Limited Submissions Program
The Penn State Limited Submission Program manages the response to research funding opportunities for which a limited number of submissions are permitted from Penn State. The Senior Vice President for Research (SVPR), in close communication with the college research deans and interdisciplinary consortia directors, is charged with implementing the Penn State Limited Submission Procedure.
Limited Submission Opportunities
Currently Accepting Applications
If you would like to be considered as a Penn State institutional applicant for one of these opportunities, please submit a Proposal or Notice of Intent (NOI). Depending on the level of interest, a downselect competition may be held.
Important Note: Unless otherwise noted, all Penn State internal deadlines are due by 4:00 p.m. EDT on the date listed.
| Program Name | URLs | Funding Agency | Type | Penn State NOI/Proposal Deadline | Agency Final Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engineering Information Foundation (EIF) | Proposal | March 25, 2026 | August 31, 2026 | ||
| G. Harold and Leila Y. Mathers Charitable Foundation | Proposal | March 25, 2026 | July 17, 2026 | ||
| Edward Mallinckrodt, Jr. Foundation | Proposal | March 25, 2026 | July 1, 2026 | ||
| United States Department of Energy (DOE) | NOI | March 27, 2026 | April 28, 2026 | ||
| RRF Foundation for Aging (formerly The Retirement Research Foundation) | Proposal | March 27, 2026 | May 1, 2026 | ||
| National Science Foundation (NSF) | Proposal | March 30, 2026 | November 16, 2026 | ||
| Pew Charitable Trusts | Proposal | April 6, 2026 | May 18, 2026 | ||
| Pew Charitable Trusts | Proposal | April 6, 2026 | May 15, 2026 | ||
| National Institutes of Health (NIH) | NOI | April 15, 2026 | September 25, 2026 | ||
| Brain Research Foundation (BRF) | Proposal | April 15, 2026 | June 2, 2026 | ||
| National Science Foundation (NSF) | Proposal | April 22, 2026 | July 28, 2026 | ||
| Alfred P. Sloan Foundation | Proposal | May 20, 2026 | September 15, 2026 | ||
| National Institutes of Health (NIH) | NOI | May 27, 2026 | June 1, 2026 | ||
| Kinship Foundation | Proposal | May 27, 2026 | September 30, 2026 | ||
| Lalor Foundation | NOI | August 5, 2026 | November 1, 2026 |
Open
The internal deadline on these opportunities has passed, but it is likely still possible to submit. If you are interested in applying request a ticket.
| Program Name | URLs | Funding Agency | Agency Final Deadline | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) | March 27, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. | ||
| Parkinson's Foundation | March 30, 2026 | Open until filled. | ||
| Breast Cancer Alliance (BCA) | March 31, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. | ||
| Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) | March 31, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. | ||
| United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) | April 16, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. | ||
| Henry Luce Foundation | April 25, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. | ||
| Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) | April 30, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. | ||
| Lalor Foundation | May 1, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. | ||
| National Institutes of Health (NIH) | May 25, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. | ||
| National Science Foundation (NSF) | July 21, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. | ||
| Les Paul Foundation | September 15, 2026 | No applicants. Open until filled. |
In Review
Penn State may only submit a specific number of proposals to these funding opportunities and the internal deadline has passed. The number of NOIs received require that an internal competition take place, thus, a downselect process has commenced. No Penn State researchers may apply to any of these opportunities outside of downselect process.
| Program Name | Funding Agency | Agency Final Deadline | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States Department of State (DOS) | April 9, 2026 | ||
| Conservation, Food and Health Foundation | June 15, 2026 |
Closed
Penn State may only submit a specific number of proposals to these funding opportunities. No additional Penn State researchers may apply for these opportunities.
| Program Name | Funding Agency | Agency Final Deadline | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Science Foundation (NSF) | March 25, 2026 | Everton Tavares Guimaraes (Penn State Great Valley Graduate Center - Engineering Division); Aldo Morales ( Penn State Harrisburg - School of Science, Engineering & Technology) | |
| Breast Cancer Alliance (BCA) | March 31, 2026 | Bhawna Saini (Biomedical Engineering) | |
| National Science Foundation (NSF) | April 1, 2026 | Submission of a QSTD:Design proposal is contingent upon the existence of a QSTD:Pilot project in the same topical area, and the positive recommendation from the site visit panel that will review the QSTD:Pilot project nine-months into the QSTD:Pilot project. | |
| Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation (PCRF) | April 1, 2026 | Bhawna Saini (Biomedical Engineering) | |
| United States Department of Energy (DOE) | April 1, 2026 | Robert Hickey (Materials Science and Engineering), Robert Martin Rioux, Jr. (Chemical Engineering), Nitin Samarth (Physics) | |
| Laerdal Foundation | April 1, 2026 | Nirmal A. Ahuja ( Biobehavioral Health), Amulya Yadav (College of Information Sciences and Technology) | |
| United States Department of Energy (DOE) | April 2, 2026 | Yan Li (Electrical Engineering) | |
| National Science Foundation (NSF) | April 3, 2026 | No applicants. | |
| United States Department of Energy (DOE) | April 9, 2026 | Topic Area 1: Reactor Upgrades (RU) - Kenan Unlu (Radiation Science & Engineering Center (RSEC)). Topic Area 2: General Scientific Infrastructure (GSI) - Amanda Johnsen (Nuclear Engineering) | |
| Staunton Farm Foundation | May 15, 2026 | For more information about the Staunton Farm Foundation, please reach out to Anne Pastor, Director of Campus Development at Penn State Greater Allegheny, at annepastor@psu.edu. | |
| American Diabetes Association (ADA) | May 19, 2026 | Siddharth Sunilkumar (Cell and Biological Systems) | |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH) | May 25, 2026 | Kristin Sznajder (Public Health Sciences) | |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH) | May 27, 2026 | Cairsty Depasquale (Penn State Altoona - Division of Mathematics & Natural Sciences), Alexis Santos ( Penn State University Park - Human Development and Family Studies) | |
| William T. Grant Foundation | June 30, 2026 | This opportunity is institutionally coordinated by the Penn State's Office of Foundation Relations. For more information, please contact Jara Dorsey-Lash (jed72@psu.edu), Executive Director of the Office of Foundation Relations. | |
| National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) | July 9, 2026 | 2026NEA01GAP2: July 9, 2026 - David Kersnar ( School of Theatre) | |
| National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) | October 1, 2026 | Piyal Sarkar (Penn State Harrisburg - School of Business Administration);John Christman (Penn State University Park - Philosophy) |
Archives
View past limited submission competitions.
Subscribe to our Limited Submissions Distribution List by visiting the following link and Opt-In to L-FundingOpps under Research Administration (ACOR).
Contact Limited Submissions
Send us an email and we’ll get you in touch with the person who can help.