Proposal timeline for the 2021-2022 academic year:

• 2021-22 Round 1: Proposals are due on or before March 15, 2021
• 2021-22 Round 2: Proposals are due on or before August 17, 2021 (Open for proposals August 1st, 2021)
• Awards are to be announced four to six weeks after due date

Fund information:

With the understanding that face-to-face interactions and discussions facilitate the development of new international partnerships, the Awards for International Collaboration (AIC) aims to support travel-related expenses necessary for faculty members to catalyze or deepen ties with partner institutions of strategic significance to a department, School, or the University. International institutions of strategic importance generally already have at least one or more of the following collaboration models (described below) in existence at the time of the proposal OR have been planned per mutual agreement or MoU:

• Dual or joint degree programs
• Joint research centers
• Student exchange per MoU
• Multilateral ties with industry or government agencies (U.S.or foreign)
• Jointly designed/taught courses and curricula
• Joint summer or spring break programs
• Jointly coordinated research seminars or workshops
• Consistent, purposeful mobility of faculty and/or students
• Collaborative activities to enhance graduate student interest
• Other activities or models pertinent to the above

This award cycle, proposals that seek ways to engage with Rice’s Paris Center: https://arch.rice.edu/facets/paris or Rice/IIT Kanpur Center: https://iitk.ac.in/rice-iitk/ are particularly welcome.

Application requests of no more than $10,000 will be considered.

All proposals will be approved contingent upon feasibility of travel in light of COVID-19. All grantees must adhere to Rice’s current policy on international travel and the University’s general policies and guidelines related to COVID-19: https://coronavirus.rice.edu/communication.

Eligibility:

Full-time and research faculty members and full-time research fellows from all schools and institutes at Rice are eligible to apply.

Proposals may be submitted individually or by a group of faculty, though there is a preference for proposals which integrate interests and/or promote collaboration across various departments, schools, or centers.

Letters of support from department chairs and deans are recommended, but not required.

Review process:

A committee of referees assembled by the Office of Global and Digital Strategy will consider and review all proposals. This committee will be comprised of faculty and senior level staff from across the university (who are not AIC applicants). The committee will review each proposal to assess, in no particular priority, the:

• extent it aligns with the strategic priorities of the schools and university;
• commitment level of the faculty members, department or school involved;
• significance and degree to which it will create opportunities for students and faculty;
• probability that it will lead to sustained collaboration at the departmental level or wider;
• likelihood it will lead to long-term external funding, including reciprocal support from the potential partner.

How to apply:

Proposals must be submitted using this webform by date above. Proposals should include the following documents combined into one PDF file:

• A project description in three pages or less (in 12-point type), which should also include a plan or strategy to sustain the initiative post AIC grant;
• Income/expense budget of the requested funds, including other financial or in-kind resources sought or acquired;
• CV for each applicant (three pages or less per CV);
• Any current or pending financial awards or grants for each applicant.

Upon all due consideration and final recommendations by the committee, the Vice President for Global and Digital Strategy will inform all applicants of the outcomes.

Questions:

For questions or feedback, please contact Meredith Bonner, Executive Administrator for Global and Digital Strategy.