CHED seeks proposals for int’l research grant

MANILA, Philippines -  The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) will accept a new batch of research projects that will be funded through a multi-billion collaborative research grant with universities in the United States.

CHED chair Patricia Licuanan said new proposals for the latest round of funding through the Philippine-California Advanced Research Institutes (PCARI) project will be accepted until July 31.

PCARI is a five-year research program funded by the government which aims to increase the capacity of Philippine universities in conducting collaborative research in partnership with universities based in California.

Licuanan said proposals must address significant societal problems and have the potential to bring about and sustain technology transfer or commercialization activities.

CHED has already funded 30 research projects under the PCARI program. 

For the current cycle, the fifth since the project started in 2012, preference will be given to proposals in the field of artificial intelligence, data science, agriculture, food processing, nutrition, marine and aquatic sciences.

“Research project proposals must be jointly developed and, if approved, jointly implemented by a Philippine-based higher education institution and a university located in the State of California,” the commission said.

“At present only the University of California Berkeley, the University of California San Francisco, University of California Davis and University of California Los Angeles are eligible to participate,” it added.

Expected outputs may be quantitative or qualitative, but must be measurable or demonstrable during a funding period. 

Specific outputs and outcomes must be clearly identified in the proposal form, including content and timing. New knowledge expected from the project should be clearly defined and differentiated from similar research undertakings in other parts of the world, CHED said.