Propel Grants are designed to help teams take their projects to the next level by providing strategic support for large-scale, complex proposals. These grants fund additional activities in the final stages of proposal development, enhancing strategic positioning, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, and addressing key gaps to strengthen the proposal’s competitiveness. Rather than covering baseline preparation, Propel Grants support the extra steps—such as strategic planning, advanced preparation, and targeted refinements—that position teams to succeed in securing external funding.
These grants are intended for projects that exceed typical scope, budget, or team size expectations, often involving interdisciplinary partnerships to tackle major societal or research challenges. Propel Grants are aimed at large-scale projects in both STEM and the arts, humanities, and social sciences. In STEM, suitable opportunities may include center-type grants such as NSF Science and Technology Centers, DOE Energy Frontier Research Centers, and NIH P50 or U54 awards. In the arts, humanities, and social sciences, projects may target NEH Collaborative Research Grants, NEA Grants for Arts Projects, and select Mellon grants. This list is not exhaustive but illustrates the kinds of complex funding opportunities the Propel Grants aim to support.