Paleontologists study the fossil record to learn how life on earth evolved.
The Paleontological Society supports research in paleontological science, which is the study of ancient life forms. The society is an international nonprofit group that funds research through several grant programs. The society also holds conferences in which paleontology students and professionals present their research findings.
PalSIRP Sepkoski Grants
The society awards a number of small grants to paleontologists based in Eastern Europe. In 2011, the society committed to giving 15 grants of $1,000 through this program. Graduate students and established or retired professionals may apply. Applicants must demonstrate the value of their proposed research and their means of conducting it. They must fill out the application provided by the Paleontological Society and write a cover letter that includes their institutional affiliation and other requested information. They should also complete a two-page research proposal and submit a curriculum vitae to demonstrate their qualifications for conducting the research. Applicants don't need to submit a detailed budget; however, a description of how they would use the funding will suffice.
Student Research Grants
The Paleontological Society awards grants to support student research. In 2010, $750 grants supported student research across a range of subfields in paleontology. Undergraduate and graduate students may apply for these awards. They must have a research supervisor who submits a letter of recommendation on their behalf. Applicants must complete the application and a one-page project description and submit additional letters of support.
Other Student Awards
The Paleontological Society also administers grants to support student research and scholarship. Many of these awards, such as the Arthur J. Boucot Award and the G. Arthur Cooper Award, are given in honor of exceptional researchers in the field. Students who apply to the Student Research Grant program described above will automatically receive consideration for all other student grants.
Awardees
The society's grants have supported a range of projects from "measuring the ecological impact of the Ordovician mass extinction," "determining the diets of fossorial rodents of the Oligo-Miocene of central and eastern Oregon" and "correlating climate change and biotic turnover in the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation." The society makes grants to individual researchers rather than institutions.
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