Research, scholarship and creative activities are an integral aspect of California State University, Los Angeles. Campus research enhances one's field of study, educational experience and helps prepare one—whether an educator or student—for the future work environment.
Research and Development Faculty Liaisons Services
ORSCA Faculty Liaisons are here to support your research development. The Research Development Faculty Liaisons provide the following services:
- Connect faculty members with others with similar research interests
- Support in conceptualizing research ideas
- Brainstorm ideas to create logic models and conceptual frameworks
- Assist with identifying grant/ foundation opportunities
- Investigate the grant opportunity's eligibility and submission requirements
- Assist with grant development
- Edit proposals for clarity
- Secure letters of support Monitor compliance
- Assist with revision and re-submission
Internal Campus Funding
Internal funding opportunities, also known as the Research, Scholarship & Creative Activities Awards (RSCA), support faculty and student engagement in research, scholarship and creative activities through Minigrants and Assigned Time Awards.
These up to $5,000 awards allow faculty to test promising ideas. Funds can be used for undergraduate and/or graduate assistants, clerical assistance, travel and supplies necessary for the activity. Minigrants may not be used for faculty release time from teaching assignments. Minigrants must be expended by the end of the fiscal year—please ask your Resource Manager for specific dates. Additionally, a summary report of your funded project must be submitted to the Chancellor’s Office and the Office of Research, Scholarship and Creative Activities. Note: If funded, proposed expenditures must be approved with your resource manager.
Online application submissions are generally due in Spring term.
Assigned time awards provide faculty with a one-course release (three units) to develop or complete research, scholarship or creative activities. These awards must be taken during the Fall or Spring term of the academic year. A summary report of your funded project must be submitted to the Chancellor’s Office and the Office of Research, Scholarship and Creative Activities.
Online application submissions are generally due in Spring term.
External Funding Opportunities
External funding opportunities include federal, state, and private foundation support. Cal State LA has numerous resources to help in the search for external opportunities.
Pivot combines the most comprehensive, editorially maintained database of funding opportunities worth an estimated $33 billion with our unique database of 3 million pre-populated scholar profiles, drawing from Community of Scholars and Community of Science profiles. Its proprietary algorithm compiles pre-populated researcher profiles unique to your organization (and others) and matches them to current funding opportunities in the expansive COS database. This allows users to search for a funding opportunity and instantly view matching faculty from inside or outside your institution. Conversely, a search for a scholar will link to matching funding opportunities.
Grants.gov contains all discretionary grants offered by the 26 federal grant-making agencies, including Department of Education, NSF, NASA, Department of Defense, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, Department of Health and Human Services (including NIH), Department of Homeland Security, and many more.
GrantSearch is part of the Grants Resource Center. It was developed to make finding federal and private foundation grant information accessible and convenient by allowing the user to search the funding opportunity database using five criteria: academic subject, activity, funding sponsor, deadline month, and text. This is a subscription database, accessible from campus computers. If you are off campus, you may obtain the required username and password by logging in here with your NIS account and password. You may also request this information by email, using your campus email address.
Fulbright offers U.S. faculty, administrators and professionals grants to lecture or do research in a wide variety of academic and professional fields, or to participate in seminars.
National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent grant-making agency of the United States government dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities.
The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts, both new and established; bringing the arts to all Americans; and providing leadership in arts education.