Case Study: University of California Humanities Research Institute (UCHRI) achieves streamlined grants processing and major time savings with Submittable

Driving vital research forward with fewer roadblocks

The University of California Humanities Research Institute (UCHRI) needed to replace a clunky, in‑house application system that caused frequent applicant issues and heavy administrative overhead. In 2019 UCHRI chose Submittable’s grants/application management platform for its simple, user‑friendly interface and adaptability to the Institute’s interdisciplinary funding processes.

Submittable centralized application forms, reviewer workflows, and communications, allowing reviewers to view documents and score in‑line while eliminating last‑minute applicant problems and dozens of panic emails. The change saved reviewers up to four hours per week (an estimated 20–40 hours weekly for a typical 10‑person committee), administrators up to two hours per week, and is now used across 26 UC programs at seven campuses—freeing UCHRI staff for more grantee engagement and collaboration while benefiting from Submittable’s responsive product development.

University of California Humanities Research Institute (UCHRI)

Shana Melnysyn

Research Grants Manager