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ESDRI Graduate Student Research Award

Eligibility: Ð¡»ÆƬÊÓƵ graduate students advised by an ESDRI-affiliated faculty member from any campus are eligible. You may apply once during your degree program, but not during your final semester.

Proposal expectations: Proposals must be clearly related to one or more environmental issues to receive ESDRI funding, but all types of disciplines are welcome to apply (scientific, design, engineering, artistic, humanities, etc.).

Budget Details: Funds requested should be appropriate to the scope of the project, up to a maximum of $3,000.  
Allowable costs include support for undergraduate research assistants and technicians; materials, supplies, and equipment; travel expenses for field work, research collaboration, conference attendance, symposia, or visits to funding agencies/sponsors; and personal stipend (if you are not funded by other means). Budget allocated towards travel and hiring of personnel must comply with . 

Awarding of funds: Proposals will be funded on a competitive basis, and subject to availability of funds and scholarly merit. If awarded funding, in coordination with your advisor, funds will be paid via one lump sum to a designated index in your department on your behalf.

Duration: Funds must be expended within one calendar year of award.

Project Products: Projects should result in tangible outcomes that provide evidence of scholarly success, such as peer-reviewed publications or installations, academic reviews, or new internal or external collaborations (e.g., across colleges or with industry, government, non-profits, or museums).

Reporting: Recipients must provide a report at the end of one year detailing what was accomplished and any next steps (1-2 pages). Recipients should also expect to work with ESDRI staff to disseminate findings/products to the public via news stories.

Submission Mechanism and Deadline: Proposals are accepted year-round on a rolling basis. Please follow format guidelines below and submit your proposal as a single PDF via email to esdri@kent.edu

Review Process: Proposals will be reviewed by a multidisciplinary committee. The evaluation sheet is provided below.    

Questions? Contact us at esdri@kent.edu

Proposal Format:

1. Cover sheet: Proposal title, investigator names and affiliations (at minimum, self and advisor), and amount requested.
2. Project description and work plan (up to 3 pages): Describe the area of research, and proposed study goals and design.
3. Timeline of project details (no limit but typically one page).
4. Student benefit (up to half of one page): Describe how these funds will be beneficial for your degree program and/or career development.
5. Description of anticipated outcomes/deliverables (up to half of one page).
6. References cited.
7. CV
8. Budget (up to $3,000), including budget justification.
9. Letter of support from advisor.

Evaluation sheet for ESDRI Graduate Student Research Proposals

Name: 
Advisor:

Total score:

Background and motivation: Is the scholarly context (i.e. literature review) described for the project detailed, current, and appropriate? Is it clear how this context helps motivate the project?

Score (1 to 5):

Comments:

Feasibility and budget: Has enough detail (including timeline) been given to provide convincing evidence that the project can be successfully completed? Does the student and advisor possess the experience and access to resources to complete the project?

Score (1 to 5):

Comments:

Student need: Does the proposal explain why the student requires these funds to complete the project (i.e. complete graduation requirements, further career goals)? Does the budget detail what other funding sources are being used (if any) to complete the project and how these funds will fill the gap?

Score (1 to 5):

Comments:

Aligned with ESDRI mission: Is the project within the areas of research that is addressed by ESDRI? Is the advisor an ESRI-affiliated faculty member?

Score (1 to 5):

Comments: