Finding Opportunities for Faculty Research

*This article was written in 2017

An essential part of the role of a faculty member at International Christian University is that of independent research. Although at times it may be challenging to balance research with teaching responsibilities, professional development, administrative duties and community service, time spent independently or collaboratively on research projects will help grow you as a faculty member, increase your presence in your specific field of study, raise ICU’s value as a research institution and allow you to be a role model to your students who may be future researchers themselves. One aspect of faculty research that can be most daunting and limiting is that of finding available funding and writing a successful proposal to access that funding. In this section, suggestions for where and how to apply for funding for your research will be presented.

There are several different strategies for obtaining the financial means for conducting independent research as a professor. Faculty members can seek out opportunities within their own university or department, in their field through various organizations, in their country of employment and through larger, international grants and fellowships. Each of these avenues along with specific examples will be shared below.

Departmental or University Funding

At ICU, faculty members can apply through the Japan ICU Foundation (JICUF) for a variety of funding options. Through its Grants for Faculty initiative, JICUF seeks to encourage ICU faculty to create innovative projects that are international in scope and aligned with ICU’s commitment to the liberal arts. ICU faculty and educational staff can submit proposals in either the Program Grant category or the Visiting Scholars Program category. Faculty and staff may only submit one proposal at a time, and may not submit the same proposal under both categories. There is also a research grant category that is currently under review to be made available soon. Applications are received twice a year and are outlined in the timeline below. Please refer to jicuf.org for more information.

There may also be additional opportunities available in your department. Talk to your department chair for other sources for research funding, professional development scholarships and ways to get involved in current and future departmental projects that may already have financial support.

Funding through Professional Organizations

Another common method of obtaining funding for faculty research is through domestic or international professional organizations in your field of study. Not only does becoming a member of a professional network aid in keeping you up-to-date on future conferences and professional development opportunities but they usually offer funding to conduct research in the field with a chance to present at the annual conference or workshop and allow you access to valuable experience in leadership roles within the organization as well.

For example, many faculty members in ICU’s ELA department are members of the national organization called the Japanese Association for Language Teachers (JALT) as well as international organizations such as Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (IATEFL). These organizations offer research funding at the local chapter, district, national and international funding along with scholarships to attend their respective conferences. Talk to your department chair and other ICU faculty members in our department to see what professional organizations they are members of and consider joining several yourself.

Funding through Domestic Organizations and Private Companies

Teaching and conducting research in the country of Japan offers its own set of unique funding opportunities. The following are just a few of the many examples of for and nonprofit organizations that donate funding for the purpose of academic research in Japan:

http://www.suntory.com/sfnd/

https://www.toyotafound.or.jp/english/

https://www.jsps.go.jp/english/e-grants/

http://www.mitsubishi-zaidan.jp/en/

http://matsushita-konosuke-zaidan.or.jp/en/works/research/promotion_research_01.html

http://www.jfc.or.jp/eng/links/

http://www.sumitomo.or.jp/e/Jare/japanrela.htm

http://hisf.or.jp/english/researcher/index.html

http://www.okawa-foundation.or.jp/en/activities/research_grant/

http://www.tokyobrf.or.jp/english/

http://www.scholarship.or.jp/english/newgrant/

https://portal.icu.ac.jp/sso/page_8028c979_2952791310 (Japanese only; ICU internal use only)

Funding through International Grants and Scholarships

Perhaps the most competitive, but also the most prestigious and lucrative, means of funding are research grants and fellowships open to a global pool of applicants. In this category of grants, it is worth selecting only two or three that best fit your profile and research goals as the application processes tend to be lengthy and time-consuming. It may also be helpful to peruse successful biographies of previous grant winners to gauge your chances of success.

Since there are is an enormous amount and variety of international grants and fellowships, there are a few organizations that filter opportunities according to your background and needs which can save time and effort. One such resource is called ProFellow, which allows you, among other things, to search an international online database of research fellowships, sign up to receive notifications for similar, upcoming opportunities and create a user profile so fellowship recruiters can view you as a potential applicant. A similar list of fellowships in social change, social entrepreneurship, development, peacebuilding and related fields is the PCDN network. For those looking for international research grants in the natural sciences, a similar list is found here.

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