Accelerator and Catalyst proposals are now being accepted
The President's Research Excellence (PRE) program provides seed support to catalyze and accelerate multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary or convergent research teams pursuing external funding. Administered by the Enterprise for Research, Innovation and Knowledge (ERIK), the program awards up to $2.5 million per year through two tiers of grants.
- Accelerator grants of up to $50,000 for 12-month projects are awarded to small teams of 2-3 investigators from two or more distinct disciplinary perspectives that are formed to pursue curiosity-driven, high-risk, high-reward, pilot-scale research towards an identified proposal target.
- Catalyst grants of $150,000 - $300,000 for up to 24-month projects are awarded to medium or large teams of 3-5 investigators representing three or more distinct disciplinary perspectives that are formed to pursue high-impact research towards an identified national-leadership level or highly strategically significant proposal target.
2024-2025 Academic Year Awards Cycle
During the fall semester, proposals are being accepted for both Accelerator and Catalyst projects, with awarded projects beginning on January 1, 2025. Applications in any topic area are invited; however, during the fall cycle emphasis will be placed on space and/or defense-related research. These topics span nearly every discipline on campus, include approaches from fundamental to applied and involve a range of sponsor targets including NASA and the Department of Defense.
An additional competition for Accelerator grants will occur during spring semester. Depending on available funding, additional competitions may be announced.
Proposal Process, Requirements and Deadlines
Fall Cycle Timelines
Successful teams will make a compelling case for the merit of the proposed research in terms of anticipated scientific, technological or societal impacts that will result. All PRE proposals will be reviewed and scored using 4 criteria: merit; impact; team; and budget.
- September 17, 2024 - Call for Proposals released (name.# login required)
- September 27, 2024 - Informational Briefing (watch recording; name.# login required)
- October 16, 2024 - Required Letters of Intent due
- October 21 through November 1, 2024 - Catalyst pitch sessions
- November 22, 2024 - Full proposals due (name.# login required)
- December 20, 2024 - Decisions announced
- January 1, 2025 - Project period start (Accelerator and Catalyst)
- December 31, 2025 - Accelerator projects end
- December 31, 2026 - Catalyst projects end
Teams seeking Accelerator or Catalyst funding must complete a mandatory Letter of Intent (LOI) by Wednesday, October 16, 2024. The LOI, submitted online, must include the project name, team and a 250-word or less abstract summarizing the proposed research challenge and its significance along with expected research deliverables. Letters of Intent will be reviewed by Research Development staff for compliance.
Accelerator Grants
Teams eligible for Accelerator grant funding will be invited to submit a full proposal by Friday, November 22, 2024, by 5 p.m.. Full proposals consist of a 3-page narrative, budget request, team biosketches and optional references.
Catalyst Grants
Teams eligible for Catalyst grant funding will be invited to schedule a mandatory, 15-minute virtual pitch session during the last week of October, which will include a slide presentation and time for questions from a panel of reviewers. All members of the PI/Co-PI team should plan to participate.
Following the pitch session, teams will receive brief, written feedback and a statement encouraging or discouraging full proposal submission. Full proposals for Catalyst funding are due by Friday, November 22, 2024, by 5 p.m.. These proposals will consist of a 10-page narrative, budget request/justification, team biosketches and optional references.
General Project Requirements
- The lead PI must be an Ohio State faculty member. Co-PIs can be faculty, research staff or post-docs from intellectually distinct disciplines. External collaborators are permitted, but do not count towards team composition requirements and cannot be supported with project funds.
- PI or Co-PI may only be named on one PRE Accelerator or Catalyst active project and proposal at a time. Those already serving on another PRE project can be a team member on another project but not a PI or Co-PI. Review the list of those currently on an active project before submitting.
- Funded projects are required to submit an external funding proposal by the end of the grant period or the closest, next deadline for the opportunity(ies) identified in the proposal.
- A final report and a copy of the submitted external funding proposal are required at the conclusion project.
Budget Information
PRE funding may be requested to support project-specific expenses including:
- consumable research materials and supplies
- facility user/service fees, subject payments (with approved IRB), or other contractual costs
- limited personnel support for students, staff or post-docs
- travel to meet with project external collaborators, sponsors or to host collaborator meetings
- limited instrumentation (Catalyst only)
Funds cannot be used to support or supplement:
- faculty salaries
- travel to conventional academic meetings or conferences
- publication costs