In the United States, the federal government often supports research and development efforts at higher education institutions. And at Case Western Reserve University, this support drives many of our projects.
The Office of Research and Technology Management (ORTM) can help you navigate the broad network of federal funding agencies that award grants to projects or programs focused on research to support the public good.
In this section, you can explore an assortment of resources and tips for finding federal funding opportunities within these agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF), Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), Departments of Energy and Defense, and others.
Curate and Filter Your Searches
There are a variety of ways you can customize your search for funding at the federal level.
Grants.gov, an online portal that enables federal grant-making agencies to create and share funding opportunities, can also help you find and apply for federal grants, with a variety of filtering abilities. Find federal funding via Grants.gov.
Or, search for new funding opportunities within your preferred agency, such as via the NSF’s funding search tool or NIH's Find Grant Funding Guide. ORTM staff can help you navigate these processes.
Stay Up to Date on Opportunities
Part of connecting with federal funding opportunities is knowing what’s available. Keep up with these tips to ensure you’re in the know when new opportunities emerge.
Subscribe to Emails and Newsletters
Some federal funding agencies send regular emails with grant information and other announcements. You may wish to:
- Sign up to receive emails from the NSF with program announcements and information updates;
- Sign up for regular updates via emails from the NIH; or
- Sign up for ORTM’s biweekly newsletter, “Funding Opportunities.” This publication includes federal funding opportunities, as well as foundation funding opportunities and available state and regional funding options.
Subscribe to Agency RSS Feeds
You can stay informed about new and updated grant opportunities through RSS feeds, which offer continuously updated announcements. Please note, Google Chrome users must install the RSS feed extension in order to view these pages.
Follow Social Media Feeds
Some of your preferred funding organizations post their latest funding opportunities on X (formerly known as Twitter). Follow these accounts to make sure you see new posts when they go live:
Understand Agencies’ Priorities
Each federal funding agency has priorities, and these priorities change every year. It’s important to drill down into what each agency is really looking for during their latest funding round.
Funding Forecasts and Cleared Concepts
If you look in the right places, you can learn about emerging research initiatives before the funding opportunity announcements are socialized. Available NIH Agency Forecasts and cleared concepts include those from:
- National Cancer Institute
- National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
- National Institute on Aging
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
- National Institute for Dental and Craniofacial Research
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
- National Institute on Drug Abuse
- National Institute of General Medicine Sciences Feedback Loop Blog
- National Institute of Mental Health
Federal Workshop Reports
Federal agencies host sponsored workshops that provide information on their ongoing priorities and new research initiatives. Workshop reports are available following these events and can offer valuable insight as you identify opportunities. Take a look:
- Air Force Office of Sponsored Research APAN
- Department of Defense Basic Research Future Direction Workshops
- Department of Energy Basic Energy Sciences (BES) Workshop Reports
- Department of Energy Biological and Environmental Research (BER) Workshop Reports
- Office of Science and Technology Policy
Consult Program Officials
Program officials play leading roles in making funding decisions and can serve as important resources to investigators, who can turn to them when finding funding and throughout the grant preparation process. Program officials can answer your questions, advise you on applying for grants, explain summary statements and provide guidance on managing awards.
Federal agencies have lists and tools to help you identify the correct program official to contact related to your research area. Broad agency announcements and funding opportunity announcements often list the program official’s name and contact information.
Resources
- ARPA-H Programs and Program Managers
- NASA Program Officers List
- NIH Matchmaker Tool
- DARPA New Program Managers
- NSF’s award search tool (best used to look for programs and program officers that manage awards related to your work)
- Tips for Working with NSF Program Officers
- Talking to NIH Staff About Your Application and Grant: Who, What, When, Why and How