Applications open for Catalyst and Discovery Awards

Early-career faculty and cross-divisional teams can seek funding for their innovative and collaborative ideas during the 2026 round of the Johns Hopkins University Catalyst and Discovery awards. Application materials can be found on the Office of Research website, and faculty can submit their proposals until Feb. 15.

The awards are now in their 11th year and have provided hundreds of faculty members with support for their groundbreaking research.

"Catalyst and Discovery awards afford faculty the chance to extend the boundaries of their fields and explore previously uncharted avenues of research and creativity," says Denis Wirtz, vice provost for research. "The programs have produced amazing results since they were first offered in 2015."

‌‌Catalyst Awards support early-career faculty across the university who are undertaking exceptional research or creative endeavors. Awards of up to $100,000 are available to faculty members appointed to a full-time tenure-track or tenure-track equivalent faculty position within no less than three years and no more than 10 years of service effective July 1, 2026.

‌Discovery Awards focus on cross-university, faculty-led research and discovery. These awards offer up to $150,000 to spark new ideas and interactions among faculty from across the university. Faculty teams use these funds to launch early-stage projects and build momentum toward securing externally funded, large-scale grants or cooperative agreements. When an opportunity is identified, the principal investigators can work with the Research Development Team to prepare the application.

The 2025 awards cycle provided funds to 20 Catalyst awardees and 38 Discovery teams representing fields and divisions across the institution. Their work includes projects seeking to develop scalable interventions to address maternal obesity and postpartum depression, harness artificial intelligence-powered 3D simulations to detect hazards in healthcare settings, and evaluate how environmental exposures over time contribute to Alzheimer's-related dementias.