We will begin receiving FRFF applications again starting January 3rd 2025. Enjoy the holiday break!

Apply Here!

About the Grant:

The STUDIO administers the Frank-Ratchye Further Fund (FRFF): an endowment to encourage the creation of innovative projects by the faculty, students and staff of Carnegie Mellon University.

Go through the slides at your own pace

[download the text searchable pdf]

With this fund, the STUDIO seeks to develop a cache of groundbreaking projects created at CMU — works that can be described as “thinking at the edges” of the intersection of disciplines. The Frank-Ratchye Further Fund supports approximately fifty projects per year through a combination of full grants and Microgrants.

Any faculty, student or staff person actively affiliated with Carnegie Mellon is eligible to apply, regardless of their home department.

You are strongly encouraged to book an appointment with the STUDIO Associate Director, Harrison Apple, to discuss questions about your research proposal prior to submission including eligibility and feasibility. You can draft your application ahead of time by using the application details at the bottom of this page. Awardees are required to sign the FRFF Award Agreement to receive / access their funds.

Apply for a FRFF (Full/Micro)  |   Submit Project Documentation   |   Submit Expense Reimbursements

Draft your Application Using the Sections Below

(UPDATED: July 10th 2024)

The FRFF Application questions are included below to help you draft your application as a research proposal. As a writing guideline, try to keep each section to no more than 200 words.

Have you discussed your proposal with a STUDIO staff member, and with whom?

• You are strongly encouraged to book an appointment with the STUDIO Associate Director, Harrison Apple, to discuss questions about your research proposal prior to submission including eligibility and feasibility. You can draft your application ahead of time by using the application details at the bottom of this page. Awardees are required to sign the FRFF Award Agreement to receive / access their funds.

Faculty Statement of Support

• All student applicants are required to have a faculty advisor sponsor their project, using this form.

Project Title

• What’s your project called?

Research Question

• Briefly tell us the research question driving your project?

Research Narrative

• What does your research entail? Briefly explain the methods you’ll be using and your desired outcome(s). The details of this process can be expanded in the next question.

Project Outline

• In list form, please outline the steps for process for completing this project.

Why are you applying to this (the FRFF) fund?

• Use this space to tell us why the FRFF is the funding source that matches your project needs. Are you chaffing at the edges of your discipline? Have you tried finding funding elsewhere? Are you pushing and furthering something for yourself and/or others? Tell us your “why”?

Biography

• Describe how your previous experiences, education, or training have prepared you to take on this project.

Supplemental Materials (File Upload)

• 100 MB maximum upload for carefully labeled materials to accompany your application during the review. This may include prior works and planning materials for your proposed research project.

Project URL

• If the project for which you seek support already has its own website or online media, please share its URL.

Micro/Full Grant (Click Option)

• Tell us if you are submitting an application for a Micro Grant (Rolling Applications) or a Full Grant (Fall and Spring Juried Round, deadlines above).

Minimum and Maximum Amount Requested ($ Amount)

• Minimum: What amount of funding will you need to complete the smallest scale version of your project?
• Maximum: What amount of funding would make this project ideal?

Maximum Amount Justification (Short answer)

• Please describe how your project would benefit from the additional funds, if the maximum amount were awarded. Imagine two scales of success for your proposal.

Budget

• We recommend using this template to outline how you intend to spend the award for your research project. It is crucial to demonstrate how you will use the total amount, including links to specific products and vendors, cost per item, and especially if you intend to hire others for assistance/services in order to complete the project. The form will ask for a minimum (barebones) budget and a maximum (dream-outcome) amount.
• If you are a student please note that funds are ideally distributed as Non-Qualified Scholarships (NQS). More information can be found here: https://www.cmu.edu/finance/taxation/guidelines/scholarships-fellowships.html
  For U.S. citizens and Resident Aliens for tax purposes, this income is self-reported. The student will not receive a Form 1099 and tax is not withheld on the income up front. It is advised that the students contact their personal tax advisor regarding the self-reporting and tax consequences.
  Foreign Nationals (nonresident aliens), however, are subject to tax withholding and reporting on non-qualified scholarships. The only way to be exempt from the tax is if there is a treaty between the foreign national’s home country and the United States and if the individual is qualified to take advantage of the treaty.”
  Please research this topic because if you are a “Foreign National” and receiving a NQS there may be taxes removed from the award before it arrives to you. Also please note that if you purchase the items yourself you must include sales tax in your budget. These considerations should be considered in your budget as they will impact the feasibility of your project.

Other Funding Sources

• Additional support is a huge benefit to your proposal (either monetary or in-kind). List those resources here so that we have a clear picture of the network of support you can draw on. The Frank-Ratchye Further Fund has been modeled on related internal grant programs within Carnegie Mellon University, including SURG (for undergraduate students), the HUB, ISURG (for undergraduate research projects while studying abroad), Scholarly Project Funding (for graduate students), Professional Engagement Funding (for graduate students) and The College of Fine Arts Fund for Research and Creativity (for full-time CFA faculty). Other potentially applicable sources of funding at CMU include the President’s various ProSEED grant programs, and the Henry Armero Award for Inclusive Creativity managed by the BXA Office of Intercollege Degree Programs. FRFF applicants seeking additional support for their projects should consider applying to these sources, as well, if applicable.

Projected Start Date (Click Option)

• Fall / Spring / Summer / Already in Progress

Anticipated Project Duration (Click Option)

• Under 6 months / Over Six Months

Is this a Group Project?

• If you are working with collaborators, please write-in their names in, or select “no”

Other Forms of Support You Might Need

• In addition to financial support, what additional forms of support might help you realize this project? Checking these boxes does not guarantee the availability of additional resources. Please follow up directly with the STUDIO <studio-info@andrew.cmu.edu>