Research Bridge Program

Research Bridge Program

Objectives

Purdue's Bridge Program will provide short-term, limited financial support for faculty research programs during periods when externally funded research programs have experienced a temporary funding gap. Funds will be used to maintain research programs at a minimum "essential" level for a limited time to facilitate success in re-securing external funding.

Deadline	Award Amount	Contact
Open	Varies	Mary Millsaps millsaps@purdue.edu (765) 494-0702

Click here to start the funding request

Award

The award amount will be commensurate with minimal funding levels to sustain a program and will be based on a review of the funding history and potential for future funding. A single, non-recurring award is anticipated. Any funds not expended by the end of the award period will be returned to the appropriate unit.

Matching Funds

All OVPR bridge funding support requires 1:1 match. That match can come from any combination of support from the faculty member’s home unit and college/school. If awarded, such matching funds will be transferred from the source account to a separate, account established for the awarded activity. For sources of funding difficult to transfer, units can capture those funds as in-kind contributions within the application budget. Any funds remaining at the end of the award period will be returned to the OVPR, home unit and/or college equitably.

Eligibility

Tenure-track, tenured and research faculty with an established record of externally funded research programs on the West Lafayette campus are eligible to apply. Before bridge funding is awarded, applicants must have expended all unrestricted start-up funds.

Submission Process

Applicants do not have to submit through their Sponsored Program Services (SPS) Pre-Award team.

To initiate the process, click the button above. Be prepared to upload the following documents into the system; each as a separate document.

Required Documents

1. A brief description of the research program and explanation of need including the following:
   • Past record of external funding
   • Efforts underway to secure external funding to sustain the program beyond the bridging period
   • If sponsor reviews have been received, a 1 page response to those reviews indicating how the proposal will be modified to respond to reviewers comments
2. Agency reviews, rankings, etc.
3. Budget (Template)
   • Clearly indicating contributions from each supporting unit
   • Signed by fiscal officer for contributing unit (i.e. Business Manager for Dept., or DFA for College)
4. A letter or email from chair or head of the unit (e.g., department, division, center, institute, etc.) addressing the following:
   • Confirming the matching funds provided by the unit
   • An explanation of how the research program fits the unit’s research priorities
   • An assessment of the budget
   • An assessment of the investigator’s ability to attain continuation or new funding to sustain or extend research activities into the future
5. An endorsement from the Dean indicating he or she is aware of the request, concurs with the Department head’s assessment, and confirming the matching funds provided by the college (This endorsement could be in the form of an email, or co-signature on the department head letter)

Criteria for Funding

The funding criteria will be based on the evidence of a funding gap in an existing program, commitment by the unit and college through matching support, and the potential for success in re-attracting external research funding to sustain the research and scholarly activities into the future.

Frequently Asked Questions can be found at FAQ's