Funding Opportunities
In pursuit of our mission to put social science to work for society, we fund and support a portfolio of social science research led by PI-eligible Stanford faculty that directly responds to tangible social needs.
When we invest in a research project or agenda, we expect a return measured not in money but in outcomes that improve people's lives.
Each of our funding opportunities is defined by progressively larger budgets, durations, and research scope. Larger investments are matched by higher expectations for the magnitude of scientific contribution, the impact a team is positioned to achieve, and the level of engagement or partnership beyond the university.
Track 1 & Track 2 Funding
Track 1 funding offers research teams up to $350,000 over a period of up to two years. It supports individual research projects as well as multi-project agendas, making it well suited to both early-stage and more mature impact-focused projects.
Track 2 funding offers research teams between $350,000 and $650,000 over a period of up to three years. It supports individual research projects as well as multi-project agendas. The larger investment amounts carry higher expectations for the scale of scientific contribution, impact, and partnership.
From 2023 to 2026, SIL offered funding opportunities called Stage 1: Seed Partnerships and Stage 2: Test Solutions. Stage 1 supported research teams engaged in the early work needed to deeply understand a tangible social need and prepare for designing solutions. Stage 2 supported research teams working to develop and test solutions in real-world settings. Stage 1 and Stage 2 have since been updated and replaced by Track 1 and Track 2.
Lab Funding
Lab Funding provides Stanford-led, impact-focused research labs with up to $2.5M of predictable, unrestricted, long-term funding to make progress on a research agenda aimed at addressing a social issue. As the largest and most competitive funding level SIL offers, Lab Funding is designed for teams with a proven track record of field-leading research that has already had a demonstrated impact at scale. Teams must also demonstrate a strong track record of partnership or public engagement outside of academia.
From 2023 to 2026, SIL offered a funding opportunity called Stage 3: Amplify Impact to research teams with a demonstrated track record of successful partnership-based research. Stage 3 has since been updated and replaced by Lab Funding.