Social Science Matrix is pleased to present two funding opportunities: for Matrix Research Teams, and for the Iris Hui Memorial Scholarship.
Matrix Research Teams
Application Deadline: March 16, 2026
Social Science Matrix is now accepting proposals from faculty, students, and affiliated researchers for Matrix research teams for the 2026-2027 academic year. Matrix Research Teams are emerging research communities that gather regularly to explore or develop a novel question or growing field in the social sciences. Successful research teams integrate participants from several disciplines, address a compelling research question with real-world significance, and deploy or develop appropriate methodologies in innovative ways. Ideally, all research teams — whether faculty- or student-led — will also involve members of diverse ranks (i.e., faculty, post-docs, affiliated researchers, and graduate students) from the Social Sciences Division (and can include members across the university). Research teams are expected to use their funding to support their community-building and research activities and to support Matrix’s goals of advancing transdisciplinary research and fostering connections across campus.
- Faculty-led Research Teams can receive funding up to $5000. They run for one to two semesters, meeting at least eight times around a defined research problem. Led or co-led by tenure-track faculty or advanced affiliated researchers from UC Berkeley, these teams can take the form of a reading or discussion group, a working group developing a research project, or a speaker series held at Matrix.
- Student-led Research Teams will receive funding up to $1500. Coordinated by one or more graduate students, they will meet regularly, around 5-10 times over the course of the academic year, and explore an emerging field — a new area or question of inquiry — and assess whether it has potential for further investigation. Funding for Student-led Research Teams is intended to further collaboration among graduate students, provide professional development, and create opportunities for faculty engagement and mentorship.
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Iris Hui Memorial Scholarship
Application Deadline: March 31, 2026
Established in 2021, the Dr. Iris Hui Memorial Graduate Student Scholarship honors the vision and goals of Dr. Iris Hui, a PhD graduate of Political Science from UC Berkeley. Family and friends raised funding for this memorial scholarship in Dr. Hui’s name to support researchers and students tackling issues that meant so much to her — urgent, real-world problems facing all of us, including the governance of natural resources, climate change, political empowerment, and migration. As a former graduate student herself, Dr. Hui understood how funding like this can benefit graduate students. Social Science Matrix is honored to be chosen as the institutional home for this memorial scholarship, which will be distributed to awarded graduate students each summer. The maximum award amount is $1000; amounts may be less than requested. Applications for the research funding are accepted each year until March 31st. Money will be given to students as a stipend upon award. We anticipate being able to award 1-2 awards each year, depending on the amount of the awards and funding availability. Awards will be announced by June 1st each year. Eligibility: Applicants can be at any stage of the PhD process, and must be enrolled in any department in the Social Sciences Division of the UC Berkeley College of Letters & Science. Students are eligible to receive this grant once during their graduate studies.
