Research at MSU

Research and Economic Development is responsible for administering MSU's thriving research enterprise. It oversees the following areas:

Office of Research Development

The Office of Research Development (ORD) partners with faculty to increase competitiveness for sponsored research, enhance research capacities, and sustain and grow research excellence at MSU.

 Sponsored Programs (OSP)

The Sponsored Programs (OSP)  engages in the project life cycle from proposal submission to the close-out of a grant or award. In fiscal year 2023, OSP opened 524 new grants and provided oversight for MSU's $230 million in research expenditures.

Technology Transfer Office (TTO)

The Technology Transfer Office (TTO) works to commercialize the inventions of MSU faculty, spur entrepreneurship based on MSU technology and provide a gateway for industry looking to utilize MSU resources.

Office of Research Compliance

The Research Compliance oversees University programs designed to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local regulations for research, creates and supports an environment that furthers the ethical and responsible conduct of research.

Principal Investigator (PI) Training

  • The Principal Investigator training is designed to ensure that all investigators have the information needed to conduct their research in compliance with both federal and state regulations.
  • MSU PI Training is mandatory (one-time only) for researchers and we encourage anyone, including students, working with sponsored funding to attend.

Training Options

  • In-person — Contact Maryalice Trage (406-994-2381) for questions and to be added to the invite list for the next session.
  • Supplemental Online Training for PIs — OSP has developed a library of online learning modules for principal investigators that supplements the in-person training offered.
Learn more about PI training

 

Research Alliance

The Research Alliance is a consortium of units across campus that includes the Office of Research Development, the Center for Faculty Excellence, Undergraduate Research Office, the MSU Library, and Research Cyberinfrastructureworking together to support and increase the excellence of the university's research enterprise. 

 

Undergraduate Opportunities in Research

Undergraduate Research enhances learning by providing hands-on opportunities to apply skills and knowledge learned in the classroom, and engages students in creative thinking and problem solving. Through this "learning-by-doing" model, undergraduate research provides excellent experience for students, whether they are preparing for graduate school or seeking employment in a professional field.

 

External Grants

Funding Opportunities Announcement

The Office of Research Development (ORD) curates a weekly notification of new funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) from major federal and private sponsors. Sign up to get an email every Tuesday at https://www.montana.edu/research/ord/funding-opportunities.html or email ord@montana.edu to request.

Montana State University also provides Grant Forward, a powerful search system, to help you locate funding opportunities that match your needs: https://www.montana.edu/research/ord/grant-forward/grant-forward.html.

On a weekly basis, a list of funding opportunities is selected for their relevance to faculty research agendas and emailed to the funding opportunities listserv. These opportunities include state, federal, foundation, limited submissions, and internal opportunities. Visit the link provided or email us at proposals@montana.edu to sign up for our lists.

The Center for Faculty Excellence (CFE) also provides workshops and one-on-one consultations to support your scholarship. See Grant Writing Support below or visit the Research & Creativity section of the CFE website.

Grant Opportunities for New Faculty

Internal Funding

The Office of the Provost, Vice President for Research and Economic Development, as well as your Department and Dean often offer internal grants to support your success.

Faculty Award Nominations

Managed by the Office of the Provost, nominations for faculty awards are typically due in October.

Competitive Faculty Opportunities

Research and Economic Development Grants

The office of the Vice President of Research & Economic Development strategically re-invests F&A dollars through six internal grant programs.

Faculty Excellence Grants (FEGs)

Enabling faculty to engage in activities that will enhance scholarship. Faculty in all disciplines are eligible to submit proposals. 

Instructional Innovation Grants (IIGs)

Funding to create and develop new methods to improve their teaching and student learning with the goal of increasing student success.

Startup Funds

Faculty startup packages vary on what they include and where they come from. Check with your Department accountant to discuss what your package entails and how you can use it to support your success.

Grant-Writing Support

The Office of Research Development offers one-on-one assistance with your grants. Email ord@montana.edu to get started.

They also offer workshops on many different aspects of grant writing. Many Centers on campus also have grant-writing support. 

5-week Bootcamp

Grant Writing Bootcamp is designed to help grant-interested faculty produce a quality, successful proposal, with valuable information and support from grant-successful facilitators. Participants have the opportunity to interact with grant-successful senior faculty, to work with peer support in writing groups, and to use a team of proposal support personnel who have the submitter's individual needs in mind.

Learn more about bootcamp

Intro to Finding Funding and Writing Research Grants

New to writing grants? Each session we ofer a session that introduces you to the grant writing process, and the MSU policies and procedures. We will also cover how to find funding opportunities that fit your research program, beyond searching on funding websites.

Want to take the online course? Email cfe@montana.edu to be added to the course.

Publication Support

Library's Publication Services

The library can help decipher publishing agreements, assess copyright for publications or in the classroom, assist instructors in reducing the cost of textbooks byidentifing open educational resources, offer advice about professional networking and personal identifiers [e.g. ORCiD], and help authors increase the impact of an article or publication by increasing access to scholarship and data.

The Writing Center

The Writing Center's mission is to create a dynamic, collaborative environment that fosters and maintains a vibrant community of writers across the MSU campuses. Writing Center tutors meet individually or in groups with student writers of all abilities and backgrounds at any stage in their writing processes – from invention to revision. Writing Center staff are available to talk with faculty about building partnerships to support their teaching of writing.

CFE's Publication Consultations

The Center for Faculty Excellence offers workshops and one-on-one consultations for publishing scholarly work.

Outreach and Engagement

We are dedicated to sharing MSU's vast resources with the citizens of our communities at the local, state, regional, national and international level. Academic Technology & Outreach partners with the university's educators and researchers to create unique educational opportunities for youth and adults, both on- and off-campus.