July 01, 2020
Sigma Xi invites undergraduate and graduate students to apply for research grants from its Grants in Aid of Research (GIAR) program. The application portal is open starting today at www.sigmaxi.org/giar. The portal will close on October 1. Awards in this cycle will be dispersed in January 2021.
GIAR application deadlines are March 15 and October 1 each year. The program awards grants of up to $1,000 to students from most areas of the sciences and engineering. Larger grants are available for research related to astronomy and vision, and for vision-impaired students.
The grants are used to cover travel expenses to and from a research site, or to help a student purchase non-standard laboratory equipment that is necessary to complete a specific research project.
In the spring 2020 cycle, GIAR awarded $127,531 to 110 students, out of the 889 applications received. These undergraduate students, master’s degree students, and doctoral candidates from four countries are using their grants to tackle a diverse set of projects, from understanding bat foraging behavior to harvesting solar energy with transparent solar cells.
Funds from the National Academy of Sciences and individual gifts make the grants possible. The program is also operating with extra funds from a gift from the San Antonio Lighthouse for the Blind & Vision Impaired, which creates funding for vision-related research and for vision impaired students. Additionally, designated funds are available for research projects that investigate antibiotic resistance and the origin of life.
To see stories of past recipients, visit the Faces of GIAR page.
GIAR funded 12 percent of the grant applications received in the previous cycle, but it could award more grants in future cycles if the program receives more gifts. Sigma Xi is committed to strengthening the GIAR program, which has awarded student research grants since 1922. To make a gift to GIAR, go to www.sigmaxi.org/support-giar.