At AHRF, we recognize the critical importance of early-stage research. Each year, we award five to ten seed grants to researchers whose work aligns with our mission.
Award decisions for 2025 will be announced in December 2024.
The deadline to submit applications for 2026 awards is 5:00p.m. Central Time, Thursday, August 15, 2025.
Hearing & Balance Disorders of the Inner Ear & Related Topics
-
AHRF Discovery Grants
Up to $50,000
-
Discretionary Grants
$65,000 - $75,000
For Otolaryngology Residents of Specific Institutions
Hearing and balance disorders of the inner ear and related topics
To Qualify:
Applicants must hold an MD, PhD, AuD, or equivalent degree(s) and be associated with a university or hospital in the United States, except for the Bernard & Lottie Drazin Memorial Grants, which are awarded to residents from specific institutions.
Review Criteria:
Applications to the American Hearing Research Foundation are evaluated for novelty, significance, relevance to the mission of AHRF, feasibility, investigator, approach, statistical analysis/outcome measures, and budget justification.
View Grant Application Guidelines
View Frequently Asked Questions
AHRF Discovery Grants
Next Deadline:
5:00p.m. Central Time, Thursday, August 15, 2025
Grant Period:
January 1 – December 31, 2026
View the grant application guidelines.
Note: Discovery Grants formerly were called “Regular Grants.”
About the Grant:
Each year AHRF typically funds four to ten Discovery Grants for studies that investigate various aspects of hearing and balance disorders related to the inner ear. Applicants may request up to $50,000 for one year of research. Grants are paid in one lump sum in January in the year after the application deadline. Priority is given to investigators early in their careers who need seed funds to generate results and data that can be used to support applications for larger grants (i.e., NIH grants) in the future.
The Discovery Grant now encompasses the Foundation’s special interests of Causes of Sudden Hearing Loss and Meniere’s Disease. As a result, funding opportunities for these special interest topics are the same as AHRF funding for other hearing and balance topics.
Grant funds may only be used for direct costs, including salaries of technical and supporting staff, equipment related to the research, and supplies. Note that the cost for salaries plus fringe benefits cannot be more than 80% of the direct costs. Funding may not be used for the salary of the principal investigator, travel, conference attendance, educational costs, or indirect costs.
Depending on funds available, grant amounts occasionally may be adjusted at the discretion of AHRF. Our goal is to fund as many promising, novel projects as feasible.
Eligibility Requirements for AHRF Regular Grants:
Applicants must hold an MD, PhD, AuD, or equivalent degree(s) and be associated with a university or hospital in the United States.
Research Topics:
Proposals should relate to the hearing or balance functions of the ear. Both basic and clinical studies may be proposed that investigate aspects of the auditory and vestibular systems including but not limited to genetics, neurotology, anatomy, auditory processing, molecular and cellular biology, therapeutic studies, and investigations of current or experimental devices (i.e., cochlear implants).
AHRF donors have given special support for research that explores Meniere’s disease (mechanisms, causes, or treatments) and the causes or mechanisms of sudden hearing loss. Proposals that address these areas of interest will receive special consideration during the review process.
Application, Review, and Reporting:
Proposals are reviewed by the AHRF Research Committee in October and by the AHRF Board in November; applicants are notified of the status of their grants soon in late November. Proposals are evaluated based on criteria including novelty, significance, relevance to the mission of AHRF, feasibility, investigator’s prior work, approach, statistical analysis/outcome measures, and budget justification. Comments are not provided to applicants.
Grant recipients need to submit progress reports by the end of each April of the year the grant was awarded. Reports may be included on the AHRF website and/or in its Soundings newsletter. Recipients also must notify AHRF in advance of any publication of their research funded by the Foundation. Recipients should notify AHRF if any aspect of their funded research is reported in the media. It is our goal to highlight the results of your funded investigations.
Recipients are required to submit a final report of their research by the end of January after the completion of their funded year of research.
No-cost extensions of research past the funded year may be granted based on approval of the Research Committee.
Discretionary Grants
In some years, AHRF may identify one or two studies that show outstanding promise. At its discretion, AHRF may award a study with the $75,000 Birtman Grant, or the $65,000 Richard G. Muench Chairman’s Grant for exceptional scientific investigation. If chosen, the researcher will be invited to submit revised aims and budget for the additional funds.
Like the AHRF Discovery Grants, the Birtman and Muench Chairman’s Grants support studies that investigate various aspects of hearing and balance disorders related to the inner ear. These grants will be paid in one lump sum in January in the year after the application deadline.
How Birtman and Muench Chairman’s Grant funds may be used, eligibility requirements, research topics, and reporting requirements are the same as noted for the AHRF Discovery Grant.
Birtman Grant
The Birtman Grant is named for Georgia Birtman, a Chicago school teacher who was a significant benefactor of the Foundation.
Richard G. Muench Chairman’s Grant
The Muench Chairman’s Grant honors Richard Muench’s commitment to improve hearing health. In 2022, Richard Muench ended his 27-year tenure as AHRF Board Chair. Since joining the AHRF board in 1984, Muench also served as board treasurer and vice president – sometimes overlapping these responsibilities. He was instrumental in increasing the organization’s annual grant funding which helped launch careers for new investigators and helped seasoned researchers tackle new areas of study. He continues to serve on the AHRF Board.
Bernard & Lottie Drazin Memorial Grants
Next Deadline:
5:00p.m. Central Time, Tuesday, August 15, 2025
Grant Period:
January 1, 2026 – June 30, 2027
View the grant application guidelines.
About the Grant:
AHRF offers up to five $1,000 awards to otolaryngology residents to support research projects during their residency. To be eligible, residents must be from the Chicago programs (Loyola, Northwestern, Rosalind Franklin University, Rush University, University of Illinois, or University of Chicago) or schools represented by members of our Board or Research Committee (Washington University, St. Louis, MO; University of Miami, FL; Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX).
Research Topics:
Proposals should relate to the hearing or balance functions of the ear. Basic or clinical studies may be proposed that investigate aspects of the auditory and vestibular systems including but not limited to genetics, neurotology, anatomy, auditory processing, molecular and cellular biology, therapeutic studies, and investigations of current or experimental devices (i.e., cochlear implants).
Application, Review, and Reporting:
This grant requires a short one- to two-page summary of the project including specific aims and methods. It should be accompanied by a small budget proposal and a letter of support from the principal investigator with whom the applicant is working.
Proposals are reviewed by the AHRF Research Committee in October and by the AHRF Board in November; applicants are notified of the status of their grants in late November. Proposals are evaluated based on criteria including novelty, significance, relevance to the mission of AHRF, feasibility, investigator’s prior work, approach, statistical analysis/outcome measures, and budget justification. Comments are not provided to applicants.
Residency grants will be paid in January. However, to accommodate July-to-June residency program years, grant recipients need to submit progress reports by the end of October of the year the grant was awarded. Reports may be included on our website and/or in our email updates and newsletter. Recipients also must notify AHRF in advance of any publication of their research funded by the Foundation. Recipients should notify AHRF if any aspect of their funded research is reported in the media. It is our goal to highlight research results and publications.
Recipients are required to submit a final report of their research by the end of July after the completion of their funded year of research.
No-cost extensions of research past the funded year may be granted based on approval of the Research Committee.