Student Project Funding

The Keller Center provides funding to support engineering students participating in STEM- or humanities-focused research and development activities, as well as non-engineering students participating in STEM-focused projects. Projects that also relate to entrepreneurship and design thinking are particularly encouraged.

By applying, you are requesting funding. Requests are not always granted; if they are, you may not be granted the total requested amount.

Eligibility

  • Princeton undergraduate and graduate students and student organizations (NOTE: E-Club teams must request funding through your co-presidents)
  • Must consist of at least one engineering student and/or the project must have STEM focus
  • If funding request is for an outside event, you must be actively involved in the event (e.g., speaker, presenter); funding requests for attendance only will not be accepted

Funding may not be used for classwork, junior independent work, senior thesis research, or startup funding; instead:

Award Amounts

  • Individual student
    Up to $1,000 per academic year
  • Group or student club
    Up to $3,000 per academic year

Application Period

  • Application opens: September 17, 2023
  • Application closes: March 31, 2024 at 11:59 p.m.
  • Decisions typically within two weeks of submission

Program Requirements

Application Prep

  • Discuss the proposed project with your faculty or staff adviser.
  • Ensure your adviser will provide a recommendation (will be facilitated via SAFE)
  • Create a thorough, accurate, and reasonable budget and justify your estimated costs.
  • If the proposal includes travel, your plans must be submitted and approved in Enroll My Trip and you must abide by all University travel rules and regulations.
  • If you are part of an unofficial/unregistered group participating in the same activity, and do not have a group ID to access the group SAFE application, you must have an administrator sponsor your activity by requesting a group ID via this form.  The sponsor will need to provide the chart string in the request that will be used to receive awarded funds.

Application

  • Answer all questions and upload all documents as indicated on the application, including recommendation.  Incomplete applications will not be considered. 
  • There are separate funding opportunities for undergraduate students, graduate students, individuals, and groups; be sure you are selecting the correct activity type.
  • Ensure you have a strong adviser endorsement and a feasible budget as these are heavily considered during application review.
  • If the proposal includes travel, you must apply a minimum of one month prior to your travel date; three months is recommended for complex travel.

Post-Project

By the deadline indicated in the award notice, you must:

  • Provide a full account of your expenses, including portions of the award covered by other funders.
  • Substantiate all expenses by uploading receipts to SAFE.
  • Return unspent funds via check or money order payable to Princeton University Trustees and delivered to the Princeton Entrepreneurial Hub, Room 113.
  • Upload a final project report to SAFE containing:
    • A narrative account of the research/activities undertaken with the support of the award
    • An acknowledgement to the donor of the funds (name is listed on award letter)

 

Apply via SAFE

Contacts

Manda Ryan
Program Coordinator, eLab and Tiger Challenge