Funding to kick-start early-stage, risky and ‘blue skies’ research between world-leading institutions

Applications

Applications for the NTU - Imperial Education Seed Fund are now closed. 

 

Imperial and NTU have committed to build on the success of the joint Lee Kong Chiang medical school and develop a wider institutional partnership across research, education, and innovation. 

Building on the success of the NTU-Imperial Research Collaboration Fund, the partners have launched the second round of the education seed fund.  

The fund encourages projects that combine expertise and efforts across Imperial and NTU to jointly develop new teaching, learning and student experience opportunities. 

There will be an online information session held on 25 April. The link to register can be found in the guidance document.

At Imperial, this fund has been made available as part of the President’s Excellence Fund for Learning and Teaching Innovation.

Guidance

Types of Projects

Projects are expected to benefit students and staff at both institutions. Applicants must clearly state the impact that the award will bring to both institutions in terms of student experience, and, where possible, involve staff-student partnerships in the design and delivery. 

Projects which support development in the following areas are encouraged:  

  • Research-led education: projects that are informed by the most recent research in the relevant topic. This could entail encouraging students to participate in research projects. 
  • New applications for digital technologies: Projects that pursue innovative, inclusive and impactful online experiential learning opportunities. 
  • Multidisciplinary, global challenge topics that are linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 
  • Student entrepreneurship: Projects that provide students with the knowledge, skills, and resources to develop an entrepreneurial mindset through joint projects or creating experiential learning opportunities (e.g. joint hackathons). 
  • Flexible lifelong learning/practitioner education: Projects that meet the needs of learners at different stages of their lives and careers. 
  • Learning analytics: projects that foster knowledge exchange on approaches to building learning analytics platforms, and structures, and designing metrics to support and enhance the student experience. 
  • Exchange of academic and professional knowledge: Study visits or workshops to clearly and demonstrably aid the exchange of academic and professional knowledge, including sharing of good practice to underpin the preparation of a long-term collaborative partnership (e.g. preparation of a PhD summer school, joint module delivery, future exchange agreement, etc)

All projects are encouraged to incorporate digital innovations appropriate to achieving their project goals in line with institutional education strategies: 

Projects can be either curriculum based or extracurricular. Interdisciplinary projects are particularly encouraged. 

Funding

This call has a total indicative budget of £20,000 from Imperial and S$32,600 from NTU Singapore, to be awarded to up to 5 successful NTU and Imperial collaborating teams. 

Total project budget (Imperial and NTU) requests are not expected to exceed GBP 10,000 resp. 1SGD 16,200 based on the latest prevailing SGD exchange rate (equal partitioning £5,000/ S$8,150 or in differing amounts, e.g. £3000/ SGD5,000). 

 Eligible costs

Imperial College 

NTU  

Cost 

eligible / not eligible  

Cost 

eligible / not eligible  

 

Student support costs  

(e.g student bursaries) 

eligible  

EOM (Manpower) 

 

eligible 

Consumables 

eligible 

OOE (Materials & Consumables) 

 

OOE (Subject/Volunteer Payment) 

eligible 

Travel and subsistence  
 

eligible 

OOE (Travel) 

 

eligible  

 

Project related equipment 

eligible 

OOE Related Expenses (Other Miscellaneous cost) 

eligible 

Professional services fees  

eligible 

OOE Related Expenses (Other Miscellaneous cost) 

eligible 

Indirect and estate costs 

not eligible 

Indirect and estate, IT equipment, personal productivity communication tools  

not eligible 

Salary costs (staff) 

not eligible  

Teaching release 

not eligible 

Eligibility and Process

At Imperial, the fund is open to permanent members of staff only. At NTU, the fund is open to full-time faculty members. 

One proposal per principal applicant per call is permitted. 

Each application should have one principal applicant based at Imperial and one principal applicant at NTU and should contain:  

  • A written case for support to address the following questions:  
  1. Alignment to call: A description of the project and collaboration proposed, a brief description of the intended use and impact of the funding. Please refer to point 1 above for guidance.  
  2. Impact on student experience: A description of how the project will benefit students at both institutions, and how it will facilitate students working together across institutions. 
  3. Added value: Explanation of how the activities proposed generate demonstrable added value that has the potential to change teaching.  
  4. Sustainability and strategic value: A description of the long-term impact and development of the project, and how it will add value to the strategic partnership between NTU and Imperial.  
  5. NTU-Imperial partnership: A description of how the project team will collaborate throughout the project and the benefits of involving of team members from each institution.   

Review and Selection

The Panel will consider the following criteria in considering applications: 

  • excellence of education project 
  • how the activities proposed generate demonstrable added value that has the potential to change teaching 
  • the difference the funding will make, including clear justification of why this funding scheme is appropriate 
  • how and when the project outcomes will become embedded into standard educational practices at each institution
  • innovative use of new learning formats 
  • impact on student experience
  • NTU-Imperial partnership: the project demonstrates a full collaboration between NTU and Imperial team members in the design and delivery  

NTU and Imperial will then jointly review applications to make a final decision on which applications will receive funding. Details of how to access funds at each institution and the reporting guidelines will be outlined in the award letter sent to successful applicants.

Key Dates

Information session - Link in guidance document

Tuesday 25 April 9am UK/4pm Singapore 

Application Close 

30 May 2023 

Feedback and revision for shortlisted projects  

June / July 2023 

Result Announcement 

By end July 2023 

Project Commences 

01 August 2023 (Project duration: Up to 12 months) 

Project Completion 

By 31 July 2024 (extensions will not be granted)