Simons Foundation Autism & Neuroscience Conferences and Courses Awards – Request for Applications 2026: FAQs

Yes. This is an open request for applications (RFA) with a global scope. If applying from a non-U.S. institution, please refer to our Non-U.S. Awards policy.

SF and SFI do not provide funding to institutions in China (including institutions in Hong Kong) or to fiscal sponsors or agents of institutions in China or Hong Kong. This includes funding to support subcontracts at institutions in China or Hong Kong or consultants residing or working for institutions in China or Hong Kong.

Yes.

No. The prompts are provided for guidance and can be deleted to save space.

Yes. Please use the Code of Conduct, Budget and Proposal Narrative templates.

Applicants may request funding for up to three (3) consecutive years. If your conference or course is annual, you may apply for funding for three (3) instances of the course (Years 1, 2 and 3). If your conference or course is every other year, you may apply for funding for two (2) instances of the course (Years 1 and 3). If you are planning only one (1) instance of a conference or course, you may apply for only one year of funding, as long as the conference or course occurs between September 1, 2026, and August 31, 2027.

Yes, there is no limit to the number of times you can apply to the RFA. However, funding requests may not overlap across years for the same conference or course, either through this RFA or previous RFAs for conferences and courses.

Yes, however, they cannot be the PI and/or receive any funding through the award.

No. The Gordon Research Conferences (GRC) or Seminars (GRS) are not eligible for funding through this RFA. They are funded through a separate common block grant. Please contact the GRC administration to request that your conference be considered for support through the block grant.

Conferences organized by Patient Advocacy Groups (PAGs) with a focus on one or a few genes linked to autism or related neurodevelopmental disorders are not eligible for funding through this RFA. If you are interested in support for a PAG-organized conference, you can explore the Conference Support for Rare Neurodevelopmental Disorder Communities Participating in Simons Searchlight RFA.

No. We only accept applications submitted online through SAM. Full instructions on how to submit an application are provided in the How to Apply instructions.

No. However, successful finalists will need an institutional sign-off for the full proposal.

When the LOI application is complete, please click on the Submit Application button. A confirmation page will appear once the application is successfully submitted. It will appear in the Submitted tab of the Applications in Progress table. Please note that you will not be able to submit an application if the deadline has passed.

The Check Application Progress button reviews your proposal for missing sections. The submission instructions list the required sections and attachments. You must complete the missing items listed in the error message. If you are still receiving error messages after completing and saving the indicated sections, please contact [email protected].

A confirmation email is sent upon submission. Make sure that spam filters allow emails from [email protected]. Additionally, the proposal will be in the Submitted tab of the Applications in Progress table after submission. Please check your application status periodically after submission by logging into SAM and ensuring there are no incomplete materials or pending tasks to complete. Applications will not be reviewed if they are not complete.

No. Please be advised that deadlines are in Eastern time. We recommend registering early and submitting with ample time for corrections prior to the deadline. Site traffic can slow page-load times. You will not be able to submit after the deadline has passed.

No extensions will be given. If you have any difficulties, please email [email protected].

You must contact Simons Foundation staff prior to the April 15, 2026 deadline to un-submit your LOI. Please email [email protected] if you would like to un-submit your proposal for any modifications.

You should receive notification within 24 hours of the deadline. Please check your spam filter settings if you have not received a notification by then.

If invited to submit a full proposal, you will be given access to the full proposal application in Simons Award Manager (SAM). Log in and go to the Draft tab of the Applications in Progress table. Click the application you want to complete. Once all sections are complete, click Submit Application to send your application.

Please note that in the event of budgetary or other considerations, The Simons Foundation, Inc. (“the Foundation” or “SF”) reserves the right to refer an application to The Simons Foundation International, Ltd. (“SFI”) for consideration and funding. SFI and SF have entered into an agreement pursuant to which SF provides program operations and grant administration services, including payment processing, to SFI.