18.09.2025

UNC Chapel Hill-University of Tübingen: Seed Funding Fall 2025

Deadline: 15 November 2025

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) and the University of Tübingen (UT) are pleased to announce a joint call for proposals to support collaborative research initiatives. We welcome submissions from all academic disciplines and schools, with priority given to applications that align with our universities’ strategic focus areas.

Max. Grant Amount: 10,000 € from UT and $10,000 from UNC-Chapel Hill

Purpose: Planning a larger and sustainable collaborative project and preparing an external grant application 

Application Deadline: 15 November 2025 (funds to be used by 31 November 2026)

Who can apply: Applications must be submitted by a team of researchers from both universities and include at least one full-time research or teaching faculty member. Graduate students and postdocs can be part of the team. Projects that have previously received funding through the UNC-UT Seed Fund or UT intramural funds for international exchange are not eligible for this call.

How to Apply: Please request an application form from a contact below. Send forms to: globalaffairsspam prevention@unc.edu  and international.researchspam prevention@uni-tuebingen.de

The following costs or activities can be covered by the Seed Grant:

• Travel costs to visit project partners, including for lab rotations, joint graduate training activities or collaborative projects;
• Organization of joint workshops or seminars on the research topic for researchers and graduate students;
• Equipment necessary for the project and not available at either university;
• Other costs directly related to project planning or implementation

Other Funding:
The Seed Grant can be combined with other grants, provided funds are not covering the same activities or costs.

Selection Process:
Applications will be evaluated by a joint UNC-UT committee.

Projects will be selected in accordance with the following main criteria:

• Academic quality, including ambition, innovation, output and impact (40%)
• Clarity of project intentions, project planning and budget feasibility (25%)
• Potential for sustained partnership between UNC and UT, as well as follow-up funding prospects (25%)
• Alignment with strategic research priorities of the universities (for UT: Core Research Areas and Profile Areas, for UNC: Research Strengths) (10%)

Contacts:
UNC-Chapel Hill: Melissa McMurray melissa_mcmurrayspam prevention@unc.edu 
UT: Unit for International Research Cooperation international.researchspam prevention@uni-tuebingen.de