Questions may be directed to Maite Zabala-Alday,
Executive Director, Corporate and Foundation Relations, at
mailto:maite.alday@ucr.edu

The W.M. Keck Foundation offers the opportunity to
discuss potential projects with universities in the areas of 1) Medical
Research; 2) Science & Engineering Research. 

Purpose: The W. M. Keck Research Program seeks to
benefit humanity by supporting Medical Research and Science & Engineering
projects that are distinctive and novel in their approach, question the
prevailing paradigm, or have the potential to break open new territory in their
field.

Award: $1.2 million over three years, starting
January 2025

Eligibility: Faculty may be nominated by Deans of
Research or may self-nominate. Both Senior and Early Career investigators are
encouraged to apply.

Process:  Interested faculty should submit an
internal preproposal following the below one-page format by May 1, 2024. After
initial campus review, UCR designated liaison will submit up to four
(preproposal) concept papers in Medical Research and four in Science &
Engineering Research for consideration. One proposal from each area will
advance to the Phase One application. 

Instructions: Per the Keck Foundation’s guidelines at
Concept Papers (wmkeck.org), concept papers must fit to one page in a Microsoft
Word document formatted with 12-point, Times New Roman, font with 1 inch
margins. Include:

• Organization Name, Project Title, and Full Name of
  Principal Investigator
• 
  
  An overview of the proposed project emphasizing
  any unique aspects and pilot studies (indicate area of emphasis for project -
  medical research or science & engineering research);
• 
  
  A description of the methodologies and listing of
  key personnel;
• 
  
  A brief justification of the need for W.M. Keck
  Foundation support; and
• 
  
  An estimated budget broken down, if possible, by
  major areas, e.g., personnel, equipment, consumable supplies, etc. Budgets
  should total $1.2 million and expenses should be rounded to the nearest
  $100,000. A rough estimate is sufficient.
• Submit by 5/1/2024 to
  mailto:limitedsubmissions@ucr.edu. DO NOT contact the Keck Foundation.

Illustrations are not recommended at this phase as they
take space needed for text. If a reference is necessary, abbreviate it as
(Science, 323, 45, ‘11). DO NOT USE (Jones et al., 2011).  If space
allows, the authors are free to add other details (e.g., background to put the
research into perspective, description of the institution’s prominence in the
field, etc.)

Selection Criteria: A successful Keck proposal

• Focuses on a unique, important emerging area of
  research
• 
  
  Has the potential to develop breakthrough methodologies
• 
  
  Demonstrates a high level of risk due to unconventional
  approaches, or by challenging a prevailing paradigm
• 
  
  Has the potential for transformative impact, such as
  the founding of a new field of research, the enabling of observations not
  previously possible, or the altered perception of a previously intractable
  problem
• 
  
  Falls outside the mission of public funding
  agencies 

Common reasons why concepts are rejected by Keck:

• The project is not ambitious enough (i.e., it
  represents only a small advance vs. creating a new paradigm).
• 
  
  The proposal does not fully detail the scope of work
  and potential impact.
• 
  
  The proposal lacks clear research methodology.
• The project focuses on disease-related therapies or
  treatments (in the case of medical research) as opposed to bench science.
• The project is focused on a device as opposed to bench
  science.
• 
  
  The project focuses on revision or scaling of existing
  technology.
• 
  
  The project focuses on implementation or policy.

FAQ:

• For the pre-proposal, a one-page concept paper is
  required (NOT the three pages that are usually part of UCR’s Limited Submission
  process).
• 
  
  Projects proposed must already have been declined by
  relevant federal agencies; Keck’s first question is whether all other funding
  possibilities have been pursued.
• 
  
  The Keck Foundation will request previous federal
  feedback as part of their review process. Ideally, federal reviewer comments
  reflect that the research is innovative, exciting, and would have a large
  impact, but is too risky or falls outside the scope of federal agencies.