Eduserv, a non-profit IT services group, is offering £300,000 to UK academic institutions to fund research into social networking and mobile computing.

The aim is to assist projects that study the impact of these emerging technologies on learning and research.

The group is primarily interested in proposals that focus on technical, social or political issues, inside or outside campuses, lecture theatres, libraries, research labs and internet cafés at colleges and universities.

The funding is limited to individuals or teams in a UK institution, and must show a clear contribution to research and effective service delivery within a particular field.

Applications will be for research in one or more of three areas:

Online identity
A persona that an individual establishes in an online community

The open social graph
A machine-readable description of the online identities in one or more online communities and the relationships between those identities

Always-on internet access and mobile computing
The result of the growing availability and use of personal mobile computing devices such as laptops, hand-held devices and mobile phones, coupled with an increasingly pervasive wireless network access.

Total funding will normally be in the range £30,000 to £150,000 and should cost no more than £80,000 per year.

The projects should extend over a period of six months to two years and include goals that ensure a long-term impact or sustainability from the results.

Eduserv hopes that the funding will help realise the benefits of IT for learning and research at every level.

Initial proposals should be submitted by email to grants@eduserve.org.uk by 5pm on 14 March 2008. Successful applicants will be asked to make a formal presentation to secure the funding.