UCLA and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Faculty Collaborative Grants

The UCLA-HKUST collaborative faculty grants are intended to build ties between the two institutions and promote collaboration in research and graduate training in the humanities or in the social and behavioral sciences. Comparative projects that include China and Asia as a major component are especially welcome, as are examinations of major global and transnational issues in which China or Asia have a prominent role. Projects must include collaborative research or joint planning in the case of faculty, and research or study with faculty of the other institution in the case of graduate students. Projects should be led by two principal investigators, one from UCLA regular ladder faculty and one assistant professor or above from HKUST, preferably from, but not restricted to, the School of Humanities and Social Science.  Projects that include the participation of faculty who are new to working with scholars from the partner’s geographic location or in an international context are encouraged.

Click Here for Online Application

There are two types of grants available for th 2014-15 academic year: Faculty Initiative grants, which provide up to $90,000 over three years; and Faculty Seed grants, which provide up to $15,000 for one year. Please see below for the possible types of activities that may be funded.

Proposals should include:

• Type of grant for which you are applying, including the specific activities planned
• Names and contact information for each of the Principal Investigators
• A 3-5 page project description that locates the proposed project within existing scholarship, specifies its potential contributions, links it to faculty interests and expertise at HKUST and UCLA, and provides concrete plans for collaborative activities by the Principal Investigators and other participants. Proposals should also specify a timeline for project related activities, especially reciprocal visits and other meetings by the Principal Investigators and other participants, and a publication plan for all affiliated project papers including likely venues for the publication of the papers from the final meeting
• A roster of participants from HKUST, UCLA, and other institutions that specifies their roles and indicates whether they have already made a commitment to participating, as appropriate
• Complete curriculum vitae for the Principal Investigators and two-page biosketches or abbreviated curriculum vitae for the other participants
• An itemized budget

Faculty Grant Categories

I. Faculty Collaborative Initiative Grants

Up to $90,000 over three years

Project awards are for three years and are intended to promote collaboration by the participating faculty.  Projects can include joint study of common problems, methods and materials, and may involve training graduate students regarding relevant sources, data, and methods by project members or invited speakers.  Each project should include at least one meeting at which papers suitable for publication in a conference volume from a major academic press or a special issue of a major journal is the end result.

Project expenses may not exceed HK $700,000 or US $90,000 per project. Allowable expenses include well justified research assistance, airfare, food and lodging for meeting participants, honoraria for faculty from other institutions who offer didactic training, and limited staff support related to organization of the meetings and preparation of final publication.  Funds are not to be used for salary support or course releases for faculty. Funds can be used for graduate student support but cannot exceed US $5,000 in total annually.

II. Faculty Collaborative Seed Grants

In order to promote and strengthen faculty collaborations and networks between faculty from UCLA and HKUST, funding of up to $15,000 is available for planning workshops, short-term faculty exchanges, continuation grants, and travel for research and conferences. Proposed projects must include the participation and/or sponsorship of one faculty from each institution and must be reciprocal in nature. Proposals may include one or multiple activities (ex. conference travel and short-term faculty exchange), but the budget must be within the maximum award amount of $15,000.

1. Planning grants

Up to $15,000

Projects must involve collaborative research, or research planning and pilot research by the participating faculty. Funds may be used for planning meetings, exploratory or brainstorming workshops, or joint pilot research projects and may include support for graduate students. Recipients of Planning grants may apply for subsequent Faculty Initiative or Continuation grants.

2. Continuation grants

Up to $15,000

Faculty who have already received an initiative grant or completed a planning workshop grant may apply for a continuation grant to further develop programs for sustained research networks and graduate training related to the themes of the original grant. Continuation projects may include the development of a joint graduate student seminar, ongoing working group meetings, second-phase collaborative research, or other platforms for sustaining networks among the primary institutions.

3. Short-term Faculty Exchange

Up to $5,000 per visit

Faculty from the partner institution may be invited for up to one month for short-term residencies to lead mini-courses, seminar series, or guest lecture series. The purpose of the faculty exchange is to provide opportunities for the visiting faculty and the students and research collaborators of the host institution to build knowledge networks and provide expertise that complements or augments the offerings of the host institution. Faculty exchanges must include a reciprocal arrangement of some kind, though activities do not need to match exactly. Funds may be used for travel, per diem expenses, and honoraria. Funding may used to supplement host institution support of visiting faculty.

4. Conference Travel Grants

Up to $2000

Travel grants are available to invite faculty or graduate students from the partner institution to participate in a conference at the host institution. This grant is meant to encourage the inclusion of faculty who are new to working outside their geographic specialization or who want to establish new international networks within their fields. For example, HKUST might invite a UCLA scholar from outside the field of Chinese studies to a conference on some aspect of the Humanities or Social Sciences. Conversely, UCLA might invite an HKUST scholar in the social sciences to a conference on Psychology or Economics. For this reason, justification must be given in the proposal demonstrating that this funding establishes a new direction for the sponsored faculty.

5. Graduate Student Support

Up to $5000

Funding may be used to support graduate student participation in a collaborative project or to pursue individual research projects that could benefit from collaboration or training with faculty at the partner campus. Allowable expenses include travel, research expenses, or stipends for work done on a project as a Graduate Student Researcher (GSR). Funds may not be used for tuition or living expenses during the reciprocal exchange student program.

Click Here for Online Application

Click here for information about the UCLA-HKUST graduate student exchange program.

Useful HKUST Faculty Websites:

Faculty Profiles and Research Activities: http://research.ust.hk/

Humanities Faculty Research Profiles: http://www-cgi.ust.hk/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/~ocgadb/research_profile.pl?Unit=HUMA#HUMA_1

Social Science Faculty Research Profiles: http://www.sosc.ust.hk/faculty/facuet.htm

For more information about the initiative, please contact Prof. Bin Wong (rbwong@international.ucla.edu) or Prof. Cameron Campbell (camcam@ust.hk).

HKUST has the largest interdisciplinary university-level program in humanities and social sciences in China and Greater China. Located on the Clear Water Bay peninsula in East Kowloon, Hong Kong, HKUST teaching is conducted in English, making it an inviting partner for UCLA faculty from all fields and disciplines. Visit http://www.shss.ust.hk/ to learn more about the School of Humanities and Social Science.

Past Projects

2010-2013: Class and China: An Inquiry in History, Theory and Method

• Ching Kwan Lee, UCLA Sociology
• Alvin So, HKUST Social Science

2011-2014: The Creation of the Vernacular in Early Twentieth-century China

• Theodore Huters, UCLA Asian Languages and Cultures
• Chen Jianhua, HKUST Humanities

2012-2015: The New Economic and Social History of China in Comparative Perspective

• R. Bin Wong, UCLA History
• James Z. Lee, HKUST Humanities and Social Science

2013-2016: 

• Faculty Initiative Grant: Religion and Politics in Comparison: The Graeco-Roman World and Early China (4th century BCE - 5th c. CE).PIs: Robert Gurval, UCLA Classics and Lu Zongli, HKUST Social Science/History
• Faculty Planning Grant: Labor Migration, Employment, and Occupational Changes in China, 1985 to 2010. PIs: Cindy Fan, UCLA Geography and John Z. Ma, HKUST Social Science

2015-2018:

• Where We Live Matters: The Social Consequences of Neighborhood Differentiation in Chinese Cities. PIs: Paavo Monkkonen, UCLA Urban Planning and Xiaogang Wu, HKUST Social Science.
• Toward an Eventful Sociology of the Hong Kong Umbrella Movement. PIs: Ching Kwan Lee, UCLA Sociology and Ming Sing, HKUST Social Science.