Each year, the APSA Centennial Center offers over $100,000 in research grants to APSA members through its Spring and Summer application deadlines. Learn more about eligibility and funding areas for each of these cycles below.
The Spring Application Cycle
Applications for the 2025 APSA Centennial Center Research Grants Spring Cycle are now open! Previously the “Small Research Grants Program, The spring cycle of Centennial Center Research Grants supports research in all fields of political science. Submit your application here!
The application deadline for the Spring Centennial Center Research Grants is April 15, 2025.
APSA offers a total of $40,000 in funding for these grants annually – individual grant proposals may not exceed $2,500. Grant recipients are determined through a peer-review process. The intent of these grants is to provide funding opportunities for:
- Research conducted by political scientists in non-tenure track or contingent positions who are ineligible for departmental funding.
- Research conducted by political science faculty of all ranks who are employed in departments that do not grant PhDs, including community college faculty.
- Graduate students at any research stage and from any institution are welcome to apply. Please note that priority will be given to proposals from those with limited access to departmental and institutional resources.
Application Criteria & Eligibility
Applications require just a CV, one-paragraph abstract, short research statement, and budget outlining costs to be covered by grant. Eligible costs include:
- Research costs associated with data collection, including costs of conducting interviews and surveys, access to archives, and more.
- Salary support for PIs
- Salary support for research assistants
- Per diems regardless of location
- Research software and hardware, including statistical software, productivity software, and devices necessary for scholars with disabilities to conduct their research and more!
We recognize that APSA members may have research support needs not included in the above list. If you have a cost that is not listed here, please contact us at centennial@apsanet.org to confirm that the cost is eligible. If you are interested in serving as a reviewer in this grant cycle, please email us at centennial@apsanet.org. Learn more the grant program and application requirements here.
How to Use Spring Centennial Center Research Grant Funds
Funds may be used for such research activities as travel to archives, travel to conduct interviews, administration, and coding of instruments, research assistance, and purchase of datasets. Funds may be used by scholars with disabilities for auxiliary devices or services uniquely needed for carrying out the research. While this list is merely illustrative, certain research activities are specifically excluded from funding; these include travel to professional meetings, secretarial costs except for preparation of the final manuscripts for publication, and salary support for the principal investigator. Overhead or indirect costs are not allowable expenses.