The National Science Foundation’s Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) “offer’s the Foundation’s most prestigious awards in support of early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization.”
Proposal submission deadline: Fourth Monday in July, annually
Eligibility: A Principal Investigator may submit one proposal per annual competition and may participate no more than three times (excludes proposals that are withdrawn before review or returned without review). Proposers must also:
- Hold a doctoral degree in a field supported by NSF;
- Be engaged in research in an area of science, engineering, or education supported by NSF;
- Hold at least a 50% tenure-track position as an assistant professor;
- Be untenured; and
- Have not previously received a CAREER award
Award information: CAREER awards, including indirect costs, are expected to total a minimum of $400,000 over 5 years, with the following exceptions: Awards for proposals submitted to the Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO), the Directorate for Engineering (ENG), or the Office of Polar Programs (OPP) are expected to total a minimum of $500,000 over 5 years.
Required proposal elements:
- Cover Sheet
- Project Description
- Education Activities
- References
- Biographical sketch
- Departmental letter
- Budget
- FAQs for the CAREER Program for Submission Years 2020 – 2025
- CAREER Proposal Submission Logistics Webinar (Passcode: @QRyfF*y)
- CAREER Directorate and Division contacts
- Recent Awards
- NSF Publication: A Guide to Proposal Writing
- NSF Toolkit
- Keys to a Competitive NSF CAREER
- FAQs for NSF CAREER
- NSF CAREER Proposal Writing Tips – Z.J. Pei (2011). Book, free download.
- Five Tips You Need to Know to Obtain an NSF CAREER Award – University of New Mexico
- Writing a Winning CAREER Proposal – Academic Research Funding Strategies, LLC (2015)
- NSF CAREER Award Resources – University of Tennessee, Knoxville
- CAREER Resources – Kansas State University
- Sample Awarded Proposal Templates – University of Texas at San Antonio
- NSF ENG CAREER Workshops
- Presentation Slides
- Writing Your CAREER Proposal – George Hazelrigg, Former NSF Deputy Division Director, Acting Division Director and Program Director
- ENG CAREER Proposal Writing Workshop: Perspectives on the CAREER Proposal – Carole Read, CBET and Georgia-Ann Klutke, CMMI
- NSF CAREER Proposal Preparation – Purdue University (2018)
- My Quest for a CAREER Award – Brian German, Georgia Institute of Technology (2013)
- Navigating the NSF CAREER Award (in CSR) – Randal Burns, Johns Hopkins University (2018)
- CAREER Proposals: Integration of Research, Education, & Outreach – Robert McCabe, NSF Program Director
- Webinars & Videos
- Links to tips on forming hypotheses
- NSF CAREER Proposal Workshop: Writing Your Research and Education Plan
- An Overview of the NSF CAREER and Developing, Implementing, and Writing a High-Quality Integrated Research and Education Plan (IRP)
- Writing an Education Plan – Florida State University
- NSF CAREER Proposal Workshop: Writing Your Research and Education Plan
- Common questions about the NSF CAREER education plan and activities – UC Berkeley (2017)
- Examples of educational elements – Bucknell University
- Developing Education Components for NSF Proposals – Texas A&M University (2009)
- Developing an effective education plan for your NSF CAREER Award application – Columbia University
- NSF CAREER Award: IV. Educational Component – University of Illinois at Chicago
- Broader Impacts and Education Plan for CAREER proposals
- National Academy of Engineering – Projects – Education Area of Interest
- Council on Undergraduate Research
- STEM Central
- NSF Broader Impacts Website
- PAPPG Definitions of Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts
- WU’s The Institute for School Partnership (ISP) (Broader Impacts)
- NABI Broader Impacts Guiding Principles and Questions for National Science Foundation Proposals
- Broader Impacts and Education Plan for CAREER proposals
- Duke University Broader Impacts Resource Center
- STEM Central
- National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics
- NSF 2002 User-Friendly Guide to Project Evaluation
- WU Center for Integrative Research on Cognition, Learning, and Education (CIRCLE)
- NSF Merit Review Website
- CBET CAREER Mock Review Panel video
- Writing CAREER Proposals- Reviewer Perspectives – Johna Leddy University of Iowa (2013)
McKelvey Awardees
List of McKelvey CAREER awardees
WU Center for Teaching & Learning
WU Grants Library
Funded CAREER proposal (Dan Giammar) (WUSTLKey protected)
WU Center for Integrative Research on Cognition, Learning, and Education (CIRCLE)
Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) Research Initiation Initiative (CRII)
Deadline: second Wednesday in August
The CISE CRII program provides up to $175,000 for 2 years to early career investigators, with the expectation that these funds will support one or more graduate students for up to two years.
Eligible PIs will be untenured faculty or research scientists in the first 3 years of their primary academic position after receiving their PhD (but not more than 5 years after completion of their PhD). Applicants may not have received any other grants or contracts as the primary PI from any department, agency or institution of the federal government.
Note: The CRII complements CISE’s investments in the NSF CAREER program. For example, the CRII may help PIs produce enough preliminary research to help prepare for other research awards such as the CAREER. Unlike CAREER proposals, there is not a specific education component required.