Frequently Asked Questions

APF supports original, innovative research and projects. Although APF favors unique, independent work, the Foundation does fund derivative projects that are part of larger studies.

APF does not allow institutional indirect/administrative/overhead costs and/or fees to be taken out of grant monies. The entire grant must be provided to the individual grantee for the stated purpose. Institutional indirect/administrative/overhead costs and/or fees may not be included in the applicant’s grant budget. If the applicant is selected for funding, and the institution accepts the funds on behalf of the applicant, the institution must adhere to the grant application budget and affirm in writing, on the grant Terms & Conditions, that it will waive all institutional indirect/ administrative/overhead costs and/or fees.

In general, any cost that is not directly compensating or reimbursing an effort/service/item/infrastructure that is integral to the success of the proposed project is considered either an institutional indirect/ administrative/ overhead cost and/ or fee. If an effort/service/item/infrastructure is already provided to the applicant and would be available whether or not the proposal existed, then the item is not considered integral to the success of the proposal.

If you are unsure whether your budget item falls within the unallowable category of institutional indirect/administrative/overhead cost and/or fee, please share the item and APF’s policy (above) with your institution’s grant/scholarship office.

Examples of institutional indirect/administrative/overhead costs and/or fees:
Examples include (but are not limited to): Technology Infrastructure Fees, Cost-Share Initiatives of any kind, lab administration and/or maintenance fees, etc. If you are unsure whether your budget item falls within the unallowable category of institutional indirect/administrative/overhead cost and/or fee, please share the item and APF’s policy (above) with your institution’s grant/scholarship office.

APF supports the direct costs related to the proposal execution. Organizational indirect/administrative/overhead costs are not allowed. If an organization/institution accepts the funds on behalf of the program recipient, they must affirm that they waive their right to any indirect/administrative/overhead costs and the full award amount will be used for the proposal selected for funding. The purpose of APF funding is to support the project necessities. Additional items that are not integral to the success of the project should be given additional rationale/justification.

In order to have a strong budget, applicants must provide a detailed rationale/justification for each budget line.

Direct costs are budget items that are considered acceptable by APF.

Open access costs/publication costs are considered direct project costs and are acceptable. It is important to consider how your funded proposal will make an impact – and if/how your results will be disseminated.

PI stipend/salary support is considered a direct cost, but is evaluated within the context of the methodology and the PI time dependent on the success of the study. If an applicant includes PI stipend/salary support as a budget item line, they should include justification/rationale for the divergence of funds from other project areas.

Other examples of direct costs include:

• Participant payments
• Technology expenses (hardware/software/imaging etc)
• Travel (to conduct research or disseminate findings)
• Non-PI (personnel) stipend/salary support (this includes co-PI’s and/or Research Assistants)
• Supplemental training

Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval is required for any research project involving human participants.

APF cannot disburse grant monies without IRB approval. Successful applicants have six months from the date of the grant approval to obtain IRB approval, or the grant will be rescinded.

We try to announce grant recipients approximately two to three months after a grant deadline, though the exact time may take shorter or longer depending on the number of applications received. Applicants are not held to the timelines they submit in their propsals.

Funding begins when recipients submit IRB approval and the required paperwork. APF funding will continue for a maximum of 12 months from the check date. Extensions are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

No. Do not submit materials in addition to the required application materials.

If the application requires letters of recommendation, you will be asked to provide your recommender’s email address on your application form. Our system will automatically generate an email to the email address you provide with a link to upload a letter into our system directly. On your applicant dashboard, you will be able to track if your recommender has uploaded a letter, but you will not be able to see the letter that has been submitted. We highly recommend that you send the letter request to your recommenders as soon as you start your online application. All application materials, including letters of recommendation, are due by the application deadline. Applicants may submit their online application forms before the recommender has submitted the letter. Letters of recommendation will be accepted until the deadline.

No, references can be included in addition to the page limit.

Applications are due at 11:59 p.m. Hawaii Time (HT) on the due date posted on APF’s website.

Currently, APF’s only undergraduate funding opportunity is the Sharon Stephens Brehm Psychology Scholarship. This program provides assistance to undergraduate psychology majors with demonstrated financial need.

Yes, international applicants from countries that have diplomatic relations with the United States and who meet the other eligibility requirements may apply for APF funding.

No, however some programs require membership in a specific APA Division.

For grants and scholarships that are $10,000 or more, APF will disburse the funds to the grantee’s institution. APF does not allow institutional indirect costs or overhead costs. Funded researchers may use grant monies for direct administrative costs of their proposed project.

To receive APF funds, recipients must be affiliated with a nonprofit charitable, educational or scientific institution, or governmental entity operating exclusively for charitable and educational purposes.

No, APF Trustees must wait one year after their term of service before they can be considered for a grant or an award.

Yes, you can apply to as many APF programs as you like. Researchers can win multiple awards for different projects. Each individual project, however, can only receive funding once. This means that if you receive funding for your project, that specific project will be removed from consideration for future funding opportunities from APF.

APF does not offer feedback on applications.