Research on Social Work Education
Teaching, field education, curriculum, and the preparation of the social work workforce.
67 opportunities · 53 traditional · 14 nontraditional
Traditional (53)
- Ruth L. Kirschstein Predoctoral Individual NRSA (F31)Federal fellowshipNational Institutes of HealthDissertation-stage fellowship covering stipend, tuition and training costs while you finish the doctorate. A Diversity F31 runs in parallel under its own announcement.Amount not published · Several times a year · Apr, Aug, Dec
- Education Research GrantsFederal grantInstitute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of EducationThe main federal source for education research, structured around exploration, development, efficacy and replication. The natural home for school social work and school-based intervention work.$100k–$4M · Annual cycle · Aug
- Behavioral health workforce education and trainingTraining & capacityHealth Resources and Services AdministrationFunds field stipends, integrated-care training and workforce pipelines in schools of social work. Not a research grant, but it pays for the students and placements a research programme is built on.$300k–$2M · Annual cycle · Dec, Jan, Feb
- Research and fellowship programsFellowshipNational Endowment for the HumanitiesArchival and interpretive scholarship, including the history of social welfare institutions, casework, and the profession itself — the federal home for the SSWR History cluster.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Apr, Sep, Nov
- Research grants on educationFoundation grantSpencer FoundationEducation research at several scales, from small grants through large field-initiated studies, with a standing willingness to fund qualitative and historical work that federal panels find hard to score.$50k–$500k · Several times a year
- Fund for Research and ExperimentationDissertation awardFahs-Beck Fund for Research and ExperimentationSmall grants for practice-relevant research and for doctoral dissertations, aimed squarely at social work and allied practice fields. One of the few funders whose scope is the profession itself.$5k–$20k · Annual cycle · May, Nov
- Faculty grant programFoundation grantLois and Samuel Silberman FundSupports social work faculty doing applied research and curriculum development tied to practice in the field, with a long-standing interest in the connection between schools of social work and service agencies.up to $50k · Annual cycle
- Minority Fellowship ProgramFellowshipCouncil on Social Work EducationDoctoral and master's fellowships for social workers from under-represented groups preparing to deliver or research behavioural health services for under-served populations.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Mar, Apr
- Scholarships, fellowships and research awardsDissertation awardNASW FoundationSmall named awards for social work students and researchers, including dissertation support and practice-improvement awards administered through the profession's membership association.$1k–$10k · Annual cycle · Feb, Mar
- AHA Institutional Research Enhancement Award (AIREA)Training & capacityAmerican Heart AssociationSmall-scale research project funding for faculty at teaching-focused colleges and universities that have not been major NIH recipients, covering the full range of basic, clinical and population research on cardiovascular disease and brain health while giving students exposure to research. A realistic capacity-building route for social work faculty at non-research-intensive institutions.up to $200k · Annual cycle · Sep
- AAUW International FellowshipsFellowshipAmerican Association of University Women (AAUW)Supports women who are not U.S. citizens in full-time postgraduate study or research in the United States, running continuously since 1917. Master's and doctoral levels are funded at different rates, and fellows are expected to apply their expertise in service of their home countries — a fit for international and global social work scholarship.$20k–$25k stipend · Annual cycle · Aug, Sep
- Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation FellowshipDissertation awardCharlotte W. Newcombe FoundationFunds the final year of dissertation writing for doctoral candidates whose work engages significant questions of religion, ethics, morals, and values. Social welfare and social work Ph.D. students working on moral dimensions of care, faith-based service delivery, or ethics of practice fit the frame.$34k stipend · Annual cycle · Nov
- AAUW American Short-Term Research Publication GrantsPilot / seed fundingAmerican Association of University Women (AAUW)Short-term support for women holding a terminal degree to prepare completed research for publication — writing time, editing, and manuscript preparation rather than new data collection. Explicitly open across all fields, with the D.S.W. and M.P.H. among the qualifying degrees, and gender-focused research is encouraged.$8k · Annual cycle · Aug, Sep
- Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New AmericansFellowshipPaul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New AmericansA two-year graduate fellowship for immigrants and the children of immigrants pursuing full-time degree-granting graduate or professional study in the United States. Open to all fields, so an MSW, DSW, or social welfare Ph.D. student qualifies, and fellows join a lifelong community with an annual fall conference.up to $25k stipend · Annual cycle · Oct
- NIH Research Education Program - Research Experiences (Parent R25, Clinical Trial Not Allowed), PA-27-036Training & capacityNational Institutes of HealthFunds programmes that place participants in mentored hands-on research experiences, spanning high school students through early-career and established investigators. Suited to building a research pipeline in a school of social work or a partnered community setting.up to $500k per year · Several times a year · Jan, May, Sep
- NIH Research Education Program - Courses, Curriculum and Methods (Parent R25, Clinical Trial Not Allowed), PA-27-034Training & capacityNational Institutes of HealthSupports development and delivery of research skills courses and new curricula or research methods training that complement formal degree programmes. Useful for building methods capacity in a school or a community-partnered training programme.up to $500k per year · Several times a year · Jan, May, Sep
- NIA Academic Leadership Career Award (K07 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)Early-career awardNational Institute on Aging (NIA), NIHSupports an established investigator to build research infrastructure, mentoring and curriculum that expands aging and Alzheimer's research capacity at their academic institution. Combines salary support, research development funds and a programme coordinator.up to $150k per year · Several times a year · Feb, Jun, Oct
- AAUW American Doctoral FellowshipFellowshipAmerican Association of University Women (AAUW)A stipend for women pursuing a first doctoral degree, open across fields including Ph.D. programmes in social work and social welfare. Funds the doctoral year rather than a specific project, so it underwrites dissertation-stage research time.$25k stipend · Annual cycle · Aug, Sep
- Support for Research Excellence (SuRE) Award (R16 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)Federal grantNational Institutes of Health — NIGMS-issued, with NIA among the participating institutesInvestigator-initiated research awards in basic, social, clinical, behavioural or translational science for faculty at institutions with limited NIH funding, coupled with building student research opportunities and institutional research capacity.up to $100k per year · Several times a year · May, Sep
- Research-Practice Partnerships: Collaborative Research for Educational ChangeFoundation grantSpencer FoundationFunds established researcher-practitioner partnerships doing collaborative education research with districts, agencies, or community organisations, with a stated priority on educational inequality.up to $400k · Annual cycle · Jul, Oct
- Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian ProgramTraining & capacityInstitute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)Supports building the library and archival workforce and the capacity of libraries, archives and LIS graduate programs. Includes Early Career Research and Applied Research grant categories of $75,000-$750,000.$25k–$1M · Annual cycle · Nov
- NIA Expanding Research in AD/ADRD (ERA) Summer Research Education Program (R25 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)Training & capacityNational Institute on Aging (NIA), NIHFunds institutions to run 8-14 week summer research experiences in Alzheimer's and related dementias research for high school students, undergraduates or science teachers, with the aim of widening the AD/ADRD research workforce.up to $200k per year · Annual cycle · May
- Vision GrantsPilot / seed fundingSpencer FoundationPlanning grants for teams developing ambitious large-scale education research projects aimed at transforming educational systems toward greater equity. Supports 12-18 months of planning, not the study itself.$75k · Annual cycle · Aug, Sep
- NAEd/Spencer Dissertation Fellowship ProgramDissertation awardNational Academy of Education / Spencer FoundationOne-year fellowship supporting doctoral candidates writing education-related dissertations, across disciplines including social work. Fellows receive $30,000 in two installments plus professional development.$30k · Annual cycle · Oct
- NAEd/Spencer Dissertation FellowshipDissertation awardNational Academy of EducationSupports 35 doctoral candidates a year whose dissertation research focuses primarily on education, with funding plus two retreats and a senior-scholar mentor.$30k · Annual cycle · Oct
- NAEd/Spencer Postdoctoral FellowshipEarly-career awardNational Academy of EducationNon-residential fellowship for early-career education researchers, providing a year of salary support plus mentorship from a senior scholar and three professional development retreats. About 20 fellows a year.$80k · Annual cycle · Oct
- AAUW American Fellowships — American Doctoral FellowshipDissertation awardAmerican Association of University Women (AAUW)Doctoral fellowship carrying a $25,000 stipend, paid in two installments, to support women completing doctoral study. Open across fields, including social work.$25k stipend · Annual cycle · Sep
- SSCR Career Development Awards (Round 3)Training & capacityNIHR School for Social Care Research (SSCR)Training and development awards for social care researchers and practitioners to build the skills needed to reach the next step of their research careers. Run by the NIHR School for Social Care Research, a research and capacity-building partnership of English universities with its directorate at the University of York, focused on adult social care. One of the very few UK awards aimed squarely at practitioner-researchers rather than established academics.Amount not published · Periodic calls · Sep
- Fulbright U.S. Scholar ProgramFederal fellowshipU.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (administered by IIE)The flagship U.S. government fellowship sending faculty and professionals abroad to teach, conduct research, or carry out professional projects, with more than 380 awards in more than 120 countries each cycle. Social work faculty apply into open social sciences awards or country-specific awards; a dedicated school-of-social-work award listing exists in the catalogue.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Sep
- Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP)Training & capacityU.S. National Science FoundationBuilds STEM education and research capacity at Tribal Colleges and Universities and Alaska Native- and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions, through seven tracks including Small Grants for Research, planning grants, and TCU Enterprise Advancement Centers.Amount not published · Several times a year · Jan, Apr, Jun, Sep, Oct
- Historically Black Colleges and Universities - Excellence in Research (HBCU-EiR)Federal grantU.S. National Science FoundationNSF programme funding research projects at public and private HBCUs, aligned to NSF's regular research programmes, to build institutional research capacity at institutions less successful in NSF's larger open competitions.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Oct
- Racial Equity Research GrantsFoundation grantSpencer FoundationFunds education research projects that examine or address racial inequality in education, with stated interest in youth and educator mental health, workforce development, and quantitative methods for studying equity.up to $75k · Annual cycle
- Grawemeyer Award in PsychologyPrize or challengeUniversity of Louisville (Grawemeyer Awards)One of five annual Grawemeyer Awards, given for an outstanding idea in psychology; a companion award in Education runs on the same cycle. Both are relevant to behavioural-health and child-development scholarship.$100k · Annual cycle · Dec, Apr
- NIA Expanding Research in AD/ADRD (ERA) Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program (R25 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)Training & capacityNational Institute on Aging (NIA), NIHFunds institutions to run a postbaccalaureate research education programme in Alzheimer's and related dementias research. Participants spend 75% effort on research for nine months plus 25% on academic and professional development.up to $400k per year · Annual cycle · May
- Google PhD Fellowship ProgramFellowshipGoogleAnnual corporate doctoral fellowship covering tuition, stipend, travel and research costs for PhD students in computing and adjacent fields, relevant to social work doctoral students doing computational, HCI or data-science-heavy dissertations.$10k–$85k per year · Annual cycle · Mar, Apr
- Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education ResearchDissertation awardAmerican Educational Research AssociationOne-year dissertation fellowship for advanced doctoral students from racial and ethnic groups underrepresented in higher education whose research addresses education topics, with mentoring workshops and an AERA Annual Meeting presentation.up to $25k · Annual cycle · Nov
- AGESW Pre-Dissertation Fellows ProgramFellowshipAssociation for Gerontology Education in Social Work (AGESW)Early-doctoral fellowship in gerontological social work: a $1,200 stipend plus paid registration for the Gerontological Society of America annual meeting, one-year AGESW and GSA memberships, ten hours of professional development and ongoing mentoring.$1k stipend · Annual cycle · Mar, Jun
- IASSW International Projects GrantPilot / seed fundingInternational Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW)Small grants of US $3,500 for collaborative international projects run by IASSW member schools, covering direct research costs such as data collection, analysis, dissemination and partner workshops.$4k · Periodic calls
- Small Research Grants on EducationFoundation grantSpencer FoundationField-initiated grants for education research projects broadly conceived, running one to five years. A common entry point for school-based studies by doctorally trained researchers.up to $50k · Several times a year
- Chang-Lin Tien Leadership in Education AwardPrize or challengeAsian Pacific FundAnnual award recognising an AANHPI academic leader at a US four-year college or university; the honoree directs a $10,000 grant to establish a Chang-Lin Tien Scholarship Fund for AANHPI students at their institution.$10k · Annual cycle · Jan
- P.E.O. Scholar AwardsDissertation awardP.E.O. InternationalMerit-based awards of up to $25,000 for women pursuing doctoral-level degrees at accredited institutions, usable for dissertation-stage research and living costs. Open across disciplines.up to $25k · Annual cycle
- Maternal Health Research Collaborative for Minority-Serving Institutions (MH-RC-MSI) Research CentersTraining & capacityHealth Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Maternal & Child Health BureauBuilds the capacity of minority-serving institutions to conduct quantitative and qualitative research on the root causes of disparities in maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity, and to develop community-based solutions. Recipients must engage communities throughout, train early-career researchers, publish, and submit at least one external grant proposal for sustainability.Amount not published · Periodic calls · Jun
- Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training (BHWET) Program for ProfessionalsTraining & capacityHealth Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Bureau of Health WorkforceFunds accredited graduate programmes, including master's and doctoral social work programmes, to establish or expand paid field placements and internships in behavioural health, with emphasis on children, adolescents and transitional-age youth, trauma-informed care, SUD treatment, interprofessional team-based care and clinical supervisor development.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Jan
- Behavioral Health Workforce Development Technical Assistance (BHWD-TA) ProgramTraining & capacityHealth Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Bureau of Health WorkforceFunds a single national technical assistance provider that supports HRSA's behavioural health workforce grantees, including BHWET for Professionals, BHWET for Paraprofessionals and Graduate Psychology Education recipients, to help those training programmes expand the supply of behavioural health providers.Amount not published · Periodic calls · Mar
- Government of Ireland Postdoctoral Fellowship ProgrammeFederal fellowshipIrish Research Council / Taighde Eireann - Research IrelandIreland's flagship all-disciplines postdoctoral fellowship, funding a one- or two-year fellowship at an eligible Irish higher education institution. Bottom-up and non-directed, so social work, social policy and social care topics compete on their own merits, and the scheme welcomes pioneering proposals in new and emerging fields and interdisciplinary research.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Aug, Oct
- Research on Research Integrity (RRI) ProgramFederal grantHHS Office of Research Integrity (OASH)ORI's extramural grant program funds empirical research on the societal, organizational, group and individual factors that help or harm integrity in research. ORI explicitly invites proposals with relevance to behavioral health science and health services research, which puts social work methodologists, research-ethics scholars and mentorship researchers squarely in scope. FY26 awards are one-year projects and the competition is announced annually.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Jul
- Program Development and Evaluation (PDE) ProgramFederal grantHHS Office of Research Integrity (OASH)Established by ORI in 2020, PDE funds the development, implementation and testing of innovative approaches and tools that promote research integrity and prevent misconduct, including interventions built on empirical evidence and instruments to identify at-risk individuals or laboratories. It is the applied/intervention sibling of ORI's RRI research program and suits social work researchers who build and evaluate training or organizational interventions.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Jul
- ASWB Regulatory Research Grant ProgramFoundation grantAssociation of Social Work Boards (ASWB)Funds research on social work occupational and professional regulation: examination pass rates, licensure impact, supervision, practice standards, electronic practice and regulatory enforcement. ASWB may share its test-taker demographic and performance datasets with funded researchers.Amount not published · Periodic calls · Jun
- ESRC Postdoctoral FellowshipsFederal fellowshipUK Research and Innovation - Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)A consolidation fellowship for the immediately post-PhD stage, funding the fellow to develop publications, networks, research skills and professional skills from existing doctoral work. Explicitly not a route to fund new research. Well suited to social work doctoral graduates converting a thesis into publications and a fundable research programme.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Jun
- Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship ProgrammeFederal fellowshipIrish Research Council / Taighde Eireann - Research IrelandIreland's national doctoral scholarship, covering stipend, a fees contribution and research expenses for postgraduate research at an eligible Irish institution. Bottom-up and non-directed across all disciplines, with an average success rate the Council states as 18%. The standard funding route for a social work PhD in Ireland.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Aug, Oct
- Ruth L. Kirschstein NRSA Institutional Research Training Grant (Parent T32), PA-25-168Training & capacityNational Institutes of HealthInstitutional grant enabling a school or centre to run a structured predoctoral and postdoctoral research training programme, explicitly including behavioural and social sciences and health services research. Awarded to the institution, which then appoints trainees.Amount not published · Several times a year · Jan, May, Sep
- P.E.O. Scholar AwardsFellowshipP.E.O. InternationalMerit-based awards for women pursuing doctoral-level degrees at accredited U.S. and Canadian institutions, established in 1991. Field-agnostic, so social work and social welfare doctoral candidates are eligible, and the award functions as unrestricted support for the dissertation year.Not a cash award · Annual cycle · Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov
- Conferences and Workshops Program (CWP)Training & capacityHHS Office of Research Integrity (OASH)CWP supports the planning and execution of conferences and workshops that promote the responsible conduct of research and disseminate findings from research-integrity scholarship. It is a small, practical mechanism for a school of social work or a professional association to convene researchers around research ethics, data stewardship or mentorship practice.Amount not published · Annual cycle · Jul
Nontraditional (14)
- NEA Foundation Learning and Leadership GrantsTraining & capacityNEA Foundation (affiliated with the National Education Association)Grants from the union-affiliated NEA Foundation for individual professional development or group collegial learning, with action research named explicitly as a supported group activity. Useful to school social workers and other specialized instructional support personnel who want to fund a study group, an inquiry project, or conference travel tied to practice improvement.up to $5k · Annual cycle · Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep
- Engagement Award: Capacity Building — Fall 2026 CycleTraining & capacityPatient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)Builds the capacity and skills of patients, families, caregivers and the broader healthcare community to engage in all phases of patient-centered CER, and strengthens researchers' skills as partners. Does not fund research studies themselves.up to $300k · Several times a year · Mar, Oct
- 2026 NIA Mentorship Prize CompetitionPrize or challengeNational Institute on Aging (NIA), Office of Strategic Extramural Programs, NIHA prize that pays faculty for mentoring rather than for a project. Mentees nominate you; if you win, $100,000 goes to your institution to buy you time and to build shareable mentorship resources.$100k · Periodic calls · Aug, Oct, Nov
- SPARC (Social work with groups: Practice, Advocacy, Research and Community) GrantsPilot / seed fundingInternational Association for Social Work with Groups (IASWG)Small seed grants and formal endorsement for innovative group-work projects in practice, education, training or research. Since 2013, 49 of 71 endorsed projects received funding totalling about $40,000.$400–$1k · Several times a year · Jun, Nov
- Small-Scale Events Advancing SPSSI (SEAS) GrantsTraining & capacitySociety for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI)Reimbursement-based grants for local research symposia, mini-conferences, speaker events and cross-career networking that build research community around social issues scholarship.up to $1k · Rolling / open · Sep
- COMpetency in Menopause & Integrated Therapy (COMMIT) ChallengePrize or challengeNIH Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH), with NIA, NHLBI, NINR, NIAMS and the NIH Office of the DirectorA $2.5 million prize for existing health-professions curricula that teach the menopausal transition well. It rewards documented, evaluated teaching practice rather than a proposal for new work.up to $2.5M · Varies by programme
- CODESRIA Grants and FellowshipsTraining & capacityCouncil for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA)CODESRIA, headquartered in Dakar and operating fully in French and English, is the pan-African social science research council and the single most important non-Northern funder of African social research careers. Its grants and fellowships strand now runs through the College of Senior Academic Mentors, which pairs doctoral students registered at African universities with senior diaspora academics for proposal and chapter feedback, reading materials, methodological guidance and conference networking; Support to Doctoral Schools, which funds humanities and social science doctoral schools to run Amount not published · Annual cycle
- Yidan Prize (Education Research and Education Development)Prize or challengeYidan Prize FoundationTwo annual prizes — one for Education Research, recognising researchers whose work strengthens teaching and learning, and one for Education Development, recognising leaders advancing practice through innovative interventions. Each laureate receives a gold medal, a cash prize of HK$15 million (shared equally for teams) and a project fund of HK$15 million. The project-fund half is the reason this belongs in a research funding database: it is money to be spent extending the winning work, so it functions as a large unsolicited research and implementation grant rather than a purely honorific award.Amount not published · Annual cycle
- Hogg Foundation for Mental Health grant programsParticipatory grantmakingHogg Foundation for Mental Health (University of Texas at Austin)A Texas mental health funder running competitive RFPs on community-driven themes: rural and border community mental health, libraries as mental health infrastructure, flexible funding for under-resourced organisations, policy fellows, and arts-and-humanities research grants for early career faculty.Amount not published · Periodic calls
- DESE Research Partnership and Confidential Data Access for External ResearchersIn-kind resourceMassachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of Planning and ResearchMassachusetts DESE accepts external research proposals through a research portal and can share confidential student-level data under FERPA research exemptions in limited circumstances. This is data and partnership access, not cash.Not a cash award · Several times a year · Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
- ISBE Funding Opportunities and Notices of Funding OpportunityEvaluation contractIllinois State Board of EducationIllinois's state education agency posts its Notices of Funding Opportunity here, ordered by proposal due date, under a merit-based review policy with a published appeals window. It also recruits volunteer grant evaluators.Amount not published · Rolling / open
- TEA Grant Opportunities (Requests for Application)Evaluation contractTexas Education AgencyTexas's state education agency posts discretionary and formula Requests for Application on a standing portal. Each RFA carries its own program guidelines, eligibility, due dates and application forms.Amount not published · Rolling / open
- DESE Grant Funding Opportunities (RFP postings)Evaluation contractMassachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary EducationMassachusetts DESE posts current and previous grant RFPs in a listing searchable by fund code, program name, posting date, or deadline, with awards administered through the EdGrants and GEM$ systems.Amount not published · Rolling / open
- NJDOE Discretionary Grants (Notice of Grant Opportunity)Evaluation contractNew Jersey Department of EducationNew Jersey awards discretionary grants to selected agencies to address specific education initiatives, publishing guidelines as a Notice of Grant Opportunity that walks applicants through the competition.Amount not published · Annual cycle
Other clusters
- Adolescent and Youth Development
- Aging Services and Gerontology
- American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian and Global Indigenous Populations (Indigenous Cluster)
- Asian and Asian-Pacific Islander Focused-Research
- Black and African Diaspora Focused-Research
- Child Welfare
- Communities and Neighborhoods
- Crime and Criminal Justice
- Disability
- Gender
- Gender-Based Violence
- Health
- History
- Inequality, Poverty, and Social Welfare Policy
- International Social Work and Global Issues
- Immigrants and Refugees
- LatinX Focused-Research
- Mental Health
- Military Service Members, Veterans and Their Families
- Organizations and Management
- Race and Ethnicity
- Research Design and Measurement
- School Social Work
- Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
- Social Work Practice
- Substance Misuse and Addictive Behaviors
- Sustainable Development, Environmental and Climate Justice
- Work and Work-Life Policies and Programs