The University Research Fund (FRA), hereinafter referred to as FRA, aims to finance cross-cutting activities to support research by introducing tools to encourage project design, enhance partnerships - including international ones - and promote participation in competitive tenders and projects for research internationalization and technology transfer.

The FRA is funded with the portion allocated to the University from the "Regulation for the management of national and international institutional projects (ITA)" and the "Regulation concerning contracts for third-party activities (ITA)," as well as with an allocation from the budget.

The following lines of action are planned:

A. Support for departmental research (ITA) 
B. Support for research for professors/researchers with high teaching commitments (ITA)
 C. Coverage of specific project costs not eligible for funding by the funding body (ITA)

The financial allocation for each line, based on the overall allocation of the FRA, is determined by the Board of Directors.

The initiative called microgrants is aimed at supporting basic research carried out by young researchers at the University of Trieste.
The resources allocated to finance the research projects are part of Regional Law 2/2011 "Financing the regional university system".
The micro-grant programme is aimed at fixed-term researchers (RTD-a and RTD-b), tenured researchers (RU) and Associate Professors (PA) at UniTS and is designed to support research projects with resources of up to € 5,000.