PSC-CUNY Research Award Program (Administered by the CUNY RF)
The Professional Staff Congress-City University of New York (PSC-CUNY) Research Award Program was established as a major vehicle for the University’s encouragement and support of research and to leverage external funding. It seeks to enhance the University’s role as a research institution, further the professional growth and development of its full-time instructional staff, and provide support for both the established and the younger scholar. Funding supports activities in the creative arts and research in natural science, social science and humanities, including research related to curriculum development, improvement in teaching, adaptation of standard educational techniques to special clientele and the relationship between technical or occupational training and the liberal arts curriculum. Awards are distributed by the University Committee on Research Awards, a faculty committee, and administered by the Research Foundation of CUNY. Preference is given to junior faculty in the allocation of funds.
A three-year pilot program modifying the structure of the PSC-CUNY Research Award Program was made permanent in a letter of agreement dated February 27, 2014.
The program has three components:
Traditional A Awards: up to $3,500
Traditional B Awards: up to $6,000
Enhanced Awards: up to $12,000
- The majority of funding will go to Traditional A Awards, with Traditional B Awards receiving approximately half of the funding allocated to Traditional A Awards.
- Eligibility criteria, as expressed in the contract, remain unchanged, including the special attention to supporting the work of untenured faculty.
- Applicants may apply for an award in only one category in any given year.
- As in the past, there are restrictions on applications by faculty receiving major external grant funding in direct costs for their research, and on the number of consecutive awards tenured faculty may receive—two awards in any three-year period, only one of which may be an Enhanced Award.
- The selection of Traditional A and B Awards will be made by 18 discipline-based panels, each of which will include both senior and community college faculty. Panel chairs shall serve three-year staggered terms.
- Traditional A and B Award applications are not subject to budget modifications by the panels.
- The Enhanced Award applications will receive written reviews, and the selection will be made by the new University Committee on Research Awards, comprised of the panel chairs.
- The deadline for applications has been moved to December 15; there will be no out-of-cycle or emergency Awards.
For more information, guidelines and application, go to the CUNY RF webpage about the PSC-CUNY Research Award Program.
