Dean’s Grants
About the Dean’s Grants
The Dean’s Grant program supports research, professional development, and community engagement across SHASS and beyond MIT.
Proposals are reviewed by the SHASS Awards Committee, which recommends projects for funding to the Dean.
Applying for Dean’s Grants
Dean’s Grant funding is designed to support projects that align with one or more of the following categories:
- Research and Scholarship: Projects that advance knowledge or artistic production in the humanities, arts, or social sciences, and/or that support the dissemination of that knowledge or artistic production.
- Professional Development and Digital Learning: Individuals or teams seeking to develop their own or others’ skills, content expertise, or leadership capabilities, and projects that leverage technology to enhance digital learning or research experiences and/or promote accessibility.
- Community Engagement: Events or activities that connect SHASS with colleagues and the public and/or foster the reputation, diversity, and recognition of MIT’s contributions to the scholarly community or broader public.
How to apply
To apply, submit a 1–2-page proposal narrative and budget as a single PDF. The submission should include:
- A description of the project and its significance to the applicant’s research program or professional development, or its contribution to community engagement within SHASS or beyond MIT.
- Identification of relevant funding category (see above).
- A detailed budget. In addition to direct costs, please include, if needed, employee benefits, overhead, and proposed cost-sharing. Please note: funds are non-recurring.
Send applications (cc’ing your DAF) and any inquires to Veronica Vivas.
Eligibility criteria
To be eligible to apply, an applicant must either:
- Hold a full-time position in SHASS, with more than one year of service, as:
- Faculty*, Academic Instructional Staff, Academic Research Staff
- Sponsored research staff (technical and administrative), support staff, or administrative staff
- Non-academic staff must have completed the new employee six-month probationary period
- Hold a temporary (full- or part-time) position as Academic Instructional Staff for more than three consecutive semesters, and with continuing employment throughout the proposed funding period confirmed.
*Senior faculty chair holders are not eligible.
Students, predoctoral fellows, and postdoctoral fellows are not eligible.
Individuals and teams are eligible to receive only one award per academic year.
Important dates
There are three funding deadlines per year: October 1, February 1, April 1 (or the next business day).
Additional guidelines and resources
Additional eligibility information
Among eligible faculty, priority will be given to pre-tenure faculty and to tenured faculty with limited discretionary funds (<$10,000 in aggregate) at the start of the current fiscal year.
Teams are defined as two or more people with a shared interest or common goal to which individuals formally or informally belong.
Proposals must be connected to one’s work and role at MIT and SHASS. For example, a scholar would not typically be considered for an artistic project, and an administrative staff member would not typically be considered for a research project.
Proposals that are good candidates for other sources of MIT funding (such as MITHIC or the d’Arbeloff or Education Innovation programs) are discouraged and may be referred elsewhere.
Grant amounts
The Dean’s Office has limited funding for this program. Requests for amounts under $5,000 are more likely to be successful than requests for larger amounts. Detailed budgets including justifications are required for proposals requesting funds greater than $5,000.
Allowable expenses
Allowable expenses include travel for research and formal participation at professional conferences; programming and events; publication costs including Open Access subventions; hourly-rate graduate or undergraduate Research Assistance. Requests for travel should be made only after utilizing the SHASS Travel and Discretionary annual fund. Requests for conference fees and travel must be accompanied by evidence of formal participation (e.g., as presenter, discussant, organizer).
Professional development opportunities that directly overlap with those already offered at MIT are not eligible for funding. For example, proposals covered under MIT’s Tuition Assistance Plan are not eligible. Staff are encouraged to check MIT’s career development programs for relevant learning opportunities.
Summer salary, postdoc salary, and graduate appointments are not allowable.
