CORE Project Funding and Facility Support
CORE Voucher Program
The CORE Voucher Program, funded through the UMaine Office of the Vice President for Research, provides financial assistance for University of Maine graduate and undergraduate students to access CORE facilities in support of their academic and research pursuits.
Students, with the support of a faculty advisor, may request up to $150 to fund a project proposal. Applications are accepted twice a year, at the beginning of the fall and spring semesters.
Funding can be applied to a variety of CORE services: training, equipment usage, space reservation, and consumable materials. Although many CORE services are associated with STEM fields, students from any course of study may apply. Large-format poster printing, data management, and presentation space rental are examples of CORE services that could be relevant to any discipline.
There are few restrictions on criteria for acceptable projects:
- Funding can only be applied to items included in CORE rate schedules (see lab and facility pages for more information)
- Projects need to be completed within the span of the semester
- Project activity needs to be demonstrably academic in nature (this could include research, experiential learning, and co-curricular activity that are independent of coursework)
- Activities must be completed within the semester in which the voucher was issued. Retroactive requests or reimbursement will not be considered.
Some examples of how to use a $150 voucher at CORE facilities:
- Two one-hour training sessions on an X-ray Diffractometer
- A one-on-one training session in the Small Animal Research Facility
- Six one-hour sessions of self-service Laser Cutting
- DNA Sanger sequencing for 26 samples
- eDNA Lab extraction of 11 samples
- One hour of staff-assisted use of a Scanning Electron Microscope
Student applicants must complete the CORE Voucher Program Application by the deadline:
- For Fall 2024 applications: September 20
- For Spring 2025 applications: February 7
Applicants are asked to supply the following information:
- responsible faculty member (research advisor, course instructor, etc.)
- description of the CORE services needed, and how the requested service will impact a project
- approximate dates the service will be needed
- approximate budget, and a source of supplemental funding if budget is exceeded
Requests will be reviewed and approved by a committee of CORE administrative staff and facility managers. The committee will fund as many eligible proposals as the CORE Voucher budget permits.
To ensure priority consideration of your application, please make sure that your application is complete, accurate, and demonstrates how a CORE Voucher is the best fit for your project needs.
Approvals will be announced by the following dates:
- For Fall 2024 applications: October 1
- For Spring 2025 applications: February 17
View the online CORE Voucher Application
Contact CORE Director Megan Tardif (megan.tardif@maine.edu) with questions
• Undergraduate Students may consider the CUGR Undergraduate Research Fellowships (https://cugr.umaine.edu/fellowship-opportunities/)
• Graduate Students may consider the Graduate Student Government’s Grants Program (https://umaine.edu/gsg/grants/)
Faculty seeking internal support for their research may consider the UMaine Faculty Research Funds Program administered through the Office of Research Development (https://umaine.edu/research-development/funding/internal-funding/).
UMaine Facilities Management and CORE are working to increase the quality and quantity of support provided to the UMaine research community. To better understand the infrastructure issues related to research spaces and to prioritize projects, direct available resources, advocate for additional resources, etc., we invite you to complete the survey at the link below. The results of this survey will be reviewed regularly by senior CORE and Facilities Management staff as we develop and execute plans to better serve the research community.