ARDC makes grants that align with our mission to support amateur radio and digital communication science and technology. In addition to aligning with our mission, your project must align with at least one of our grantmaking categories:

• Support and growth of amateur radio,
• Education, and
• Research and Development.

For more information on our categories, see Grantmaking Categories & Goals.

Eligibility

To receive an ARDC grant, your organization must be one of the following:

• U.S.-based 501(c)(3) Public Charity, government agency, school, or university.
• International charity, nonprofit, school, or university.
• Radio clubs and groups who are NOT nonprofits may be eligible if they have a U.S.-based, nonprofit fiscal sponsor. For tips on finding a fiscal sponsor, see our instructions page.
• Individuals may be eligible if you work with a fiscal sponsor.

US & international for-profit businesses are currently not eligible for ARDC grants.

Application Deadlines

You may submit an application at any time. In 2025, ARDC will begin reviewing applications on the following dates:

• February 1
• April 1
• July 1
• September 1 + Scholarship Applications Due

Applications received after September 1, 2025 will be reviewed February 1, 2026. If you are submitting a proposal for a scholarship program, we’d prefer to evaluate that proposal during our September 1st deadline.

It typically takes 60-120 days to review all the applications following the above dates, so please be patient. We will get back to you if we need more information about your proposal and when the review process is complete.

Apply here: https://grants.ardc.net.

APPLY

Applications submitted July 15, 2022, and before are available here: https://mailman.ampr.org/hotcrp/.

Application Process

1. Prepare and submit your application
   To submit an application, you must first create an account with the ARDC Grants system. To do  this, go to grants.ardc.net and click on the “Create an account” link. If you already have an account, sign in with your email address and password. The next step is to fill in the application form. Instructions on how to write your proposal can be found here. They are also available as a downloadable PDF.
2. Email Confirmation
   After you submit your application, you will receive an automated email acknowledgement. Please keep a copy of that email in case you need to contact us about your proposal.
   
3. Preliminary Review
   Next, someone on our staff will do a preliminary review of your application. At this point, if any information is missing, we may contact you.
   
4. Grants Advisory Committee (GAC) Review
   Once your application has passed the preliminary check, the staff will send it to the Grants Advisory Committee (GAC). The committee will ask a number of questions as they review your application. You’ll find these questions on the instructions page.
5. Board Review
   Assuming the grants committee approves the application, it will be forwarded to the ARDC Board of Directors, who will accept or reject your application and decide on the amount of the award. You will be notified of their decision as soon as possible.
6. Selection Notification
   Once all the details have been worked out, ARDC will send you a contract detailing the amount of the award, the expected outcomes, and how to report on your project’s progress, including annual progress reports and a final project report. Once you review and sign the contract, we will issue the funds. Please note that this entire process may take about four months after the application deadline.