Navigating NSF. Donald A. Hantula, Ph.D. Temple University

Transcription

1 Navigating NSF Donald A. Hantula, Ph.D. Temple University

2 Precis Understanding NSF Audience analysis Funding Recommendations Paths to Support Get in the game!

3 NSF in a Nutshell Independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 "to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense " Annual budget $7 billion funds approximately 20 percent of all federally supported basic research conducted by America s colleges and universities. Funds SBIR also. Most of the funds go to peer reviewed grants to individuals or small groups of investigators currently about 10,000 new awards per year, with an average duration of three years NSF also provides funding for research centers, instrumentation, and facilities

4 NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION National Science Board Office of Inspector General Office of the Director Offices International & Integrative Activities Legislative & Public Affairs General Counsel Diversity & Inclusion Social, Behavioral, & Economic Sciences Computer & Info. Science & Engineering Engineering Geosciences Mathematical & Physical Sciences Biological Sciences Education & Human Resources Budget, Finance & Award Management Information & Resource Management

5 Understanding NSF s mission NSF supports research that aims to transform: The way we view our world (science) The way we live our life (value)

6 NSF fosters a culture of collaboration Directorates, divisions, and programs co-review and co-fund projects to leverage resources from different parts of NSF to focus on solutions to problems that cut cross disciplines. NSF vs. NIH

7 Strategic investments within the constraint of a small budget E.g., cognitive neuroscience has a budget slightly under $8M / year; DRMS around $6.5M / year. This number can increase when projects can leverage resources from other directorates CAREER awards create mortgage which reduces effective budget to less than 50% Only 10-12% proposals were funded with an average award size of $180K / year including direct and indirect cost. This number is likely to decrease. Program director s challenge is to maximize impact of this limited resource. PD = entrepreneur

8 I would rather miss the mark acting well than win the day acting basely. Sophocles

9 Audience Analysis Granting Agency Research agendas / priorities Website Announcements / RFP Program Directors Review Panels Accomplished, busy people Not necessarily in your area Appreciate & follow clear theoretical arguments Especially focused on methods 2 Merit Review Criteria: Intellectual Merit & Broader Impact

10 Audience Analysis II The BIG questions Is the IDEA a good one? If it succeeds, so what? Advance / test theory Advance practice / public health & welfare Is the WORK PLAN tenable? Will it succeed? Methods correct, clear & unambiguous Methods fit theoretically & practically Is the INVESTIGATOR CAPABLE? Can you pull this off? Publication history / Career trajectory Institutional capability

11 For Administrators.. Please Do Provide opportunities for mentorship & training Provide pre-proposal support Establish internal review mechanism Provide opportunities for broader impacts Facilitate interdisciplinary research projects Recognize & reward submissions Manage SRO & IRB Please Do Not Have goals, quotas & timetables for grants Pad budgets Nickel & dime budgets Tax grant proposals Engage in circuitous processes Have arbitrary / unreasonable internal deadlines Let the tail wag the dog

12 You miss 100% of the shots you never take. Wayne Gretzky

13 Preparation The Idea Read RFPs / websites Be explicit - how does your research address priorities listed? What unique contribution / advance can you add? What has been funded before? Dear Colleague Letters Program Directors Can provide much guidance Engage them early!

14 Interacting With Program Directors a 1-2 page project summary along with phone number and three available contact time windows during a typical week. Include in your project summary: What is the problem/question? What is the proposed solution? Through what experiments/hypotheses? Using what research tools? What are the significant implications to science and society? Include 6-12 key references Always include your name & full contact information in your . IT IS ENTIRELY APPROPRIATE TO CONTACT NSF PROGRAM DIRECTORS PRIOR TO SUBMISSION

15 Preparation - Logistics Your Administrators Start early -- Ask for help SRO & IRB Building a team Smaller grants solo OK Adult supervision / consultants Bigger grants need team Varied expertise Methods, logistics, intellectual Get written commitments from collaborators / research sites / organizations

16 The Proposal - I 15 pages How is your idea good & original? No negative campaigning How is it grounded theoretically? Advance theory / research / practice But not too much Address research priorities Agency / national / etc. BE DIRECT AND EXPLICIT!

17 The Proposal - II Clear direct writing Think Hemingway, not Faulkner Spellink counts! Grammer are important too!! Use boxes, figures, diagrams Have it read for comments, etc. No promissory notes Trust me proposals problematic Have all collaborators committed in writing Pilot data / proof of measurement devices Budget Happy medium b/t K-Mart & Nordstrom Enough to get the work done & disseminated

18 The Proposal - III Broader Implications DO NOT IGNORE History, present practice, future plans Benefit to science Data availability Sharing methods & tools Education / training Student involvement / underrepresented populations Benefit to the country Outreach / media / larger society Dissemination Journals & conferences Be explicit targets, numbers Websites / data sets / methodologies Availability for other researchers

19 The Proposal - IV Suggest reviewers Who know the specific research topics and techniques Who do not have COI with you COI. Who are not just the 3 most famous people but someone likely to say YES to review request. Provide their working addresses and URL so that NSF doesn t get the wrong John Smith. Can also un-suggest reviewers Must justify clearly

20 BE SURE TO BE PAY ATTENTION TO Data Management Plan Must describe plans for data management and sharing Plan is reviewed as part of the intellectual merit or broader impacts Postdoctoral Mentoring Plan If requesting money for a postdoc, must have plan as supplementary document IRB (human subjects) or IACUC (vertebrate animals) No award w/o IRB approval /exemption; studies involving vertebrate animals require IACUC approval prior to award Not needed at the time of proposal submission; may be pending

21 Money Changes Everything Budget is evaluated as component of proposal Reviewers react negatively to outsize budgets! Ask for what you need to get the work done Include Detailed, persuasive budget justification Correct calculation of direct costs, on/off campus work Avoid Padding Extraneous personnel Gratuitous fmri (functional magnetic resonance imaging) or similar items where there is no direct link to the grant Items that should be in F&A (Facilities & Administrative)

22 PROPOSAL PROCESS & TIMELINE NSF Proposal Generating Document Minimum of three reviews required Award via DGA Organization submits via FastLane Proposal Processing Unit Ad hoc Panel Both Program Director Analysis & Recommendation Division Director Concur Decline Research & Education Communities NSF Program Director Returned as Inappropriate/ Withdrawn Div. Dir. Concur Organization 90 Days 6 months 30 days Proposal Preparation Time Proposal received by NSF Review of Proposal PO Recommend Award DGA Review & Processing of Award

23 It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed. Teddy Roosevelt

24 How funding recommendations are made Not by score NSF vs. NIH Not by review panel Not by ranking alone: neither sufficient nor necessary Balance of portfolio across multiple dimensions. Anticipating new frontiers based on emerging technological development. Encouraging new frontiers based on current gaps.

25 Success is a consequence and must not be a goal. Gustave Flaubert

26 PATHS TO SUPPORT: STANDING PROGRAMS Review the disciplinary and interdisciplinary program websites Investigator initiated research projects Conferences Workshops Check NSF website for dates, special rules and criteria Co-review is always a possibility NOT double jeopardy; another turn at bat

27 PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT: CAREER Available in all NSF programs Untenured faculty (or comparable) Single scholar award $400,000, 5-years minimum award Must integrate research plan with teaching Mid to late July deadline (varies by discipline and year) High Prestige/High Expectations Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) Three proposals lifetime limit

28 PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT: RUI Research in Undergraduate Institutions (RUI) Institution that grants < 10 doctoral degrees/ year Must be certified Standard grant format and review criteria Also evaluated for involving undergrads in the research in meaningful ways Impact on institution

29 PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT: DDRIG Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grants (DDRIG) Available in some SBE programs Small grant to support (and extend) dissertation research SMA Science of Science & Innovation Policy SES Decision, Risk, & Management Science Economics Law and Social Sciences Political Science Science, Technology & Society Sociology BCS Archaeology Cultural Anthropology Geography & Spatial Sciences Linguistics Physical Anthropology

30 PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT: REU Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Available in all programs Two types of awards - REU Supplements: Awards added onto senior awards to sponsor undergraduate student research - REU Sites: training programs, often in the summer months, for teaching research methods to undergrads

31 PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT: EAGER Exploratory work on untested, potentially transformative ideas High-risk, high-potential payoff $300,000 maximum; 2 years Eight page description Internal review required; external optional Contact Program Director first EAGERs are exceptions, not the rule!

32 PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT: RAPID Research when data are ephemeral $200,000 maximum; 1 year 5 page project description Internal review required; external optional Available in all programs Contact Program Director first For proposals having a severe urgency with regard to availability of, or access to data, facilities or specialized equipment, including quick-response research on natural or anthropogenic disasters and similar unanticipated events

33 You cannot win if you do not play. Steve Forbert

34 Want to Play? Funding getting more scarce Pursue rich patches Get on a team or form a team Look outside of the comfort zone psychology / education Look for individuals / disciplines solving real problems WHO NEED TO ADD BEHAVIOR TO THE PROJECT E.g., Health, Terrorism, Disasters, Drug abuse, Cyber- Mentors/ Advisers / Consultants Be true to theory Be proud and knowledgeable of methods Respect and learn other methods Use the analysis, Luke

35 Join a Team! How can you advance research in. Computer & Information Sciences Robotics Engineering (All fields) GeoSciences Hazard Reduction Collaborative proposals reviewed more favorably EPSCOR issues

36 Keys to PI Success Innovative and transformative ideas Clear broader impacts Effective communication to reviewers, review panels, and the program director Appropriate budget, data management, mentoring plan Understanding NSF funding process (vs. NIH) Choose correct Path to Support Regular Cross-directorate CAREER RUI DDRIG Write clearly Submit on time!!

37 Donald A. Hantula, Ph.D.