: $7500, with a need-based supplement (of up to $1500) for eligible students. For details on the stipend structure, visit our Constructing a Budget page.

Where to Start

Application Guidelines

  • For the proposal:
    • Major Grant proposals should not exceed a word count of 2,500.
      • The proposal summary, reference list, and appendices do not count toward the word count.
    • Read through the Writing a Project Proposal site for specific guidelines on how to write a grant proposal. 
  • Additional materials (to be submitted along with the proposal):
    • Human Subjects Research - IRB protocol submission: If you are doing a project involving interviewing, observing, or otherwise working with human subjects, you must determine if your project requires Institutional Review Board (IRB) review.  You must upload proof that you submitted your IRB protocol in your grant application in order for your proposal to be considered. Federal law and Stanford University Policy require IRB approval before human subjects research can begin.
    • Animal Subjects Research - one-paragraph appendix: If your research involves animal subjects of any kind (vertebrate or invertebrate), you must include an Animal Subjects Research Appendix in your application. Federal law and Stanford University policy require APLAC/IACUC approval before animal subjects research can begin. Click here to read more about the Animal Subjects requirement.
    • Field contact letter: For students partnering with off-campus organizations for their projects (e.g. archives, hospitals, nonprofits, community organizations), you must submit in your grant application a brief letter of support from your field contact to demonstrate that you have established communication and are equipped to execute the project with their support.
      • Field Contact letters should be a brief note (screenshot of email correspondence is fine) that includes the following:
        1. Date of correspondence
        2. Indicates access to a research resource and clearly states what that resource is
        3. Contact information of your primary contact
      • Students with multiple field contacts: Only one letter is required, but note that the Review Committee may request additional letters at the time of review
    • International Travel Safety Plan: A project or conference that involves international travel is required to have an International Travel Safety Plan. It must be included as an appendix in the grant proposal. For instructions on completing the travel plan, go to our International Travel webpage.
  • Read through the Go Apply site for more detailed information on the application materials you will need to assemble. Applicable links are as follows:

Major Grant Policies & Eligibility

**In addition to the below criteria specific to the Major Grant, all undergraduate students must meet our general eligibility requirements.** 

  • Priority given to Juniors
    • Frosh and Sophomores are encouraged to Explore Departmental Funding
    • Seniors who have not previously received a Major Grant are eligible but will have lower priority
    • Co-terms who have not conferred their undergraduate degree may apply if the project fits into their undergraduate academic trajectory, e.g., honors thesis, capstone project, etc. Students paying graduate tuition are ineligible.
      • Co-term students should read this Registrar webpage for details on when you are switched to graduate tuition.
    • Students may not be on a Leave of Absence (LOA) while using grant funding. Students who have been on LOA for 3 consecutive quarters prior to the funding period are not eligible (e.g., Autumn, Winter, and Spring).
  • Time commitment: The Major Grant project is a full-time opportunity. Full-time engagement is defined as 35+ hours per week over the 10-week summer quarter. Students and faculty mentors should confer and agree upon any significant time commitments outside of this defined project engagement.
    • Students may not receive both academic units and a stipend for any single project activity.
    • Major Grant recipients are not permitted to engage in another full-time internship, job, or volunteer opportunity (whether funded by Stanford or otherwise), unless their faculty mentors or program coordinators have approved these arrangements.
      • As a reminder, VPUE grant recipients who are planning on concurrently participating in another Stanford program should also abide by the funding and program policies of the sponsoring unit.

Fundamental Standard

Please note violations of Undergraduate Research policies are also violations of the Fundamental Standard and may be referred to the Office of Community Standards

  • Students who fail to abide by the policies as set forth by Undergraduate Research, The Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education, and Stanford University will have low priority for future Undergraduate Research funding opportunities
  • Undergraduate Research reserves the right to rescind funding at any given point and time should they be apprised of any policy violations as outlined above or as listed on the Eligibility Requirements webpage

Did you meet all the eligibility requirements? If so:

Apply Now!