Application Procedure for Faculty Research Awards


All applications must be submitted electronically on or before the deadline date to fdc@bowdoin.edu. Applications must be submitted in a single document in PDF format, an abstract of your proposal must be provided; any other electronic format will not be accepted. For assistance in creating PDF documents, please contact the IT Help Desk. An incomplete or late application will not be considered. Do not submit original receipts with proposals. Please hold them until an award is granted.

A completed Faculty Research Award application must include the following:

  1. Title of project.
  2. A brief abstract of the project (fewer than 100 words).
  3. A narrative description (no more than two pages single-spaced, 12 point font, one inch margins) in which the applicant makes clear in language that is accessible to non-specialist colleagues the following:
    • the basic ideas, problems, works or questions the study will examine, and the steps to be taken to accomplish this project;
    • the significance of the project to the applicant's scholarly field and research program;
    • the significance of the project to the applicant's continued scholarly development.
  4. A clear statement of the anticipated outcome(s) of the project.
  5. A budget, as descriptive and detailed as possible. Please round off figures to the nearest $10 when submitting your budget. In the case of a request for conference travel, a description of the proposed use of the Dean's prfessional conference travel funds must also be included. Please see Types of Expenses Funded for help on how to prepare your budget.
  6. A statement indicating the date and amount of award(s) from the Faculty Development Committee received over the past six years. A brief summary of the results of work supported by such prior funding is a prerequisite for additional funding. Any relationships between previously funded projects and the current one must be described.
  7. A statement indicating what other sources of funding have been requested or received for the proposed project. Requests for subventions for book publishing should be accompanied by a letter from the press that clarifies the publisher's policy and provides information about the costs for which the applicant seeks funding.
  8. A current curriculum vitae, no longer than five pages.

 NOTES: Cover letters are not considered in the evaluation of an application. This fund customarily supports the most economical reasonable means of transportation. Applicants should provide justification for any other form of travel. The FDC strives to return decisions within a month of application submission deadlines.

Those faculty members receiving Faculty Research Awards will be expected to report briefly on the uses to which the grant was put and to describe the scholarly or artistic work resulting from the grant.

Additional Information

Should the Committee have to decide between two meritorious proposals, only one of which comes from an individual with an approved upcoming sabbatical, preference will be given to that person. In addition, support will generally not be awarded to fund a third consecutive semester of leave. A recipient of an award who is also in receipt of external funding can retain that portion of the award that would bring their salary to a maximum of 100 percent for a semester of leave in addition to the sabbatic semester. 

Open Access

Unless the applicant requests otherwise in writing, any successful proposal will be available for consultation by other faculty members.

Generation of Income

For all awards, if the project generates income, the relevant fund should be reimbursed.

Grant Period

All grants will cover a two-year period from the date of the award. Any unused funds will then revert to the Fund, as will any funds remaining at the end of the academic year from grants to those ending their services to the College in that year.