Rethinking Your Research Funding Course
This four-week virtual course is designed to help faculty shift their mindset around research funding and explore sustainable, alternative strategies beyond large federal grants. Through guided content, live coaching, and a supportive peer community, participants learn how to identify diverse funding sources, reframe their research for new audiences, and build actionable plans that align with their institutional goals and academic mission.
Whether you’re facing budget cuts, working in a discipline with limited grant options, or seeking a more practical funding approach, this course will help you move from uncertainty to clarity and momentum.
The first course starts October 6, 2025. Register now for $495.
Rethink What’s Possible with Grant Funding
Finding funding in today’s landscape takes more than persistence: it takes a new approach. This course helps faculty uncover alternative sources of funding that align with their research and community impact, particularly when traditional funding routes fall short.
Rather than starting with the grant, this course starts with your research goals and builds outward: identifying what’s essential, reframing your project, and building a plan that connects with nontraditional funders—from local governments to foundations and industry partners.
Through self-paced modules, live coaching, and a vibrant online community, participants leave with a clear plan, a renewed sense of agency, and strategies to secure funding in a sustainable, scalable way.
Why This Course?
This course was built to address a gap in how faculty are supported in securing research funding, especially when traditional pathways like large federal grants aren’t an option. It’s designed to help you reframe your approach, uncover new sources of support, and move forward with clarity and momentum:
- Mindset Shift – Move beyond the “one big grant” model and learn how to fund your work through smaller, mission-aligned sources.
- Clarity & Focus – Break down your research agenda and prioritize the most fundable components.
- Practical Tools – Learn how to identify, evaluate, and apply for funding that fits your goals—not just the loudest calls.
- Expanded Support Network – Build a mentor map that includes collaborators, funders, research offices, and allies across disciplines.
- Institutional Value – Complements existing research office support and builds capacity across faculty at scale.
What’s Included in the Rethinking Your Research Funding Course?
Weekly Modules
Bite-sized video and written content on funding mindset, opportunity search, plan creation, and application strategy.
Kickoff Webinar
Live orientation to connect with instructors, peers, and the course structure.
Live Group Coaching
Dedicated time to ask questions, get feedback, and refine your funding strategy in real time.
NCFDD Community
An exclusive online space where faculty from member institutions connect, crowdsource ideas, and support one another across disciplines.
Strategic Planning Tools
Templates and exercises to help you build a funding plan and mentor map aligned with your goals.
Resource Library
Curated materials on alternative funding types, networking strategies, application tips, and more.
What makes this course different?
Unlike the typical grant-writing workshops or one-time webinars, this course offers a structured, faculty-centered approach to long-term funding success.
Built Around Your Research
We help you adapt your project to funding—not the other way around.
Actionable, Not Theoretical
You’ll leave with a concrete plan, not just ideas.
Faculty-Led and Realistic
Designed by academic leaders who understand the time pressures and resource gaps faculty face.
Complementary to Campus Support
This course amplifies what your research office offers, by preparing you to make the most of it.
Related Programs
Institutional Membership
Give your faculty year-round access to productivity tools, mentoring resources, and community support.
Designed for:
Graduate students | Early Career | Alt-ac | Tenure Track | Mid-Career Faculty | Senior Faculty
Campus Workshops
Bring expert-led sessions on funding strategy, time management, and proposal planning directly to your institution.
Designed for:
Early Career Faculty | Alt-ac | Tenure Track | Mid-Career Faculty