Early Career Psychologist

The Society for Military Psychology (APA Division 19) offers annual Early Career Psychologist (ECP) Professional Development Grants to support the advancement of military psychology. The purpose of the Division 19 ECP Grant Program is to assist ECPs in covering costs associated with a wide variety of career advancement pursuits. 

Grant applicants may request up to $4,000 in funding. Additionally, applicants may request up to $750 for dedicated travel expenses to present related content at the APA Annual Convention or a Division 19 Conference. All applicants are strongly encouraged to contribute to the educational enhancement of Division 19 members either through conference participation or subsequent publication.

Disbursement of Funds:

• Non-travel funds can be disbursed shortly after the funding decision.

• Travel funds will be disbursed after proof of need (e.g., conference abstract acceptance) or after the event (e.g., receipts from conference attendance).

Note: If funds are disbursed directly to an individual, this constitutes a taxable event. If funds are disbursed to an organization, the award is not considered taxable income to the individual.

Applications can be submitted April 1 to June 1.

Applicants and grant requests must meet the following requirements:

• Be a member of the Society for Military Psychology (as either a Member or Professional Affiliate) and within 10 years of receiving their doctoral degree by the application deadline.

• The proposed project must relate to military psychology, service member needs, or veteran care/experience.

• Applicants must include a direct cost projection to support the grant request.

• The grant cannot be used for indirect costs.

• Proposals should focus on non-research professional development activities such as (but not limited to):

  • Books or journal subscriptions

  • Conference or workshop attendance

  • Licensure preparation

  • Board certification fees

  • Consulting fees

  • Other reasonable professional activities

Once the application period closes, the ECP committee will conduct a comprehensive review process, using a standardized scoring rubric and multiple individual reviews.

• Applications will be scored by ECP committee members, with the final ranking based on the combined scores.

• A committee meeting will be held before and after rankings to ensure the structured and comprehensive process was followed before final decisions are made.

Proposals should be concise and convey concepts in simple terms but with sufficient detail to achieve clarity. Proposals should be prepared in accordance with the latest edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.

Email all application materials to: The ECP Committee (ecp_committee@militarypsych.org).

All required documents must:

 • use 12-point font with 1” margins, single spacing

 • be combined into a single PDF, in the order listed below; the PDF file name should be labeled as: Last Name, First Initial, Year, "ECP"

 • follow steps outlined in the submission portal at the top of the page for final submission to the review committee.

The required documents (page limits) are as follows:

1. Professional Development Proposal (2 pages maximum): Describe how the funds will be used (e.g., licensure/board certification fees, conference/workshop attendance, books/journal subscriptions) and explain their relevance to military psychology and the applicant’s professional development.

2. Abbreviated CV (2 pages maximum)

3. Division Engagement Plan (1 page maximum): Provide a statement on how this professional development will enhance the applicant's engagement with Division 19.

4. Budget and Budget Justification (no page limit): Outline the budget and provide a justification for each expense.