DATES AND DEADLINES
- Proposal Due Date: March 11, 2026, at 11:59 PM
- Award Notification: May 13, 2026
- Earliest Start Date: July 1, 2026
PROGRAM GOALS
The Cancer Center at Illinois (CCIL) Seed Grants are used to initiate new collaborations and enhance existing collaborations. Recipients will each receive up to $200,000 to support interdisciplinary team research that have promise to earn future external and federal funding. The aims of this seed grant program are to enable faculty teams to:
- Develop novel cancer-focused research ideas that require the involvement of multiple cancer investigators from different disciplines.
- Formulate either a hypothesis-driven or technology-focused research project that relates to one or ideally both of the CCIL research programs and their accompanying themes.
- Collect preliminary data or other relevant information to support a feasible approach for grant proposals to an NCI recognized funding agency.
- Garner external funding for multi-investigator, program project level research projects using CCIL support as a catalyst.
- Mentor the next generation of cancer researchers by providing students with hands-on opportunities to engage in research, foster their professional development, and prepare them for impactful careers in oncology and related fields.
For more information, please view the Full 2026 Cancer Center at Illinois Seed Grant RFP.
Eligibility
RESEARCH TEAM ELIGIBILITY
At least two of the team members must be current CCIL members. Proposals must reflect the substantive involvement of multiple investigators from different scientific disciplines or academic departments. Projects should demonstrate substantive collaboration between CCIL members and must specifically address CCIL research program strategic themes. Applicants are strongly encouraged to include faculty at the Assistant Professor rank on their teams.
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR ELIGIBILITY
Each project will identify a lead principal investigator (PI) who assumes organizational leadership for the project. Preference will be given to investigators who have not previously received substantial CCIL research support funding.
PIs must fill out the Cancer Research Training and Education Coordination (CRTEC) Mentorship Survey to be eligible to receive funding.
EDUCATION PARTICIPATION
Research teams must host a student from one of the CCIL educational and training programs. Please note that funding from the CCIL Seed Grant does NOT need allocated towards supporting these training program students. Please see the Mentorship Survey for more information on these training programs.
Principal Investigator Requirements
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
- The PI must be a Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor or Specialized Faculty
- The PI and his/her unit are fully responsible for any overages if the funding request is calculated incorrectly
- The PI is responsible for consulting with the relevant offices and meeting all requirements
Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research & Innovation