Deadline: 17-Sep-2025
The National College of Engineering is thrilled to announce the launch of the second NCE Research Grant, following the tremendous success of the inaugural NCE Research Grant.
This year’s grant aims to build upon the achievements and positive outcomes of their first round. Their focus for the NCE Research Grant is to promote collaborative research across various disciplines, institutions, and sectors.
This grant initiative aims to support academic researchers and scholars, promoting collaborative research and expanding knowledge and breakthroughs in interdisciplinary areas. Aiming to support faculties in undertaking their planned research projects and enabling undergraduate scholars to benefit from the faculties’ research projects, they invite research groups (faculties accompanied by at least one undergraduate student) from constituent/affiliated engineering colleges/campuses of universities in Nepal to submit their proposals for consideration.
The research focus areas are Artificial Intelligence and Deep Learning: Enabling Applications, E-Governance, Cyber Security, Quantum Computing, and Blockchain Technology; Internet of Things (IoT) and Internet of Nano-Things (IoNT), Sensors, Robotics and Industrial Automation, and Next Generation Communication Networks (5G/6G); Electric Vehicles, Energy Efficiency and Auditing, Renewable Energy Technologies, Smart Grid and Metering, and Optimum Energy Mix; Innovative Construction and Building Materials, Resilient and Sustainable Structures, Smart Irrigation Systems, Tunneling Technology, Geotechnical Engineering for Infrastructure Development, and Equitable Urban Mobility; and Climate Change, Green Hydrogen, Computational Technique, and Combinatorial Optimization. The primary objectives of this research grant are to drive innovation and excellence in multidisciplinary research areas; address critical challenges and gaps within the field, contributing to the betterment of society; promote interdisciplinary and interinstitutional collaboration to generate comprehensive solutions; facilitate the development of new technologies, methodologies, or theories; and disseminate research findings through high-impact publications, conferences, and outreach.
To attract more applicants, a two-step proposal call has been strategically planned. The first step, or Screening Stage, will seek short proposals presenting the main proposed ideas and their novelty and significance. The second step will invite detailed proposals only from the applicants whose proposals pass the screening stage.
This grant is open to faculty members working at constituent or affiliated engineering colleges and campuses of universities in Nepal. Applicants from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply, and forming a research group of at least two members, including a faculty member and an undergraduate student, is mandatory. NCE may assign either a student or a faculty member to join the team of each research grant awardee to foster research collaboration.
On a competition basis, a minimum of five different research groups will be selected and each group will be awarded a grant of NRs. 2,00,000. The number of awardee groups may be increased if additional funding is available. The awarded funding can be utilized for personnel salaries and stipends, research materials and equipment, travel and accommodation for conferences and collaborations, data collection and analysis and publication costs, and other justifiable research expenses.
Interested applicants should submit a comprehensive proposal following the guidelines provided in the application package, including a complete research proposal and resumes or short Curriculum Vitae of the key researchers involved. All submitted proposals will undergo a rigorous peer-review process by experts in the relevant areas. Evaluation criteria will include innovation, scientific merit, potential impact, feasibility, and collaboration potential.
Expected research outcomes include a presentation reporting the research progress according to the Milestone 1 table, a research article for the next issue of the NCE Journal of Science and Engineering, and a brief project report followed by a presentation at the end of Milestone 2. The application closes on 17 September 2025.
For more information, visit NCE.
