Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) joint seed funding scheme

The University has launched a new HKUST–University of St Andrews joint seed funding scheme.

Campus building and bay

Purpose

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and the University of St Andrews have identified each other as strategic partners to foster deep collaboration in research and education. The HKUST–University of St Andrews joint seed funding scheme has been established to facilitate and support joint initiatives that will strengthen the two universities’ strategic priorities as well as develop multidisciplinary cutting-edge research to create academic and societal impact. We invite proposals from researchers in all disciplines at HKUST and the University of St Andrews.

In this round of the awards, applicants are encouraged to submit funding proposals for innovative and sustainable programmes built around collaborative research linking HKUST and the University of St Andrews. Proposals should be sustainable in the long term with a plan for engagement that includes leveraging external funding and publication outputs. The joint funding aims to support the first steps of cooperation and is not meant as complete project funding.

Scoring and selection criteria

Scoring

Award selection will be made by a joint committee formed by members of both universities, which reserves final authority over the selection of projects taking into account, university, faculty and school strategic priorities, and the availability of funds.

Criteria do not have weightings. Proposals are assessed holistically. All the applications will be reviewed by a joint committee (inclusive of both HKUST and the University of St Andrews) and preference will be given to the proposals which meet the following selection criteria:

Score Category Justification
10 Excellent Proposal successfully addresses all relevant aspects of the criterion. Any shortcomings are minor.
7 to 9 Very good Proposal addresses the criterion very well, but a small number of shortcomings are present.
4 to 6 Good Proposal addresses the criterion well, but a number of shortcomings are present.
1 to 3 Weak Criterion is inadequately addressed or there are serious inherent weaknesses.

Selection criteria

Academic quality and relevance

  • Clearly describe the objectives and methodology to be employed with the project. The academic quality and innovativeness of the proposed activities will be considered alongside the soundness of the concept and credibility of the proposed methodology.
  • Explain the composition of the project team and track record, a summary of how individuals’ expertise will contribute to achieving the project aims, and highlights from any previous engagement, if applicable.
  • Up to 500 words.

Execution, including sustainability plan

  • Elaborate on the workplan and milestones outlined in the timeframe. There are separate sections in the application form for an outline of activities in the timeline and budget. Proposed timeframes and budget estimates should be realistic and appropriate.
  • The appropriateness of the allocation of tasks, ensuring that all participants have a valid role and there are adequate resources in the project to enable them to fulfil that role.
  • The long-term plan for engagement to attract research funding, produce publications, and develop the partnership. Proposals must include a specific and concrete plan for how the project will become sustainable. Provide a list of opportunities for future extramural funding to continue the project following the seed grant and elaborate on why the project will be competitive for future external funding.
  • Up to 300 words.

Impact, legacy and scalability

  • Outline what the participants will gain from the project and how it will contribute to the discipline and field of research.
  • Explain how the project could be transferred to other levels (local, regional, national).
  • Explain how the project will impact beyond the academic sphere. For example, benefit society, address global challenges, Sustainable Development Goals).
  • Explain how the project activities and results will be communicated to different groups of target audience. For example, publications, blogs, events, teaching and or training materials, new educational 
    collaborations, policy briefs, external funding bids).
  • Up to 300 words.

Partnership and strategic relevance

  • Explain how the project will establish or strengthen a durable cooperation between the universities and participants.
  • Explain how the project will be shared with the broader academic communities at each institution and how it will promote and consolidate the relationship between the two universities.
  • Outline how the project will contribute to realising university strategies and support the research and teaching priorities of the Faculties and or Schools and or Departments.
  • Up to 300 words.

Expected outcomes

It is expected that the selected proposal will result in the following outcomes:

  • Research quality and influence

The research:

    • will advance knowledge in the field which addresses an issue of importance
    • may result in fundamental outcomes
    • is innovative in concept
    • will use well-established approaches to good effect
  • Publications

At least one publication will be in preparation for submission in a nationally and or internationally recognised peer-reviewed scholarly journal.

  • External funding

At least one national and or international competitive grant application will be in preparation or submitted.

  • Training and education

Supervision and mentoring of visiting PhD students and or postdoctoral researchers and or junior scholars and or Early Career Researchers.

  • Joint workshop

Organise at least one joint workshop at either institution.

Duration and key dates

Applications open:
Monday 18 August 2025
Applications close:
Monday 20 October 2025
Outcomes announced:
By December 2025
Latest date for projects to start:
Thursday 1 January 2026
Mid-term progress review:
Monday 1 June 2026
Latest date for projects to end:
Thursday 31 December 2026
Final reports due:
Monday 1 February 2027

How to apply

Terms and conditions of open call

  • Applications are open to any HKUST-eligible Principal Investigator. For the University of St Andrews, applicants should be full-time or part-time academic staff with a contract of employment until at least the end of the project.
  • Graduate students, post-docs, and research assistants and or associates are not eligible to apply as Principal Investigators, but they are welcome to be part of the research team.
  • Activities can take place in Hong Kong or St Andrews. The motivation for holding the activity should be clearly explained, including how the involved HKUST and University of St Andrews faculties and schools can benefit in the long term from this cooperation.
  • Current recipients of collaboration funding administered by the Global Office at the University of St Andrews, whose projects are still ongoing and will not be completed by the application closing date, may apply for concurrent grants. However, they are required to submit a progress report on their current project along with their application.

Proposals

All proposals must address the selection criteria and include the following elements:

  • Project title.
  • Details of team involved and the role and contribution of each member.
  • Project abstract (up to 150 words).
  • Project keywords (up to 30 words).
  • Project timeline. Template is provided as part of the online application.
  • Project budget. Template is provided as part of the online application.
  • CVs of the Principal Investigators (up to 2 pages).
  • Brief endorsement letter of University of St Andrews Head of School.

Submitting your application

Before you apply, you may want to review the following documents as you will need to submit them with your application:

All applications must be jointly submitted by a Principal Investigator from HKUST and a Principal Investigator from the University of St Andrews using the online HKUST–University of St Andrews joint seed funding scheme 2025 application form.

You must also include the following when you submit your application:

  • CVs of the two Principal Investigators
  • A brief endorsement letter from the University of St Andrews Head of School

Only complete submissions will be considered. Late applications will not be considered.

Results

Applicants will be advised of the outcome of their application by December 2025.

Successful applicants will receive a letter of award outlining the process to accept the award. Feedback from the joint committee may be provided upon request.

Award funding

In this pilot round, up to two proposals will be funded. Each with two Principal Investigators: one from HKUST and one from the University of St Andrews.

Each successful proposal may receive up to the equivalent of $40,000 (Hong Kong dollars) from HKUST and £5,000 from the University of St Andrews for a total of approximately $80,000 (Hong Kong dollars) and or £10,000 for the joint project.

Co-funding of projects by a faculty, department, school, institute, centre, or external body, is welcomed.

Eligible grant activities and or costs

Eligible for both HKUST and the University of St Andrews:

  • Travel expenses: airfare and other travel expenses, for example, train, rental car, lodging, meals
  • Cost for hosting seminars and or conferences or workshops
  • Accommodation and subsistence
  • Conference registration related to the dissemination of collaborative research
  • Consumable materials and supplies
  • Publications and printing related to collaborative research
  • Hiring graduate students to assist in research project.
  • Website development

Eligible for the University of St Andrews but not HKUST:

  • Venue and or space rental fee if event held on campus

Not eligible for any of the two institutions:

  • General teaching or instructional programs
  • Salaries or salary supplementation for faculty or staff: salaries and associated fringe-benefit costs for tenured and tenure-track faculty (including effort for faculty funded externally), teaching buyout, staff and post-doc salary
  • Postgraduate studentships
  • Stipend payments to non-HKUST, non-UStA individuals
  • Student scholarships
  • Mobile phone cards
  • Entertainment costs
  • Computers, including laptops (excluding access to high-performance computers or other specialised applications that are justified by the project) and basic computing facilities such as printers, word processing and other standard software
  • Indirect cost (non-required for this grant)

Financial and reporting obligations

  • The funding should only be used for the approved project and in accordance with the proposal and the budget plan. It must not be used for any other purposes and prior approval is needed for any variation in the budget items. Request for variations from original proposals must be submitted to both universities.
  • Awardees must adhere to the purchasing guidelines of the respective universities to which reimbursement is to be sought. Reimbursement or approval of each expenditure item will be capped at the approved amount.
  • Recipients must submit a mid-term progress review by Monday 1 June 2026 and a final report by Monday 1 February 2027. Failure to submit a completed report will result in all members of the project team being ineligible to submit future funding applications for HKUST–University of St Andrews joint seed funding.
  • The activation of research funding accounts is not tied to ethics and or other approvals being obtained. It is the responsibility of Principal Investigators to ensure that no work requiring approval is commenced until such approvals are in place.

Change of investigator

Applicants should contact the Programme Coordinator at each institution. Such changes will need to be approved and documented. 

Extensions

Under exceptional circumstances, such as when direct exchange is impossible due to an outbreak of an infectious disease or delays occur in research activities due to natural disasters, extensions will be approved for a maximum period of three months. Applicants seeking an extension must submit a revised budget and timeline of activities to both Programme Coordinators for approval at least two months before the project end date. Even in cases where the project period is extended, the total research funding cannot be increased.

Marketing and communications

Recipients may be contacted by HKUST and the University of St Andrews for the purposes of promoting their successful funding application and informing others of their research. Materials such as photos, videos, and news stories that provide an update on the project’s progress and which can be shared more widely are also welcomed. Both universities may occasionally request brief project updates to support awareness of the partnership.

Publications

Any publications, for example, abstracts, articles or dissemination like public presentations arising from activities supported by the awards should acknowledge assistance received from the awards, and copies or notification should be submitted to Global Engagement and Greater China Affairs Unit at HKUST and the Global Office at University of St Andrews. The standard acknowledgment is 'HKUST–UStA Global Knowledge Network Awards/Joint Seed Funding'.

Forfeiture of grants

Grants not spent by Thursday 31 December 2026 must be returned so that unspent balances can be reallocated.

St Andrews Principal Investigators are responsible for managing their project funds, reporting on their usage, facilitating the sharing of funds with their HKUST partner Principal Investigator where required, and returning unspent funds to the University by the project end date. 

Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI)

Adherence to respective equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) policies is an important feature of this programme to ensure that all participants can do their best work, thrive and succeed. Applicant teams should consider how they can take meaningful steps in their future collaborations to foster an environment that values, supports and respects a diverse range of views, knowledge and experiences.

Applicants should consider EDI as it applies to gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, (dis)ability, and career stages.

Sustainable research travel

HKUST and the University of St Andrews recognise the importance of organising in-person meetings and events to support the development of collaborative partnerships. Therefore, both institutions encourage applicants to consider the environmental impact of their proposed research and travel. Please refer to the University of St Andrews’ Sustainable Research and Business Travel webpage for more guidance.

Trusted Research

Trusted Research, the term used by the UK Government and other bodies to refer to national security issues in the planning and undertaking of research, has been an increasingly prominent agenda since 2019. The University of St Andrews is required to put in place, and enforce, relevant provisions to ensure that it attends to this agenda.

We have created guidance and a Trusted Research tool to assist researchers and direct colleagues towards existing policy and process to ensure compliance where necessary.

As part of your application to this scheme, you confirm that you: