Facilitating Research at Predominantly Undergraduate Institutions
Funding for research projects at predominantly undergraduate institutions to engage faculty, build research capacity, and integrate research with undergraduate education through RUI and ROA opportunities.
Funder: U.S. National Science Foundation
Due Dates: October 14, 2076 (Listed closing date; proposals accepted anytime) | Program-specific deadlines apply
Funding Amounts: $56 million estimated total funding; RUI typically 3 years; ROA typically up to $80,000 for 2–12 months
Summary: Supports faculty research at predominantly undergraduate institutions, strengthens institutional research capacity, and integrates research with undergraduate education.
Key Information: Eligible institutions must have awarded 20 or fewer Ph.D./D.Sci. degrees across NSF-supported fields during the previous two academic years combined.
Description
The National Science Foundation’s Research in Undergraduate Institutions (RUI) and Research Opportunity Awards (ROA) opportunities support faculty at predominantly undergraduate institutions (PUIs). RUI funds individual and collaborative research projects, and some shared research instrumentation requests. Its goals are to advance faculty research, strengthen departmental research environments, and integrate scientific discovery into undergraduate education.
ROA typically enables PUI faculty to work as visiting scientists with NSF-supported investigators at research-intensive organizations. These collaborations aim to improve faculty research capability and teaching at their home institutions while enhancing the host’s research. All NSF directorates may participate, but individual disciplinary programs decide whether to accept and fund requests. Funding comes from existing research and education program allocations rather than a separate RUI/ROA allocation.
