UA-BGU Joint Seed Funding Program

The University of Alabama (UA) and Ben Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) have established a joint seed funding initiative to foster global research collaboration. This initiative is a partnership between UA’s Division for Research and BGU’s Office of Research & Development and Global Engagement.

This program provides up to $30,000 per project ($15,000 per institution) to support innovative, high-impact collaborative research conducted together by faculty at both universities.

UA and BGU anticipate awarding multiple seed grants per year, subject to availability of funds.

For questions or more information, please contact assist@ua.edu.

Timeline and Key Dates

• Call for Proposals Opens: August 13, 2025
• Proposal Due Date: Before 5:00 pm Central on September 17, 2025
  • Accommodations for late and/or incomplete proposals are not available.
• Proposal Review Period: September 18–October 9, 2025
• Decisions Announced: October 23, 2025
• Period of Performance: January 1–December 31, 2026

Eligibility

• Each project must include one UA Principal Investigator (PI) and one BGU PI, and the research must be fully collaborative.
• Regular, full-time UA or BGU employees authorized to serve as a PI at their home institution

Submission

The UA Principal Investigator (PI) will be responsible for submitting the proposal, but the submission must include all relevant documentation from the BGU counterpart(s) to ensure full collaboration and compliance with program requirements.

Proposal Requirements

Total page count for technical components: 3 1/2 pages

Format: 8.5” x 11”, single-spaced, 11pt Times New Roman font, one-inch margin on all sides;

Language: All proposal components, including images and BioSketches / CVs / resumes, must be in English

Abstract (1/2 page): Summarize the project’s significance, proposed activities, and expected outcomes. The abstract should be directed to a sophisticated lay audience and be suitable for public communication.

Narrative (Maximum: 2.5 pages): Provide a descriptive narrative enabling reviewers to assess the project using the following criteria:

• Significance of the project (25%)
  • Describe the importance of the research and its potential global impact.
  • Highlight the relevance of the UA-BGU collaboration.
• Advancing academic disciplines and international collaboration (25%)
  • Explain how the research contributes to the field.
  • Discuss potential for sustained international collaboration.
• Uniqueness relative to the state-of-the-art (25%)
  • Describe what differentiates this project from existing work.
  • Highlight novel methodologies, interdisciplinary approaches, or applications.
• Impact on graduate education and training (5%)
  • Detail how the project will engage graduate students at both institutions.
  • Describe opportunities for student collaboration and international research exposure.
• Anticipated research productivity and potential pathway to external funding and (20%)
  • Explain how this seed funding will lead to joint publications, patents, and/or external funding proposals.

Each project is strongly encouraged to result in at least one of the following:

• A peer-reviewed publication with joint authorship
• Evidence describing how seed funding led or will lead to future external funding
• A joint proposal submitted to an external funding agency

Additionally, PIs must present their research at a joint virtual UA-BGU research showcase to be held in August 2026 (subject to change) ahead of the next call for proposals.

Budget (Maximum: ½ page): Provide a simple breakdown of the $30,000 budget ($15,000 per institution), including:

• Personnel (e.g., graduate students, postdocs)
• Research materials and supplies
• Other justifiable expenses

References (Not included in page count, no maximum length)

BioSketches / CV / Resumes for each PI (Not included in page count, 1-3 pages for each PI maximum)

Additionally, PIs must present their research at a joint virtual UA-BGU research showcase to be held in July 2026 (subject to change) ahead of the next call for proposals.

Regulatory Compliance

Projects requiring IRB or IACUC approval must obtain it before funding is distributed subject to the rules and regulations of each institution, but approval is not required at the time of submission.

Prior Recipients