The UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences’ (CAES) Agricultural International Networking Study Program for Inspired Research Expansion (AgINSPIRE) program provides financial assistance to CAES faculty conducting study leave aimed at developing or strengthening research collaborations with international academic and research institutions.
Formerly known as the Mini Sabbatical Program, AgINSPIRE encourages intellectual growth and multidisciplinary and inter-institutional collaboration for applicants planning to work on collaborative research, prepare a joint grant proposal, prepare manuscripts from conducted research or participate in other organized scholarly activities.
Please contact the CAES Office of Research at ag.research@uga.edu with any questions.
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Guidelines
One AgINSPIRE award will be allocated for each department each fiscal year. Prior to submitting their application, applicants should formulate a plan with an institutional partner who is willing and committed to hosting the faculty member and collaborating on research.
The host institution that the CAES faculty member aims to visit must be ranked above No. 1-99 in the Agriculture & Forestry category of the QS World University Rankings or be a recognized international institution. The duration of the program should be no less than one month and no more than three months, including travel time. The maximum funding to be requested from the CAES Office of Research is $5,000/month. Matching funds from host institution are encouraged.
Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis. Application deadlines are as follows:
- Travel during fall semester: Feb. 1
- Travel during spring or summer semester: July 1
Eligibility criteria
This opportunity is open to full-time, tenured faculty within CAES. The applicant must not have participated in the AgINSPIRE program five years prior to the new application. If the applicant has participated in an AgINSPIRE program previously (beyond 5 years), the applicant should provide outcomes from the prior program and supply evidence that the collaboration has been both successful and sustained. Acknowledgment of the CAES funding support for the AgINSPIRE program in joint publications is expected.
The primary goal of the program should be to establish/strengthen research partnerships. Requests whose main objective is to teach at another institution or to engage in professional development for teaching will not be considered for funding. Destination country must be listed at a level three or below according to the U.S. Department of State Travel Advisory System.
Application materials
The full application must consist of the following:
- A project plan with clear and achievable research goals and timelines (three pages maximum). This plan should include:
- Identification of an appropriate host institution with a brief description of the institution’s qualifications, their potential contributions to the applicant’s career development and opportunities for future partnerships
- Justification outlining the particular focus of the study/research leave
- Justification outlining the importance of the objectives to be achieved
- Description of the applicant’s background with emphasis on the scientific foundation that will be leveraged to bridge into the new international partnership
- Description of how the current responsibilities (Instruction, Research and Extension) are to be handled during the absence (should be done in consultation and approval of the respective Department Head)
- The applicant’s curriculum vitae
- Letter of support or recommendation from the applicant’s direct supervisor (department head, center director, etc.).
- Letter from the host institution offering to host the applicant
- This letter should outline any matching financial support, if available.
- Outline of requested financial support
- Funds can be used for travel, subsistence, payment to host institution or — for faculty on nine-month appointment — towards the applicant’s salary during travel time if the program occurs during the summer months
It is important to make a compelling case as to why the applicant’s travel to a given site and host is necessary. In your application, explore the following questions:
- Why is travel necessary? Why could this research or collaboration not be effectively completed without travel?
- What is unique about the proposed host institution, such that the applicant could not conduct this research without the visit?
- Will CAES be helping to establish a new collaboration that otherwise would not happen through funding the travel?
- Will the new collaboration enhance the career and research capability of the applicant?
- Will there be methods or techniques that the applicant will learn and that will enhance research at CAES?
Review and selection process
Applications that are complete and responsive will undergo a standardized review process. They will be assigned a priority score, and a review panel will discuss the merits of the application with special focus on expected outcomes (joint-referenced publications, grant proposal applications, patents, future collaborative projects, etc.) and on elevating the relationship between CAES and the institutional host.
Following the visit
A report (maximum of 3 pages) and a full financial accounting should be submitted to CAES within 60 days after the visit.
The narrative report should describe the nature and quality of the activities and what the main impact of the funding was (e.g., significance of this award in increasing the applicant’s scientific knowledge, increasing the collaborations, mentorship or establishing interactions with the host institution).
For the next five years, the applicant should submit a half-page report on the continued research and related activities resulting from the applicant’s travel.