The UEF grant gave DiscoverE the resources to reach thousands of K-12 students who might never have considered engineering as a path forward. Beyond the funding, UEF's commitment to collaboration strengthened our ability to unite partners across the engineering community — making our coalition more powerful and our outreach more impactful. It didn't just fund a program; it helped build the connective tissue that turns individual efforts into a movement for the profession."
Kathy Renzetti, CAE,
Executive Director & CEO
Discover Engineering
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the key dates of the grant cycle?
- May 1st – Grant Concept Papers Due
- Mid-May – UEF Grants Committee selects concept papers invited for submission- of Full Proposals
- August 1st – Full Grant Proposals due
- Mid-August – UEF Grants Committee identifies proposals to be recommended to the Board of Trustees for funding
- September/October – Board of Trustees approves grants to be awarded for the following calendar year
What types of proposals are preferred?
- Collaborative, broad-based, interdisciplinary proposals that further the engineering profession as a whole are preferred.
- Projects that are outside “business as usual” of the proposing organization are preferred.
Do you fund individual research? Technical research proposals and proposals by individuals are seldom accepted.
Do you fund international activities? The UEF funds only proposals from organizations having 501(c)(3) or (6) status for activities in the United States.
Do you fund requests from trade associations? Proposals are accepted only from U.S. based organizations classified by the Internal Revenue Service as having 501(c)(3) or (6) status.