We are 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 our first round. Our focus for the NCE Research Grant 2025 is to promote collaborative research across various disciplines, institutions, and sectors.

A. Grant Overview:

NCE is proud to offer grant funding for innovative and impactful research projects targeting multidisciplinary areas. 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, we 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.

To attract more applicants, we have strategically planned a two-step proposal call:

1) First step (Screening): The Screening Stage will seek short proposals presenting the main proposed ideas and their novelty and significance.

(Note: Please use the template accompanying this proposal call: Proposal Template-Screening.docx )

2) Second Step (Detail Proposal): The second step will invite detailed proposals only from the applicants whose proposals will pass the screening stage.

B. Research Focus Areas:
Proposals are sought in the following key areas of interest, though not limited to:

  1. Artificial Intelligence and Deep Learning: Enabling Applications, E-Governance, Cyber Security, Quantum Computing, and Blockchain Technology
  2. Internet of Things (IoT) and Internet of Nano-Things (IoNT), Sensors, Robotics and Industrial Automation, and Next Generation Communication Networks (5G/6G)
  3. Electric Vehicles, Energy Efficiency and Auditing, Renewable Energy Technologies, Smart Grid and Metering, and Optimum Energy Mix
  4. Innovative Construction and Building Materials, Resilient and Sustainable Structures, Smart Irrigation Systems, Tunneling Technology, Geotechnical Engineering for Infrastructure Development, and Equitable Urban Mobility
  5. Climate Change, Green Hydrogen, Computational Technique, and Combinatorial Optimization

C. Grant Objectives:
The primary objectives of this research grant are to:

  1. Drive innovation and excellence in multidisciplinary research areas.
  2. Address critical challenges and gaps within the field, contributing to the betterment of society.
  3. Promote interdisciplinary and interinstitutional collaboration to generate comprehensive solutions.
  4. Facilitate the development of new technologies, methodologies, or theories.
  5. Disseminate research findings through high-impact publications, conferences, and outreach.

D. Eligibility:
This grant is open to faculty members working at constituent/affiliated engineering colleges/campuses of universities in Nepal. Applicants from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply. Forming a research group of at least two members, including a faculty member and an undergraduate student, is mandatory. To foster research collaboration, NCE may assign either a student or a faculty member to join the team of each research grant awardee.

E. Funding Details:
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 (rupees two lakhs in words). The number of awardee groups may be increased if additional funding is available. The awarded funding can be utilized for:

  1. Personnel salaries and stipends (up to 40%)
  2. Research materials and equipment (up to 30%)
  3. Travel and accommodation for conferences and collaborations (up to 20%)
  4. Data collection and analysis and publication costs (up to 20%)
  5. Other justifiable research expenses (up to 30%)

F. Application Process/Guidelines/Required Documents:
Interested applicants should submit a comprehensive proposal (Refer to Section A.1) following the guidelines provided in the application package. The proposal should include:

  1. A complete research proposal (it is mandatory to use the template provided)
  2. Resumes/Short Curriculum Vitae of key researchers involved [Maximum two pages (A4 size), including a maximum of 3 representative published papers (Submit CVs as separate files)]

G. Review Process:
All submitted proposals will undergo a rigorous peer-review process by experts (prioritized to NCE non-members) in the relevant areas. Evaluation criteria will include innovation, scientific merit, potential impact, feasibility, and collaboration potential.

H. Expected Research Outcome:

  • A presentation reporting the research progress according to the Milestone 1 table
    (Note: A failure to demonstrate significant progress may result in not receiving the second half of the grant fund).
  • A research article for the next issue of the journal [NCE Journal of Science and Engineering (ISSN: 2717-4786)] to be published by the college.
  • At the end of Milestone 2, a brief project report followed by a presentation.

I. Timeline (Prior to Awarding Grant):

  • Request for Proposal Release Date: 15th August 2025
  • First Proposal Submission Deadline: 17th September 2025
  • Screening Result Notification and Invitation to Submit Detail Proposal: 15th October 2025
  • Detail Proposal Submission Deadline: 28th December 2025
  • Notice for Final Presentation for Selected Applicant: 27th February 2026
  • Final Presentation for Selected Candidate: 9th-13th March, 2026
  • Grant Award Notifications: 24th March 2026
  • Release of Grant Fund (First Portion): First/Second Week of April, 2026
  • Project Start Date: 2nd of April, 2026
  • Mid-term Report: Milestone 1: Submission of Deliverables: 1st week of October 2026
  • Project Completion Date: Milestone 2: Submission of Deliverables: 2nd week of April 2027

J. Timeline (Following Grant Award)
The second week of October 2026: Progress Report and Presentation

  • The last week of October 2026: Research Article for NJCE Journal
  • The second week of April 2026: Final Report followed by a presentation

K. Grant Distribution:

  • First Installment (After Final Acceptance of the Proposal): 20%
  • Second Installment (After Completing Milestone 1): 50%
  • Final Installment (After Completing All Requirements): 30%

L. Contact Information:
For inquiries and proposal submissions, please contact:

Research and Development Unit, National College of Engineering
Email: rdu@nce.edu.np
Phone: (01)-5151387/5151170
We look forward to receiving your innovative proposals and contributing to advancing the research field of your interest. Together, we can make a lasting impact on our society through groundbreaking research and discovery.

Download Proposal template: Proposal Template-Screening.docx