MUSSI Small Research Grants 2025 Scheme 

    in collaboration with the Faculty of Social Sciences Research Committee 

    As research remains essential to the work of the university, MUSSI ​have allocated funding for the current academic year to help support members of the faculty to maintain their research productivity. 
     
    It is proposed to make small faculty research grants available to individual faculty members or teams of researchers for amounts ranging from €1000 to €5000 to fund the cost of specific research related activities in the Social Sciences.  These include, but are not limited to, the following: 
     

    • Data collection or purchase of datasets
    • Technical training
    • Transcriptions
    • Analysis
    • Writing and editing assistance
    • Grant application writing
    • Networking costs (professional or academic association memberships, conferences, networking activities for the socialization of research or the development of industry contacts etc).

     
    It will be possible to apply for funding to employ Research Assistants to assist with any of the above, but these must be in line with current Maynooth University HR policies.  We regret that it is not possible to use this funding to apply for the buy-out of teaching time.  
     
    Joint funding proposals from colleagues within the FSS are welcomed; particularly those where a colleague collaborates with an early career colleague. Priority will be given to researchers who have not already been in receipt of MUSSI funding.
     
    Funding proposals will be reviewed, evaluated and ranked by a panel. Applicants are asked to address in the application template (provided below):
     

    • The names and departmental affiliation of applicants.  In case of joint applications, early stage career colleagues should be clearly identified.  
    • A clear statement of how much funding they have applied for.
    • A summary of how this budget will be spent. 
    • A statement of all recent research funding received.
    • The anticipated outputs of the research (publications, conferences, network building, future grant awards, etc.)
    • The estimated number of FTEs at undergraduate and taught postgraduate level you are scheduled to teach in the semester 2 2024/25.  If these are not available, please estimate these based on the class sizes of the modules you have taught in the previous years.  If you will co-teach these with a colleague  or colleagues, please indicate what percentage of the module you will teach.  
    • Student-oriented service roles currently held which are likely to reduce the amount of research time available to applicants in the coming academic year
    • A statement of how the proposed research project(s) for which funding is sought will meet the strategic aims of the institute and university.