Foundation Research Programs

Research Grants

Research is the key to the future for people with hard to control seizures -- as many as 600,000 Americans of all ages.

Each year the Foundation invites research investigators to apply for grants and fellowships to test new ideas and follow new research leads. The applications, more than a hundred in an average year, are ranked according to merit by a blue ribbon panel of research scientists, and funded according to available resources.

Research Fellowships

The future of epilepsy research depends on attracting the best scientific minds to the study of seizures and seizure disorders. To do just that, the Epilepsy Foundation offers a series of training fellowships in basic, clinical and behavioral science to scientists at the start of their careers.

These fellowships, awarded to young people at the nation's leading research institutes, have in many cases been the first steps on a lifetime commitment to solving the medical and scientific puzzle of why epilepsy develops and how it can be treated or prevented.

The Epilepsy Foundation’s William Gowers Clinical Research Fellowships have been supported by grants from Abbott Laboratories since 1986. The Gowers Fellowship is awarded annually to a physician/scientist who is embarking on a career in academic clinical medicine and who wishes to undertake a specific project in epilepsy research. Find out more about the Gowers Fellowships.

Read more about funding opportunities.

View the Epilepsy Foundation research awards from recent years

Targeted Research Initiatives

The Epilepsy Foundation periodically offers funding opportunities for targeted research initiatives.

All of the Epilepsy Foundation's targeted initiatives are unique in terms of their program parameters, goals, and funding cycles, but what is common among all is that they are thematic fast track programs announced at the time that funds become available.

Past initiatives have included studies on genetics, quality of life for children with epilepsy, neurocysticercosis and epilepsy.Current targeted initiatives focus on mood disorders, health outcomes, seniors, youth, women and pediatrics. The Partnership for Pediatric Epilepsy Research is a consortium of dedicated organizations and individuals working to increase knowledge of causes of and promoting innovative treatment approaches and a cure for epilepsies that begin in infancy and childhood.