Seed grants are paused for 2022-23
As we fundraise for the seed grant program, we must pause accepting applications for the 2022-23 cycle. Please check back in for an update about the next cycle.
DIBS supports two seed-grant funding programs. These high-risk/high-return funding mechanisms provide funding for research that is exploratory and therefore not yet ready for external funding.
Award Types
Incubator Awards, up to $100,000, are for teams of faculty representing at least 2 departments or areas of research.
Germinator Awards, up to $25,000, are for graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, residents, or faculty.
Important Dates
Due dates for both award mechanisms are typically:
Letters of Intent: due by mid-June.
Full Application: due by mid-August.
Award notifications are typically sent out in November of an application year, and funding start date of the following January.
"For me, DIBS has been a source of both financial support and scientific inspiration as I and colleagues from different areas of campus seek a better understanding of the brain mechanisms of depression, an incredibly destructive and costly illness."
— Kafui Dzirasa, MD, PhD
Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences & recipient of one of six 2018-19 Research Incubator Awards
7:1 Return on Investment
For every dollar spent on the Incubator Research Awards, seven dollars are returned to Duke through external funding and grants.