The Dissertation Grant Program provides grants to students to conduct research as part of a doctoral dissertation requirement, and conducted under the guidance of a faculty dissertation advisor. At the time of application, the dissertation should be in the early stage of development. The major portion of the research should be completed between May 1, 2012 and April 30, 2013.
Note: A separate grant program is available to fund independent research by faculty and practitioners. See www.airweb.org/researchgrant for details.
Doctoral students enrolled at U.S. postsecondary institutions may submit proposals. A signed letter of support from the student’s faculty dissertation advisor is required. Applicants may be U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents, or non-U.S. citizens. Applicants should be advanced doctoral students at the dissertation writing stage.
The deadline for proposals is January 10, 2012 (11:59 p.m. EST). Applicants will be notified of funding decisions by March 23, 2012, and grants will commence May 1, 2011. AIR funding cannot duplicate or replace dissertation funding from another source.
A complete application is comprised of eight major components:
Contact information: name, physical address, e-mail address, institutional affiliation, name of faculty dissertation advisor, and name of the official institutional financial representative
Project description: detailed description of the proposed research
Statement of Institutional Review Board approval or exemption
Statement of use of restricted datasets (if applicable)
Biographical sketch
Budget
Statement of the applicant’s prior, current, or pending funding
Signed letter of support from faculty dissertation advisor
Applications must be submitted online. Assistance is available from the AIR grant staff at grants@airweb.org or 850-385-4155 x200.
STEP 1
Individuals are encouraged to begin the application process as soon as possible by providing initial contact information as the first step: name, e-mail address, physical address, and institutional affiliation. Providing this information assures that updates and deadline reminders will be sent to individuals at the e-mail address provided. Providing contact information does not commit an individual to submit a proposal. Go to http://applications.airweb.org/dissertationgrant to enter your contact information.
STEP 2
Complete the online application by following the Dissertation Grant Guidelines. The application contains eight components. It is recommended that applicants write each section using word processing software and when finalized, cut and paste the text into the online application.
*Note: Applicants can save their application and return later to add or edit their information until either they finalize the application or the application process closes on January 10, 2012 (11:59 p.m. EST).
STEP 3
Submit the online proposal by following the directions at the end of the online application. When a proposal is successfully submitted a confirmation message will be sent to the applicant. It is the applicant’s responsibility to submit the final proposal and store the confirmation notice as receipt of successful submission.
An application may be withdrawn at any time before the final funding decision is made. A request for withdrawal must be sent to grants@airweb.org. Confirmation of the withdrawal request will be sent to the applicant, faculty dissertation advisor, and institutional financial representative.
Selection Process
Applications are reviewed by a panel of national experts. A minimum of three panel members will read and evaluate each application. The panel will provide comments to applicants along with the final funding decision. The panel may recommend funding with revisions to the research plan. If changes are requested, a revised research plan must be submitted before the award can be made.
If any significant change in the research plan develops after the proposal application is submitted, the applicant is responsible for notifying AIR staff as soon as possible. AIR may allow a revision of the proposal after the application deadline, or the new information may be presented to the review panel as an addendum to the original submission.
Applicants will be notified of the status of the proposed project by March 23, 2012. Faculty advisors and institutional financial representatives will be copied on notices of funded projects. Grant recipient information, project titles, institutional affiliations, final reports, and presentation materials are part of the public record which is provided to NSF, NCES, and NPEC and listed on the AIR website.
Withdrawal
Withdrawal of funded research projects must be coordinated with the AIR office. Requests should be sent to grants@airweb.org. Confirmations will be sent to the applicant and the institutional financial representative.
Disbursement of Funds
Dissertation Grants are paid in two installments (May 1, 2012 and January 7, 2013). Checks are jointly issued to the grant recipient and authorized institutional representative and mailed to the institution for disbursement.
Mid-Year and Final Report
A mid-year progress report is due by December 14, 2012; the January 2013 payment will not be processed until the report is received. The progress report should be submitted via email to grants@airweb.org. Grant recipients should briefly describe (one to two pages) their progress to date on each deliverable and likelihood of successful completion of the proposed research by the close of the grant period.
A Final Report, including a one to two page executive summary, is due June 30, 2013, 60 days after the end of the grant period. The final report should be submitted via email to grants@airweb.org and be of scholarly quality (consistent with quality associated with peer-reviewed publications). In addition to information regarding dissemination of the research findings, grant recipients should briefly report the achievement of each of the deliverables and will submit a financial report (including a signed certification) detailing grant expenditure information. This financial report must come from the institution’s financial representative. If a final report is not possible within 60 days of the end of the grant cycle, grant recipients should request a “No-Cost Extension”.
No-Cost Extension
Grantees may receive a one-time extension on the expiration date of the grant for up to 12 months with no additional funding. Additional time beyond the established expiration date is available to assure adequate completion of the original scope of work within the original budget. Requests for a no-cost extension should be made to grants@airweb.org and should contain a revised completion date.
Acknowledgement of Support and Disclaimer
An acknowledgment of support must appear in publications of any material, whether copyrighted or not, resulting from an AIR funded project similar to the language below:
This material is based upon work supported by the Association for Institutional Research, the National Center for Education Statistics, the National Science Foundation, and the National Postsecondary Education Cooperative under Association for Institutional Research Grant Number________ (grantee should enter AIR grant number.)
Except for articles or papers published in scientific, technical, or professional journals, the following disclaimer must be included:
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Association for Institutional Research, the National Center for Education Statistics, the National Science Foundation, or the National Postsecondary Education Cooperative.
Legal Rights to Intellectual Property
Grantees retain legal rights to intellectual property developed during grant funding. This policy provides incentive for development and dissemination of deliverables, but does not reduce the responsibility to make results available to the research community.
The grant application system will be unavailable from 12/24 – 12/27 due to scheduled system upgrades. All proposals started before 12/24 will be accessible after 12/27.
The deadline for proposals is January 10, 2012 (11:59 p.m. EST). Applicants will be notified of funding decisions by March 23, 2012, and grants will commence May 1, 2012. AIR funding cannot duplicate or replace dissertation funding from another source.
A complete application is comprised of eight major components:
Contact information: name, physical address, e-mail address, institutional affiliation, name of faculty dissertation advisor, and name of the official institutional financial representative
Project description: detailed description of the proposed research
Statement of Institutional Review Board approval or exemption
Statement of use of restricted datasets (if applicable)
Biographical sketch
Budget
Statement of the applicant’s prior, current, or pending funding
Signed letter of support from faculty dissertation advisor
Applications must be submitted online. Assistance is available from the AIR grant staff at grants@airweb.org or 850-385-4155 x200.
