Student Field Research Grants (FRG)
THE LATIN AMERICAN & IBERIAN INSTITUTE
FIELD RESEARCH GRANTS
FOR GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH IN LATIN AMERICA OR IBERIA
The Latin American & Iberian Institute (LAII) announces the competition for grants to conduct field
research in Latin America, Spain, or Portugal. The objective of these grants is to give graduate students an
opportunity to gain initial experience with field research in Latin America or Iberia, thereby deepening
language skills, cultural knowledge, and connections to colleagues and institutions in the region. The
deadline for applications is Wednesday, March 18, 2015 by 5:00 p.m. at the LAII (801 Yale NE). The
LAII will offer an Information and Help Session on Wednesday, February 4, 2015 at 12:00 PM at the
LAII.
GENERAL CONDITIONS
1. Graduate students at the University of New Mexico are eligible to enter the competition for research
grants to support individual research.
2. Priority will be given to first-time applicants, but those who have received a prior LAII/Tinker field
research grant may be considered for subsequent awards if they are doing preliminary work on a
substantially new project
3. The research must be conducted outside of the United States in the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking
countries of Latin America and Iberia. These countries include Mexico, countries in Central and
South America, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Spain, and Portugal. Due to our funder’s guidelines,
excluded countries include Belize, Puerto Rico, Haiti, Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana and the
United States. Travel to Spain or Portugal is restricted to research projects related to Latin
America. Applications will be accepted from all disciplines, and we welcome applications from the
sciences, but the research must have clear relevance to the human societies of the region studied.
4. Group projects and joint applications are not permitted. If planning collaborative research, each
applicant must provide a unique research statement, including information regarding the applicant’s
individual role and objectives in the research project.
5. This round of competition is for between April 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015.
6. The Committee requires that those applicants who have received a prior field research grant from the
LAII indicate in their research statement what specific results were obtained from the previous
research. The Committee is particularly interested in knowing whether the previous investigations
resulted in a research paper, publication, or subsequent research awards.
APPLICATION DEADLINE
For research conducted between April 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015 the deadline is:
Wednesday, March 18, 2015 at 5:00 p.m. Only complete applications will be considered by the
Grants and Awards Committee. (See application checklist on page 10.)
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PROPOSAL GUIDELINES
1. LAII field research grants are for the purpose of encouraging foreign area research of direct relevance
to Latin American studies. Travel to Spain or Portugal is restricted to research projects related to
Latin America.
2. The grants are primarily intended for relatively brief periods of research, ranging from two weeks to
four months. For longer-term projects, these grants may serve as "seed" grants to support preliminary
research leading to funding from other sources.
3. Recipients may be graduate students at the master’s or doctoral level, though priority will be given to
doctoral students. The Tinker Field Research Grants are not intended for advanced dissertation
research, but rather to provide graduate students with their first experience in developing independent
research projects and with conducting hands-on field research in Latin America.
4. As per LAII guidelines, costs of international and in-country travel will be prioritized. However, up to
twenty-five percent of the granted funds may be used for expenses budgeted for the field, including
per diem, health insurance, visas, research materials, etc. Applicants are encouraged to seek funding
from other sources or use personal funds to help meet other research expenses.
5. Applicants are expected to have adequate facility with the language of the country or community in
which the research will be conducted. If translation services will be needed, applicants must explain
how interpreters will be chosen and how their presence will affect the study. Applicants should also
demonstrate familiarity with the relevant literature on the topic, as well as knowledge of the
geographical context for the research. A very important component of the application is the research
description with the appropriate methods outlined.
6. Applicants must demonstrate that they have made the necessary contacts with scholars and other
professionals in the field site to enable them to conduct the research. Applicants are strongly
encouraged to obtain letters of support from such contacts.
7. Nationals of Latin America and Iberia enrolled at UNM may utilize funds for research within their
own countries, provided they have no previous field research experience in that country; however,
priority will be given to applicants doing research outside their home countries.
8. All applicants will be required to obtain human subjects approval or exemption from the UNM
Institutional Review Board (IRB) prior to travel. Information about IRB applications and procedures
can be found on UNM’s Human Research Protection Office website at http://irb.unm.edu/
Applicants must complete the IRB’s online CITI training by the FRG deadline. Documentation
of completion should be included in the FRG application packet. Field Research Grant awardees must
notify the LAII of their IRB approval or exemption prior to travel. Proof of IRB approval or
exemption may be submitted in paper form or sent to commlaii@unm.edu. Acceptable proof of
exemption may be an official notification of exemption from the IRB, or an email from the IRB staff
indicating that IRB oversight is not required.
As IRB processing can take significant time, we encourage all applicants to contact the IRB early in
their application planning process.
9. Researchers applying for an FRG who will be conducting research and other activities involving
animals are required to obtain approval from the UNM Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee
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before departure. Applicants should contact IACUC for the most current deadline schedule.
Information about the IACUC can be found at http://hsc.unm.edu/som/research/acc/iacuc.shtml.
APPLICATION PROCEDURES
1.
Application Forms:
a. Application forms are available online at the LAII website,
Http://laii.unm.edu/funding/tinker.php. You may also request copies of the forms by
emailing the LAII Graduate Assistant for Grants and Awards at commlaii@unm.edu
b. Supplemental Grant Applications
Applicants are required to apply for supplemental funds in support of the project. The most
common source for supplemental funds is the Graduate and Professional Students
Association (GPSA) Information on the Student Research Grant can be found at
http://gpsa.unm.edu/funding/grants/SRG.html. FRG applicants must provide either a copy of
the cover page of their SRG application (with required signatures) or an email confirmation
of submission with the FRG application packet. Failure to receive an SRG award will not
disqualify an application. SRG funds, together with any personal funds to be invested in the
project, should be incorporated into the proposed budget.
c. All applicants are reminded to review all updated guidelines before completing the
application. Word-processed application forms are preferable.
2.
Additional Requirements:
a. Letter of Recommendation, Transcripts, and Resume/CV
Applicants must have one letter of recommendation from their principal faculty adviser.
Unofficial graduate transcripts and a current resume or CV are also required.
b. Letters of Support
Although not required, letters of support from organizations or individuals affiliated with the
project in the host country, or evidence of collaboration (such as printouts of email
correspondence), often give more weight to research proposals and can make a difference in
the selection process. Letters of support may be conveyed by fax or e-mail.
c. Research Statement
Applicants should provide a carefully edited research statement describing the proposed
project that specifies the purpose and goals of the research and outlines the research design
and method. The statement should be a maximum of four pages (not including references),
double spaced, with one-inch margins, and twelve-point font. In view of the interdisciplinary
composition of the Grants and Awards committee, applicants should write their statements in
plain language without jargon. If you must use technical, disciplinary terminology, be sure to
define your terms. To demonstrate your familiarity with the relevant literature, it is advisable
to include bibliographic references. Please work closely with your advisor in drafting this
research statement, as he or she will be able to help you refine your research goals and
methodology.
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d. Budget, Airfare Quote Printout, and Itinerary

Please use the budget template provided in the application form below. The budget
should clearly state the exact amounts requested from the LAII FRG, other grants such as
the SRG, and personal funds. Please describe per diem expenses such as housing and
meals and equipment expenses in as much detail as possible. Applicants may provide a
general estimate for “other transportation” such as taxis, buses, and trains.

Applicants must indicate airfare price, dates, and carrier in the budget, and must also
include a printout of that itinerary/price from an online travel agent such as Orbitz or
Travelocity. Please highlight the flight information on the printout.

A detailed itinerary should also be included, listing dates of departure, return and in-field
travel, and contacts for each locale. It may be helpful to organize the itinerary in phases
such as Phase I: Preliminary Research, Phase II: Field Research in _________, Phase III:
Post Research Activities. For each phase, indicate the approximate dates, locations,
contacts and contact information, and detailed research activities.

Examples of budgets and itineraries are available from the LAII upon request.
PROPOSALS ARE REVIEWED AND SELECTED SOLELY UPON MERIT
SELECTION PROCEDURES
1. The Selection Committee will be composed of the UNM LAII Grants and Awards Committee.
Complete applications and supplementary materials will be accepted up to 5:00 p.m. on the March 18,
2015 deadline, processed by staff, and then reviewed by the Committee. The members of the Grants
and Awards Committee will then meet to review the applications. The Committee will meet twice
during the academic year to determine awards. In special circumstances, the Committee may be
polled by e-mail ballot.
2. It is the applicant's responsibility to provide a complete application by the deadline indicated, and to
allow their faculty advisors and proposed institutional contacts sufficient time to prepare letters and
deliver them to the LAII by that date.
3. For research being conducted between April 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015, the following
materials are due March 18, 2015 by 5:00 p.m. at the LAII:
 Completed application form
 3-4 page research statement
 Letter of recommendation from principal faculty advisor
 Current resume or CV
 Copy of SRG application cover page or email submission confirmation
 Unofficial graduate transcripts
 Budget
 Print-out of airfare quote
 Itinerary
 Documentation of having completed the IRB’s CITI training
 Letters of support or evidence of communication with in-country contacts (optional)
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4. Completed applications will be reviewed and applicants notified within one month after the
application deadline. Awardees will have up to two weeks from the date of the award letter to accept
the award. If an awardee should reject an award, the next highest alternate will be chosen.
5. Applicants awarded a grant will be required to obtain a valid passport, required immunizations, any
necessary visas, and health insurance, and to comply with UNM financial regulations.
OTHER CONDITIONS
1. After returning from field research, awardees must present a brief report on research completed and a
summary of expenses, attaching the original airline ticket itinerary/receipt. Future grant proposals by
the applicant will not be considered until final reports have been received. Original receipts must be
presented to obtain any reimbursement.
2. Completion of an SRG application is a requirement for the FRG. Applicants who plan to apply to
SRG after the completion of fieldwork may submit the application front page to meet FRG
requirements, with the understanding that a complete application for supplemental funding will be
submitted when completed, and in all cases by the end of the semester following fieldwork.
Applicants who fail to submit a completed SRG application to the LAII will be required to refund all
FRG grant monies. It is the applicant’s responsibility to know the current, applicable rules of SRG,
including the rules governing retroactive funding applications.
3. Awardees will be required to share their research findings upon their return. Awardees may choose to
present their research in one or more of the following venues: (a) LAII Lecture Series, (b) SOLAS
Brown Bag Lecture Series, (c) LAII Research Paper Series, (d) LIMON, the SOLAS newsletter, (e)
Albuquerque K-12 classrooms, and/or (f) Albuquerque public libraries.
4. If any publication results from the research, the support of the LAII Field Research Grant and the
Tinker Foundation must be acknowledged.
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Spring 2015 Student Field Research Grant Application
Date
Name
Title of Proposed Research
Banner ID
Country of Citizenship
Academic Status (Master’s or Ph.D.)
Department Affiliation
Major Field (or Concentration)
Current Mailing Address
Current Telephone
E-mail Address
Permanent Address
Permanent Telephone
Site and Country of Proposed Research
Dates of Proposed Research
Project Affiliation at Foreign Site and Country: Please list institution, agency, professional person and
expert with which you will have significant contact as part of your project. For each citation, give full
information, including title, address, and email address or telephone number.
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Principal UNM Faculty Advisor
(A letter or recommendation from the principal faculty advisor is required.)
Number of hours completed at UNM and current GPA
Hours:_____
GPA:____
Language Ability - rate yourself on the following scale:
1-Native / fluent
2-Advanced
3-Intermediate
4-Beginning
1.
Spanish:
Speaking ____ Writing ____ Reading ____ Listening Comprehension ____
2.
Portuguese:
Speaking ____ Writing ____ Reading ____ Listening Comprehension ____
3.
Other (Specify): ____________________
Speaking ____ Writing ____ Reading ____ Listening Comprehension ____
Basis of Language Competency (Specify length of residence in Latin America or Iberia, classroom
training, etc. -be specific)
Academic Preparation Related to the Proposed Research
Previous FRG awards
Dates
Country
Project Title
Results Obtained
Description of Proposed Research (Research Statement)
Please attach a three to four page (double spaced) description of the proposed research including the
methodology to be used. This is an essential element of your application.
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Itinerary
Applicants are requested to provide as much detail as possible concerning different phases of the research.
(List international and in-country travel as applicable)
Provide a succinct summary of your project by identifying the different phases of research or location.
For each phase, specify (1) site, (2) inclusive dates, (3) brief identification of research activity and (4)
contact information.
Budget
Please use the following form, providing as much detail as possible (you may attach additional sheets as
necessary).
Applicants must also apply for the SRG (Student Research Grant) for supplementary financial support.
Requested
from
LAII
Air Travel
Other
Transportation
Per Diem
Expenses (Food,
lodging, etc.)
Other (Supplies,
etc)
TOTAL
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Other
Support
Personal
Funds
To Be Used
TOTAL
DEADLINE:
Wednesday, March 18, 2015 by 5:00 p.m.
Return to:
Vickie Nelson
Associate Director of Business Operations
Latin American & Iberian Institute
801 Yale NE
Albuquerque, NM 87131-1016
Tel. 277-4821 Fax 277-5989
E-mail: vnelson@unm.edu
Campus Mailing Address:
MSC 02 1690
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131
Please feel free to contact the Graduate Assistant for Grants and
Awards at any time if you have questions regarding the application process.
APPLICATION CHECKLIST
Applicant’s acknowledgement of application requirements (initials) __________
Required Items:
Completed application form
3-4 page research statement
Letter of recommendation from principal faculty
advisor
Current resume or CV
Copy of SRG application cover page with datestamp, or emailed submission confirmation
Unofficial graduate transcripts
Budget
Printout of airfare quote
Itinerary with phases
Documentation of IRB online CITI training
Optional (but strongly encouraged): Letters of
support from in-country contacts
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