Cottrell SEED Award

• Cottrell Scholar applicants must be at least six years beyond the year of their Cottrell Scholar Award. For the 2026 competition, eligibility is limited to Cottrell Scholars who received their award in 2019 or earlier and hold faculty appointments in the United States or Canada.
• Holland Awardees are eligible to apply, regardless of the year of their award.
• In addition:
  • New Research Directions will accept only Chemistry proposals in 2026. This initiative accepts Chemistry proposals in even-numbered years, and Physics and Astronomy proposals in odd-numbered years.
  • Exceptional Opportunities will give preference to Chemistry proposals in 2026, but Physics and Astronomy proposals will also be accepted. In odd-numbered years, preference will be given to Physics and Astronomy proposals.
• Proposals with multiple principal investigators may be submitted, provided that ALL principal investigators are eligible to apply and the requested amount for direct costs does not exceed a total of $54,545. If you are planning to submit collaborative proposals, please contact Silvia Ronco for submission details.
• Eligibility is limited to one SEED application per Cottrell Scholar per year. Also, no submissions are accepted from those with active SEED awards.

Cottrell SEED proposals are for a period of two years and include these elements:

• Title, five keywords, and abstract
• Current and pending support
• Publications from the last five years
• Three-page research plan and up to three pages of references. Successful proposals must convince reviewers that the applicant is an accomplished researcher and that the proposed project is both innovative and of potential high impact.
• Budget and budget justification required for Exceptional Opportunities proposals. Budget template here.
• Letters of collaboration – NSF compliant format
• List of six suggested reviewers
• Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) approval and final submission to RCSA

• Exceptional Opportunities: State succinctly the problem that is to be addressed during the two-year duration of the SEED Award. Clearly outline the importance of the problem, giving special emphasis to new directions and to how successful outcomes will elevate the impact of your existing problem. Give an overview of the broader significance, outline your approach to the problem and include preliminary results. Point out innovative features, relate to previous work and indicate how this plan may contribute to the solution of the broader problem posed.

• New Research Directions: The proposed plan is limited to three pages using Arial 11-point font with 0.5″ margins. State succinctly the problem that is to be addressed during the two-year duration of the SEED Award. Clearly outline the importance of the problem, giving special emphasis to new promising activities and out-of-the-box ideas. Provide a compelling statement for how this seed grant (if funded) will lay the groundwork for attracting additional funding for project development. Give an overview of the broader significance as well as the potential high impact of your plan. No preliminary results are required.

• Format for both programs: Limit to three pages. Use Arial 11-point font with 0.5″ margins.

• Annotate the proposal with a list of references from the primary literature. Include all authors and titles. The list of references for both programs is limited to three pages.

• Sample 2026 New Research Directions proposal

• Sample 2026 Exceptional Opportunities proposal

Funds may be used to cover the stipends/salaries and benefits of research personnel up to their percent effort on the project, to purchase research supplies and computer time, to pay for access to shared facilities, and to meet other expenses directly related to the project; a more complete listing of allowed and unallowed expenses would be provided to the institution as conditions of acceptance after notification of an award.

In addition to these typical research expenses, allowable uses of funds for Exceptional Opportunities submissions include:

• For PUI faculty or research team member, travel to collaborate with off-campus research groups.
• Support of a graduating senior as a post-baccalaureate fellow.
• Purchase of equipment needed for the project. (Note that the remaining funds or other sources of support must be sufficient to carry out the proposed research.)

The 2026 round opened on March 4, 2026, and eligible Cottrell Scholars and Holland Awardees were emailed instructions on applying in RCSA’s new grants management system.

Submissions must conform to guidelines and directions and must be endorsed by the applicant’s home institution.  In PRISM, applicants will enter the name and email address of their institution’s Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR). When submitted by the applicant, the application will first route to the AOR for approval. Once approved, the application will be submitted to RCSA to review. Please consult your internal policies on approval timelines and plan to submit accordingly to ensure your proposal meets the deadline below. Proposals cannot be submitted to RCSA without institutional approval by the AOR.

SEED proposals are due by 11:00 p.m. MST March 31, 2026. This deadline includes approval by the institution’s AOR, so allow ample time to route through your Office of Sponsored Projects.

 Awards will be announced by August 2026.

Applications that conform to guidelines are sent out for external review by experts in the specific research area. Innovation and high impact are key criteria for selection of SEED awards.