FAQs
Application Process
Applicants can apply for research funding through the online application portal available on DARE-RC’s official website www.darerc.org
The application process begins with the submission of a concept note explaining the area/problem for the proposed research, followed by a detailed research proposal if the concept note is approved.
Specific instructions and guidelines for filling out the concept note form is explained in the “Call for Applications-Cycle 2”.
The applicant organisation may submit multiple applications.
The submission of application and the compulsory supporting documentation shall be made by the lead applicant organisation.
Yes – an applicant organisation can still apply for the Call for Applications – Cycle 2. Their submission will be reviewed according to the procedures mentioned in the Call for Applications – Cycle 2 document.
Timeline
The deadline for submitting the concept note is 11:59pm (Pakistan Standard Time) on 06 December 2024.
Extensions for the concept note submission deadline are not possible; it’s crucial to adhere to the specified timeline.
Content and Structure of Concept Note
DARE-RC has identified research priority areas for the research grants which are explained in the Call for Applications Cycle-2.
The literature review in the concept note should provide a concise analytical account of the literature-based arguments with a clear identification of knowledge gaps relevant to the proposed research.
References must be included in the concept note but will not be counted towards the word limit.
A concept note template is available on https://darerc.org/apply-for-grant-cycle-2/ , please refer the field/section “Timeline and Budget Estimates (Character limit 1,400) of the concept note template and follow the below instructions.
- Provide a preliminary budget estimate for your research project in PKR.
- Please specify whether you are applying for the short-term or long-term project grant.
- Break down the expenses and justify the funding requested.
- Provide realistic timelines for conducting the different stages of the research project.
You must justify your budget in view of your proposed research grant
Ethical Approval
The certificate of ethical approval should be sought immediately after the acceptance of the research proposal. In the concept note, a brief statement on key ethical measures for the proposed research should be included.
Ethical approval may be obtained from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of Higher Education Commission-recognised institutions in Pakistan or similar national or international institutions.
Collaborations and Partnerships
Collaboration with academia-based networks is desirable for the success of the proposed research. Applications having collaborative Pakistani and international expertise are welcome.
Collaboration with public sector universities is encouraged and women-led institutions are encouraged to apply.
There is no restriction on the number of organisations involved. However, in such a case, a teaming agreement, outlining the roles and responsibilities of each party will be required.
Without compromising on quality and the solicitation process, DARE-RC encourages inclusivity of applicants and within their research team. Applicants such as public-sector universities, women-led universities/research institutions and those in geographically remote locations are encouraged to apply. Mainstream applicants should also collaborate with such institutions.
Applications with collaboration between Pakistani and international experts are welcome. However, the applicant organisation must be a Pakistani entity.
Yes, collaborations between academia and local organisations, including public sector departments are encouraged.
The inclusivity assessment is covered under the Concept Note Scoring Tool (section 12 of Call for Applications-Cycle 2). The inclusivity statement given in the concepts notes and proposals will be assessed as per the description in the scoring tool.
The confirmation letters must be submitted by the lead applicant organisation on their letterheads.
Yes, an international expert may be engaged as Lead Researcher/Principal Investigator as long as they meet the criteria given in the Call for Applications-Cycle 2 along with the research team comprising of Pakistani individuals.
Evaluation process
The successful applicants will be contacted by DARE-RC with details of the next stage.
Approval of the concept note leads to the submission of a full research proposal.
Yes, we have set criteria for reviewing of the concept notes. Please refer to the Concept Note Scoring Tool (section 12 of Call for Applications-Cycle 2) and Concept Note Scoring Tool-Rubric (Annex C of Call for Applications-Cycle 2).
An applicant organisation can lead on multiple proposals in the Call for Applications-Cycle 2 and there will no risk of disqualification on such basis. However, should multiple concept notes move to stage 2 (proposal development stage), the lead applicant organisation will have to explain overlaps between research teams (if any) and justify their ability to successfully manage more than one research grant. DARE-RC will keep the above in consideration at the time of awarding of grants.
Applications will undergo evaluation by the DARE-RC technical review team using the concept note scoring tool and Research Quality Guidance Note for the Applications in the “Call for Applications Cycle-2”. The decision of DARE-RC will be considered final.
Full Research Proposal
The full research proposal should be submitted online within three weeks of the concept note approval notification date. A deadline will be communicated to the applicants moving to the proposal stage.
CVs of all the members of the research team should be submitted in a single document, following the specified format and length.
Conflict of Interest
Any conflicts of interest should be disclosed in the application using the “disclosure form”
Identification of conflicts won’t disqualify a proposal but may require additional actions for mitigation.
Reporting and Accountability
Reporting requirements, including frequency and format, will be outlined in the terms and conditions to be provided upon successful award of the grant.
Progress reports should provide detailed insights into project achievements, challenges, and lessons learned. An inception report should be submitted before the start of the project. A mid-term review report should be submitted after field work and initial data analysis. A final report should be submitted after the culmination of the project and publication draft for submission.
For information regarding types of research methodologies, please refer to “Call for Applications Cycle-2”. Please note that this guidance is only the first step in providing guidance for researchers, and the suggested theoretical perspectives and research methods are not prescriptive.
Research grants are competitive in nature and follow a pre-defined eligibility criteria and solicitation process, operating on a deadline-driven basis. Only the best research ideas submitted by eligible applicants within the deadline, will be awarded a research grant. The DARE-RC Research Grant is “not for profit” and will solely fund the cost of research delivery.
Research may be carried out in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, Sindh, Islamabad Capital Territory and Gilgit Baltistan.
There are two types of research projects being funded through this Call for Application:
- Small research projects: PKR 14 million to 34 million (inclusive of all taxes) for a single grant with a maximum of 10% to be allocated for overhead cost.
- Large research projects: PKR 28 million to 80 million (inclusive of all taxes) for a single grant with a maximum of 10% to be allocated for overhead cost.
There will be no addition of Withholding Taxes (WHT) in the budgets and WHT must be applied on the entire budget of the research projects. WHT will be deducted at source in-accordance with the prevailing rates as per jurisdiction (Federal and Provinces).
There are two types of research grants varying different timelines including:
DARE-RC Small Research Grants: 6 to 12 months; longer duration up to 15 months can be considered with justification.
DARE-RC Large Research Grants: 12 to 15 months.
No, the organisation must be a Pakistani entity and legally registered to operate in Pakistan.
The organisation must obtain the required No Objection Certificates from the relevant government authorities for implementation of on-ground research activities.
Public sector organisations will submit their Audit Reports issued by the Provincial or Federal offices of Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP).
- Public Sector Organisations:
- Independent audited financial statements and audit reports for the last two years (by external auditors).
- In case independent audited financial statements and audit reports are not available, audit reports issued by the Provincial or Federal offices of Auditor General for any of the two years since 2019 can be submitted. In addition to this, Management Accounts of the last two fiscal years (2022-23 and 2023-24) should also be submitted. Management Accounts should comprise of:
- Funds/grants/other income received in a fiscal year including name of grant/fund/other income, name of funding institution (for instance Higher Education Commission-HEC or Provincial Government, Admission fees, Donations etc) and amount received in PKR.
- Details of actual expenditure (Utilisation report) incurred against each of the above-mentioned funds/grants/other income in the same fiscal year.
- Important notes to the accounts (to support the above statements).
- The applicants must provide yearly comparative figures against each of the head of the above-mentioned accounts.
Complaints can be lodged at any time and should be emailed to complaints@rcdare.org.
There will be no contribution required by the successful applicant.
- When an organisation fails to meet any condition of the eligibility criteria outlined in the terms and conditions and fails to submit their concept note and supporting documents.
- At any stage of the grant cycle (shortlisting, selection, and implementation), if an organisation is found to be involved in any unfair practices or wrongdoings, including but not limited to misrepresentation, misdeclaration, attempts to influence the process, concealing of information, collusion, or conflict of interest, the said organisation shall be excluded and blacklisted for any future financial support from OPM. FCDO will be notified of such cases by DARE-RC.
The FAQs document is the primary source for addressing queries; additional support can be sought at info@rcdare.org.
Our call is limited to research in K-12 education.
The submission of compulsory documents (list provided in Call for Application-Cycle 2 document) is required along with the submission of concept note at stage-1.
This grant is primarily for institutions/organisations and individuals are not eligible to apply. Furthermore, prior research experience in education, especially in the themes under the DARE-RC Research Agenda is a prerequisite.
A Principal Investigator or Lead Investigator/Researcher is a person who is leading the proposed research.
We have broad research questions and indicative sub questions in all four research priority areas. These questions reflect possible focus for a study. The applicants can pick up any question and plan a study. Their deeper understanding of the problem and its different dimensions will determine the focus of the study.
The cross-cutting themes have questions and indicative questions. The applicants can choose any of these questions for their research projects. However, they will certainly have to focus on issues/questions/indicative sub-questions identified in one of the research priority areas. For instance, the use of data-informed decision-making can be focused to understand what works to ensure access to education, continuity and improved learning outcomes for marginalised children (groups referred in the research agenda).
The application must be submitted by the lead application organisation at the concept note stage. Compulsory documents required at the concept note stage must be uploaded at the concept note stage. The list of these documents is mentioned in the Call for Applications-Cycle 2 document.
The online submission process has been made as user friendly as possible. Considering the current internet issues in the country and to avoid the risk of non-receipt of an application, we have created an email address confirmation@rcdare.org which can be used by the applicants to share their acknowledgement email along with the above-mentioned details. These acknowledgements and details will enable us to match the submitted application (received on our dedicated email address) to ensure that no applications go missing.
These acknowledgements and details will enable us to match the submitted application (received on our dedicated email address) to ensure that no applications go missing.
Yes, if such proposed research is relevant to the DARE-RC Research Agenda Cycle 2; and the research has been undertaken after taking ethical approvals.
The entire process from submission of concept note to approval of proposals including due diligence might take at least 3 months starting from the concept note submission deadline.
The relevant experience of the faculty as required by DARE-RC will be considered. However, the organisation shall meet the eligibility requirements along with submission of compulsory documentation.
FCDO is funding the project and has ownership of the Intellectual Property rights as per their procedures and protocols. All research products including the data and data sets grantees generate will also be open source. The research products generated under the grants will be published under the name of the researcher however FCDO’s contribution must be acknowledged.
The applicant organisation can provide all the required statements on a single document on the lead applicant organisation’s letterhead.
The basic content of each confirmation letter is available in the condition mentioning such requirements. You have to put your relevant organisational details/information and get it signed from the competent authority of your organisation. The confirmations shall be on the lead applicant organisation’s letterhead.
The “Apply for Grant” will not function unless you have uploaded all the required documents.
No, all required information must be entered into the sections listed in the concept note template. Word files or attachments are not accepted as an alternative for your Concept Note.
An entity registered in Pakistan can apply for research grants. Applications having collaborative Pakistani and international expertise are welcome. Furthermore, prior research experience in education, especially in the themes under the DARE-RC Research Agenda is a prerequisite. Consortiums are also eligible, provided that the lead applicant organisation is legally registered to operate in Pakistan.
