Last Update on: 29 September 2024

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1. Purpose
2. Scope
3. Definitions and Acronyms
4. Objectives
5. Eligibility Criteria
6. Grant Benefits
7. Application Documentation
8. Review and Evaluation
9. Acknowledgements
   
10. Implementation, Compliance, and Reporting
11. Compliance and Performance Indicators
12. Document Amendment Information

1. PURPOSE

The purpose of these guidelines is to support the administration of the Exploratory Research Grant.

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2. SCOPE

1. These guidelines apply to support faculty members and researchers in research by exploring novel research ideas.
2. These guidelines apply to all KFUPM faculty and researchers.

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3. DEFINITIONS AND ACRONYMS

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4. OBJECTIVES

1. The Exploratory Research Grant aims to support faculty members and researchers to explore novel research ideas in the areas of interest to KFUPM and the Kingdom and aligned with the domestic and/or global grand challenges.
2. The following research areas have been identified as focus areas of the existing research interest at KFUPM:
   • Energy of the Future
   • Water Systems Evolution
   • Industry 4.0/5.0
   • Advanced Materials
   • AI and Data Economy
   • Environment and Circular Economy
   • Infrastructure/Cities of the Future
   • Future of IoT and Connectivity
   • Future of Mobility
   • Future of Defense
   • Future of Business and Financial Systems
   • Basic Science

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5. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

5.1 Applicant Eligibility

1. All professorial rank faculty members are eligible to apply for the Grant.
2. Assistant professor should have completed Early career grant successfully.
3. All Senior Research Scientists and Research Scientists (I, II, II) with approval from their center director.

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6. GRANT BEFEFITS

The Grant will provide a maximum of SAR 100,000 not exceeding 24 months for:

1. compensation for undergraduate student (1,000 SAR/month);
2. equipment and supplies;
3. books and reference materials;
4. publication support (only for IRC affiliated);
5. journal submission fees (KFUPM Business School only);
6. international and local scientific visits.

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7. APPLICATION DOCUMENTATION

7.1 Proposal Template

1. Application may be submitted by the PI once a year. 
2. Application must be submitted electronically through system using the appropriate Proposal Template available on the link (Click Here) 
   

7.2 Budget Preparation

1. Applications must include a detailed budget based on the following maximum allocations and periods.

   SN	Item	Maximum Allocation (SAR)	Period
   	Graduate Student (Pursuing PhD)	No incentive	Month
   	Graduate Student (Pursuing MS)	No incentive	Month
   	Undergraduate Student1	1,000	Month
   	Technician	No incentive	Month
   	Secretary	No incentive	Year
   	Stationery	500	Per Project
   	Desktop/Laptop2	15,000	Project
   	Standard Printer2	1,500	Project
   	Multifunction Printer2	2,000	Project
   	Standard Scanner2	500	Project
   	Workstation2	26,000	Project
   	Books and Reference Materials	2,500	Project
   	Publication3	15,000	Project
   	International Scientific Visit4	14 Days	Per Year
   	Local Scientific Visit5 (within KSA)	2 Days	Per Visit
   	Journal Submission Fee (KFUPM Business School Only)	3,600/ Project	US $300 per paper for first submission

   ¹At any given point in time, he/she will be entitled for compensation only through one research project, however Students can participate additionally in one Dhahran Techno Valley Grant.

   ²The approvals of IT peripherals like Desktop/Laptop/Printer/Scanner are subject to justifications, No Objection Letter from IT Center and not being issued from a previously approved project by the Deanship of Research.

   ³The PI should be an IRC affiliate to claim publication support

   ⁴International visits should be aligned with the conference attendance, e.g. in the same country with few days immediately preceding/after conference dates, and maximum one visit per year.

   ⁵ All internal visits are subjected to approvals

2. When the proposal is accepted, the approved project budget will be conveyed before the official start of the project along with the project approval memo.

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8. REVIEW AND EVALUATION

1. Proposals will be evaluated by the University Research Committee (URC) based on the received input from the international experts in the field.
2. Proposals will then be screened and evaluated by DR.
3. The criteria include the following:
   • project justification;
   • Novelty of the proposed work
   • relevance to KFUPM research strategic areas;
   • clarity and achievability of proposed objectives;
   • methodology;
   • significance of the project’s expected outcomes.
4. The URC shall discuss the proposals received and their evaluations, and either:
   • recommend for immediate approval; or
   • not recommend approval.  
5. Applicants will be advised and informed accordingly.  

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9. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

1. Proper acknowledgment of KFUPM affiliation and internally-funded research grant support (along with the project number) in all publications and other outcomes is mandatory. 
2. Publications or other outcomes with no acknowledgement of the project number will not be considered as an outcome of the project.
3. Multiple acknowledgements in project outcomes should be treated according to the Multiple Project Acknowledgement Guidelines (Click Here). 

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10. IMPLEMENTATION, COMPLIANCE, AND REPORTING

10.1 Implementation and Compliance

1. DR shall implement these guidelines.
2. The DR shall monitor projects supported by Exploratory Research Grants.
3. Non-compliance with any provision in these guidelines shall be reported to DR.

10.2 Reporting

1. The PI shall submit a progress report semi-annually (every 6 months) on or before the due date as per the agreement in the prescribed Progress Report Template available on the DR website.
2. The PI shall submit a final report on the findings to DR within one month of the completion date of the project. There are two types of final report format that should be used:
   • Type-A Report: In the event the project team has submitted/accepted/published Journal Paper(s) a brief final report in the DR format should be submitted along with all copies of the publication(s).
   • Type-B Report: In the event the project team does not have published/submitted Journal paper(s), a detailed report needs to be submitted.
3. The PI could apply for extension of the submission date before 2 months of the original submission period.
4. Submission of the final report after the one-month period without getting approval from DR could affect future funding requests submitted by the PI.

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11. COMPLIANCE AND PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

In monitoring and reviewing the implementation of these guidelines, the following compliance and performance indicators shall be used: 

1. Number of grants awarded each year;
2. Submission of funded project progress and final reports;
3. Number of successfully completed projects each year;
4. Number of conferences attended by recipients.
5. Research outcomes and impacts

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12. DOCUMENT AMENDMENT INFORMATION

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