Frequently Asked Questions
1. What grants are available?
Up to three grants of a maximum of 100,000 yen each will be awarded in 2025 depending on the number of strong applications that meet the requirements laid out in the application form. Grant recipients will conduct their research during the 2026 academic school year (April 2026-March 2027).
2. Who can apply for the grants?
The grants are available for JALT members who do not already have access to institutional assistance and research grant funding from their place(s) of employment. The grants are specifically designed for part-time teachers working from the kindergarten to tertiary levels, as well as individual teachers working for themselves, companies, or language schools. If you are a full-time teacher and do not have access to institutional assistance and research grant funding from your place of employment, you may also apply. If you are doing graduate work on a part-time basis and working as a teacher, you may apply. However, grants are not available for full-time graduate students. Successful grant recipients must be able to follow the rules of their primary institution employer regarding the receipt of outside funding.
3. Are co-authored projects allowed?
Projects involving more than one researcher are welcome; however, the maximum amount of the research grant is fixed at 100,000 yen and does not change if more than one researcher is involved. One principal researcher will submit the application and be responsible for the project and grant funds. If additional researchers are included in the application, one or two would ideally be the limit, but if there are special circumstances, they will be considered.
4. Do successful applicants need to write about their research?
Grant recipients are required to write four short quarterly reports. The first three reports are about 300 words long. The final quarterly report is at least 500 words.
5. What support can successful applicants get from JALT for developing their research?
If they wish, successful applicants have the opportunity to benefit from collaborative support from experienced teacher-researchers. They will provide advice and support in order to help you develop and execute your own project successfully. However, applicants are expected to understand the methods of their study and be capable of executing all stages of the project.
6. What is the deadline for applying for a 2025 research grant?
Applicants must submit their applications by 11:59 pm October 5, 2025; they will be informed of the results in mid-October 2025. Research grant recipients will be announced at the JALT2025 conference, as well as on the JALT website.
7. What is the schedule for completing the research?
The main research schedule lasts from April 2026 through March 2027.
| Year | Date | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Aug 1st – Oct 5th | Application period |
| 2025 | Early October | Vetting period and decision-making by grants committee |
| 2025 | Mid October | Applicants and recipients informed of results |
| 2025 | Early November | Winners announced at JALT2025 conference |
| 2025 | December | Grants paid out, finalization of research plan |
| 2026 | April 1st | Formal research period starts |
| 2026 | June 30th | Deadline for first short quarterly report |
| 2026 | September 30th | Deadline for second short quarterly report |
| 2026 | December 31st | Deadline for third short quarterly report |
| 2027 | March 31st | Deadline for final report |
| 2027 | Fall | Presentation at the JALT2027 conference |
8. When should grant recipients present on their research?
Successful applicants are expected to give a presentation at the annual JALT conference after their research has completed (i.e., Fall 2027 for 2025 grant awardees) or another JALT event. This provides recipients an opportunity to share the successful completion of their project with the JALT community. An unvetted research presentation slot at the annual JALT conference will be available for grant recipients.
9. How do I apply?
- Download application from 2025 JALT Research Grant Application
- Send completed application as a Word file by email to: researchgrants@jalt.org
- Deadline: October 5th, 2025, 11:59pm
10. Feedback & Inquiries
If you have suggestions for improving these guidelines or inquiries about the grants, please contact us at researchgrants@jalt.org. Thank you for your interest.
**The 2025 JALT Research Grants selection is now closed. The 2026 JALT Research Grants call for applications will go out in early summer of 2026. Please check back then!
