The Broad School, through its Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER), provides grants to faculty, students and student organizations. These grants are a part of the CIBER's mission to improve the international competitiveness of the U.S. workforce today through for cutting-edge research. 

As a part of the CIBER outreach mission, the grants can also be given to faculty and doctoral students from other universities across the country.   

Through the MSU-CIBER Professional Development Grants Program, Thomas Jeitschko, professor of economics, was able to attend the European Meetings of the Econometric Society in Barcelona, Spain, this past month. "My attendance in conference provided massive knowledge on the economics of litigation and intellectual property rights," Jeitschko said. "I can confidently say that those experiences and insights I obtained there will lead to international collaborations in this area."  

There are three kinds of grants provided: curriculum development, professional development and research. 

These grants fund diverse opportunities; they span wide categories available to almost any level of students and student organization. For instance, master's students can be awarded a grant if they plan to go get their Ph.D. Even undergraduate student organizations can apply for a grant to invite renowned speakers to their international business events. 

The applicants do not have to leave the U.S. for their work to be considered international.   "Many people think that they need to fly halfway around the world to be able to apply for an international research grant," said Irem Kiyak, associate director of MSU-CIBER. "International research doesn't necessarily mean researchers have to travel internationally. A large amount of international research occurs domestically."

Since grants are awarded throughout the year, the number of grants given can varies between 50 and 100, depending on the year. On an average year, more than $47,500 in grant money is awarded --not including conference grants. "Our grants are pretty evenly distributed between the different disciplines; we fund a very diverse group of researchers and educators," Kiyak said. 

The grants are provided through various agencies. Significant portions of the grants come from the federal government, under the CIBER umbrella in the U.S. Department of Education. Additionally, funds also are provided by MSU organizations such as the Provost's office, Dean's office, Vice President for Research and more. The Broad School has a long-standing tradition of receiving external grants that help leverage other forms of funding including public funding and corporate support. 

The entire application process can be completed online. The grants are issued on a monthly review cycle and proposals may be submitted at any time. Because the entire process occurs online, the review process is prompt and transparent.  

Applicants can get more grant information online at: http://global.broad.msu.edu/grants/