Sub-program 1: Research Project Grant

Home Student Research Grant Program Sub-program 1: Research Project Grant

Students must be currently enrolled, full-time undergraduate students in good academic standing.

1. Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) Credit Requirement

All CECS undergraduate students are eligible to apply if they are currently enrolled in a UROP credit course (e.g., UROP1010, UROP2010, UROP3010, or UROP4010) or have completed at least one such course.
Priority will be given to applicants who have successfully completed at least one UROP credit course.
Students awarded the grant who have not yet completed a UROP course must enroll in at least one UROP credit course (e.g., UROP1010) during the program duration.

2. Faculty Supervision

Each student’s research project must be supervised by one (01) main faculty supervisor (who must be a full-time VinUni faculty) and can optionally have a second supervisor (who could be an adjunct/ affiliate faculty or external researcher).

3. Team Structure and Participation Limits

Students are encouraged to initiate research project topics to enhance the student-led nature of the program. Alternatively, topics may be proposed by the faculty supervisor, with the PI adapting and leading the project in collaboration with the team.
Each project team must consist of three (03) to five (05) students.
Each project is led by one student as Principal Investigator (PI), another student as co-PI to assist and other students contribute as research team members.
A student can participate in a maximum of two (02) projects but can serve as a PI for only one project per academic year.
First-year students can join projects as team members but are not eligible to apply as a PI or co-PI.
If a PI withdraws mid-project, they must notify CECS by email at least two weeks in advance and submit a handover plan designating the co-PI or another team member to assume leadership. Failure to do so may result in project termination.
Students who have received this funding in previous cycles remain eligible to apply. Subject to competitiveness, budget availability, and the decision of the CECS Scientific Board, where technical proposals are equally strong, preference may be given to applicants who have not previously received the Research Project Grant (Sub-program 1), to promote fairness and equal opportunity for all students.

4. Orientation Sessions

All awarded students are required to complete the online course “Fundamental Research Skills” on Canvas, which provides essential training in research methodologies and ethics.
To remain eligible, students must earn the course certificate within one month of the project’s start date.

This program supports team-based, long-term research projects requiring significant resources. Collaboration and comprehensive planning are required.

Projects run for nine (09) months, with an optional three (03)-month extension upon approval. No additional funding will be provided for extensions.

Exchange rate for AY25-26 Program: 1 USD = 26,000 VND

1. Financial Regulations

Students must comply with VinUni’s Financial Management Policy. CECS will be responsible for supporting and ensuring that all expenses by students follow VinUni’s regulations and with proper documentation.

2. Grant Disbursement

Funding Allocation: USD 24,000 (VND 624,000,000) to support up to 8 research projects.
Amount per Project: Up to USD 3,000 (VND 78,000,000) per project, covering expenses including equipment, software, publication fees, conference registration, and related costs. Each project must include detailed, manageable work packages (or sub-projects) that break down the larger research goal into smaller, actionable components. Each work package should include a description of tasks and deliverables, assigned responsibilities, and timelines.
Amount per work package: Up to USD 1,000 per work package.
Requirement of the work package:
- Keep the number of work packages proportional to the scale and complexity of the project (typically 2-3 work packages per project)
- Ensure each work package has a distinct, specific objective and forms a coherent unit of work.
Disbursement: Funds are managed by CECS and disbursed based on approved requests submitted by students (e.g., invoices or receipts). No direct payments will be made to students.
Unused Funds: If the research project concludes early (e.g., within 06 months), unused funds cannot be reallocated to other projects and will revert to the CECS budget.

Grant application opens: 17 November 2025
Grant application deadline: 14 December 2025
Grant notification: 6 January 2026
Project duration: January 2026 – October 2026
Progress report deadline: May 2026 (4,5 months from Grant notification)
Final report deadline: October 2026 (09 months from Grant notification)

1. Guideline on running the Student Research Grant Program

Step	Actions Required	Responsible Party
1	Prepare for Call for Proposals, including adopting given templates (budget and reporting templates) and developing activity plan template Release Call for Proposal	College
2	Develop the research proposal (including activity and budget plans). Project budgets must adhere to VinUni’s cost norms.	Student (with Supervisor)
3	Establish a Review Panel to evaluate and shortlist proposals using the Evaluation Rubric (Appendix I)	College
4	Update the RAC and RMO on projects to be funded, including the proposals, budget and activity plans	College
5	Run the program, including allocating and managing/monitoring approved projects and in accordance with the Grant Agreement. Any changes to the approved project, including budget, activity plans, changes of PI or changes in Faculty Supervisor, must be informed to and approved by the College Vice Dean at least two weeks in advance.	College
6	Sign the Grant Agreement and Ethical Review Board (ERB) Form (if any), following the provided template & run projects.	Student, Supervisor, College

2. Project duration and reporting

2.1. Project duration

Awarded students should complete their projects within nine (09) months after approval.
Project extensions for up to three (03) months may be allowed, with approval from the faculty supervisor and CECS by email. Requests for project extensions must be filed with CECS at least one month before the project’s end date, with approval from the faculty supervisor. The request must contain a comprehensive action and budget plan for the extended period.

2.2. Reporting

The number of reports depends on the length of the project:
- For projects that last no more than five months: Students should submit one (01) report using the final report template.
- For projects that last more than five months and up to nine months: Students should submit one (01) progress report at the mid-point mark of the project and one (01) final report.
The progress reports and updated budget plans (detailing actual and forecasted spending for the project’s second half) must be submitted by the deadline defined. The final report must be submitted within two (02) weeks of the project conclusion, detailing the outcomes of the research project, including any findings and conclusions. The report should also detail how the grant was used, including any expenditure made during the research project. More details regarding reporting can be found in the Grant Agreement which will be signed after the project’s approval.
Recipients of the grant shall be required to present their research findings at a conference or symposium approved by CECS or VinUni.

The Grant can only be used for the following purposes:

To pay honorarium to research participants;
To purchase equipment/service(s) needed for the conducting of the research project;
To cover travel expenses associated with the research project;
To pay for publication and dissemination costs of the research project;
To cover conference fees and registration costs related to the research project.

The Grant cannot be used to pay salary/wages or personal expenses such as rent, utilities, groceries, or any other personal expenses that are not directly related to the research project.

Parties involved	Rights and/or Responsibilities
Students	– Develop activity, budget plans and carry out scientific research in a professional and honest manner, following the guidance of the faculty supervisor(s); – Take responsibility for conducting the approved scientific research topics; – Comply with VinUni regulations and other current legal regulations; – Participate in scientific conferences, seminars, forums, and other scientific activities organized by CECS/VinUni; – Submit progress and final reports to CECS regarding the required deadlines.
Supervisor	– Guide students to conduct scientific research; Jointly assuming responsibility with the supervised students the content of the assigned research topic; Fully complying with the principles of research ethics and current regulations; – Ensure the students under their supervision maintain proper project documentation, including financial reports and project progress. They must review, comment and approve students’ reports before the reports are submitted to CECS; – Ensure that the student’s workload and research efforts do not exceed 60 hours/month.
College	– Take lead in developing and running the Student Research Grant Program at the College level, including but not limited to releasing Call for Proposal, evaluating and shortlisting proposals, allocating and managing approved projects per approval and in accordance with the Grant Agreement, and organizing orientation sessions on research methodologies and research ethics for students; – Report to RAC and RMO on the implementation of the program on a biannual basis; – Promote the Student Research Grant Program on the CECS webpage and social media.
RMO	– Coordinate with RAC to review and monitor the Student Research Grant Program. – Coordinate with Colleges on any changes to the approved budgets or activity plans.

[APPENDIX 1] EVALUATION RUBRIC FOR SUB-PROGRAM 1 (RESEARCH PROJECT GRANT)

The CECS Scientific Board will evaluate proposals based on the following evaluation rubric:

Criteria	Minimal Little to no evidence provided	Below expectations Limited evidence with significant gaps	Meet basic expectations Adequate evidence with minor gaps	Exceeds expectations Strong evidence with clear detail	Exceptional Comprehensive evidence with outstanding clarity
Research Purpose: Define the research objectives and methodology	1	2	3	4	5
Research Significance: Explain the significance of the research question	1	2	3	4	5
Student Learning Outcomes: Describe the benefits the student(s) will receive from undertaking the project	1	2	3	4	5
Project Impact: Demonstrate the feasibility and outcome of the proposed research	1	2	3	4	5
Rationale and Budget: Present a complete list of itemized expenses that reflect reasonable expenditures and comply with VinUni regulation	1	2	3	4	5

AY24-25 Research Project Grant

No	Project name	Student PI	Faculty Supervisor
1	Soft Actuators for Adaptable Compression Devices in Deep Vein Thrombosis Treatment	To Dong Anh Khoa	Dr. Thai Mai Thanh
2	Auto-navigate Tiny Drone used in taking pictures for image processing and photogrammetry	Le Hai Trung	Prof. Laurent El Ghaoui
3	Low-Cost PCB-Based OECTs for Health Monitoring Applications	Duong Tuan Manh	Dr. Nguyen Dang Tung
4	Smart Aquaculture: A Multimodal AI and IoT Framework for Sustainable Development in Vietnam	Nguyen Hong Phuc	Dr. Do Danh Cuong
5	Low-Cost TENG Design Using Recyclable and Biodegradable Materials for Sustainable Urban Wind Energy Harvesting	Tran Minh An	Dr. Do Danh Cuong
6	Predictive Digital Twin Replica Placement through User Mobility Forecasting to Reduce Latency in Serverless Edge Computing	Le Ngoc Toan	Assoc. Prof. Kok-seng Wong
7	Towards Well-Aligned LLMs: Robust Lightweight Editing Methods at Scale	Le Thanh Quoc Hung	Dr. Doan Dang Khoa