International Senior Thesis Research Grant (Summer)
The Buffett Institute’s International Senior Thesis Research Grant (Summer) offers awards of up to $6,000 for eight weeks of independent research on a senior thesis, covering travel and living expenses in locations outside the contiguous U.S. as well as research with Tribal Nations and Indigenous communities, locally and globally. The opportunity is open to undergraduate students across all fields of study during the summer.
Students who seek support for a shorter period than eight weeks of concentrated research may be considered for a prorated grant. Prorated grants are usually for six or seven weeks of research, as approved by a faculty supervisor.
The 2025 application deadline is March 21.
To be eligible for this grant, students must meet the following requirements:
- They must be conducting senior thesis research on an international or global issue outside of the contiguous U.S.
- They must be an undergraduate student at Northwestern University and not graduating any earlier than the end of the Fall 2025 term.
- They may not be enrolled in summer classes or completing an internship during the eight-week research period. These weeks do not need to be consecutive.
- They must not accept any other research grant that covers the eight-week research period.
- They must be in good academic standing.
International Travel
Please be aware that all students who receive funds for research abroad must meet additional requirements set out by Northwestern's Office of Global Safety and Security. As non-credit travelers, all student awardees must complete the International Travel Registry. Northwestern undergraduates planning university-sponsored travel to countries with a U.S. Department of State Travel Advisory Level 3 or 4 are restricted and require special permission. University funds to support the trip will not be released until such permission has been granted—students must begin this process with the Office of Global Safety and Security at least six weeks in advance of the pre-departure date.
Human Subjects Research
If proposed research involves collecting data from human subjects (including interviews, surveys, etc.), you will need to obtain Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval before you may begin your project. The IRB is a multidisciplinary committee that reviews research involving human subjects to ensure the rights and welfare of human subjects are protected. For this approval, you will need to complete an IRB application (see the IRB web site for the IRB Protocols, Templates and Forms that you may need). If approved for funding, your award is conditional upon your forwarding to the Buffett Institute documentation from IRB showing their full approval. Funds will not be disbursed until this is received. While students will prepare the IRB application (as the Primary Contact), only faculty can serve as PI (Principal Investigator) and submit the application.
If you intend to conduct human subjects research, you must have started your IRB application and will be asked to share the IRB application number in our grant application. While it is not necessary to have it fully approved by the application deadline, we highly recommend and submitting as soon as possible, because the review and approval period can be lengthy. You do not need to wait until you have secured funding.
If you are unsure whether your project requires IRB approval or not, please reach out to the IRB office for a consultation. Only the IRB office can determine if you need their review. If you believe it does not require IRB approval, you must work with your faculty mentor to submit the IRB's Human Research Determination Form (HRP-503). This determination is not required in the application for this grant, but is required for the award to be disbursed.
All Northwestern researchers, including undergraduates, who are involved in conducting human subjects research are also required to complete CITI initial human subjects protection training and to re-certify every three years. This training is separate from the IRB approval process. If this applies to you, you must complete this training and submit the completion certificate to our grant application.
The 2025 application deadline is March 21.
Students apply via the online application. The application requires an endorsement from the student’s faculty supervisor to be considered complete. In the application form, students must provide their faculty member's email address. Once submitted, the faculty member will receive an email notification outlining the next steps. Thus, it is important for students to submit their application well before the deadline and to inform their faculty supervisor in advance that they intend to apply for this grant and include details such as the application deadline and a link to this webpage.
The 2025 application deadline is March 21. We will notify students of their award decision in April.
Additional Grant Opportunities on Campus
We highly recommend that applicants also consider applying for the Summer Undergraduate Research Grant offered by the Office of Undergraduate Research. While students can only receive one research grant during this funding period, applying to both programs increases the chances of securing funding for your research project.
This application requires a faculty endorsement. Once a student submits their application, their faculty supervisor will receive a copy of the application along with a link to a short endorsement form to complete. We ask that faculty supervisors submit the endorsement up to 72 hours after the student application deadline, which is March 21.
In submitting this endorsement, faculty supervisors agree to oversee the project and support the student, including through the IRB process if applicable.
If you have questions, please email Buffett-Undergrad-Programs@Northwestern.edu.