🔬 7 Questions to Ask When Research Funding Is Cut

I remember when I first learned that NIH would cap its IDC rate at 15%. I sat with the leadership team to assess our exposure, understand the ripple effects, and figure out how to mitigate the impact.

Research funding cuts hit hard—and they force tough decisions. But they can also spark clarity, collaboration, and strategic thinking.

𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 7 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩𝐬:

1. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬?
Protect what advances your institution’s core goals.

2. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡?
Funders—and the public—need to understand the impact.

3. 𝐈𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫—𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐭 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐞?
Collaborate, don’t compete, when it makes sense.

4. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐬, 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤?
→ Don’t underestimate the power of aligned private funding.
→ Are we helping faculty find and apply for new opportunities?

5. 𝐂𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐲 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬—𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤?
→ Leaner ≠ weaker
→ Consider shared services or joint appointments
→ Reallocate wisely

6. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞—𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐢𝐯𝐨𝐭—𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞?
Not everything has to end—but tough calls may be needed.

7. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐧𝐨𝐰?
Keep a long view. Don’t let today’s challenge erase tomorrow’s vision.

Research doesn’t stop—but how we fund it must shift.

👉 How is your institution adapting to funding cuts?