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I. Introduction
A. OVERVIEW
The Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) provides guidance
for the preparation and submission of proposals to NSF. Some NSF programs
have program solicitations that modify the general provisions of this
Guide, and, in such cases, the guidelines provided in the solicitation
must be followed. Contact with NSF program personnel prior to proposal
preparation is encouraged.
The Foundation considers proposals submitted by organizations on behalf
of individuals or groups for support in most fields of research. Interdisciplinary
proposals also are eligible for consideration.
NSF does not normally support technical assistance, pilot plant efforts,
research requiring security classification, the development of products
for commercial marketing or market research for a particular project or
invention. Research with disease-related goals, including work on the
etiology, diagnosis or treatment of physical or mental disease, abnormality,
or malfunction in human beings or animals, is normally not supported.
Animal models of such conditions or the development or testing of drugs
or other procedures for their treatment also are not eligible for support.
Research in bioengineering, with diagnosis or treatment-related goals,
however, that applies engineering principles to problems in biology and
medicine while advancing engineering knowledge is eligible for support.
Bioengineering research to aid persons with disabilities also is eligible.
The NSF website (http://www.nsf.gov/)
provides the most comprehensive source of information on NSF Directorates
(including contact information), programs and funding opportunities. Use
of this website by potential proposers is strongly encouraged. In addition,
the NSF Custom News Service is an information-delivery system designed
to keep potential proposers and other interested parties apprised of the
issuance of new program announcements and solicitations (as well as other
NSF publications and policies) through Internet e-mail or the user’s Web
browser. Subscribers are informed each time new publications are issued
that match their identified interests. The Custom News Service is available
on NSF’s website at http://www.nsf.gov.
Research proposals to the Biological Sciences Directorate (not
proposals for conferences or workshops) cannot be duplicates of proposals
to any other Federal agency for simultaneous consideration. The only exceptions
to this rule are: (1) when the proposers and program managers at relevant
Federal agencies have previously agreed to joint review and possible joint
funding of the proposal; or (2) proposals for PIs who are beginning investigators
(individuals who have not been a principal investigator (PI) 1
or co-principal investigator (co-PI) on
a Federally funded award with the exception of doctoral dissertation,
postdoctoral fellowship or research planning grants). For proposers who
qualify under this latter exception, the box for “Beginning Investigator”
must be checked on the proposal Cover Sheet.
B. THE PROPOSAL
The proposal should present the (1) objectives and scientific or educational
significance of the proposed work; (2) suitability of the methods to be
employed; (3) qualifications of the investigator and the grantee organization;
2 (4)
effect of the activity on the infrastructure of science, engineering and
education; and (5) amount of funding required. It should present the merits
of the proposed project clearly and should be prepared with the care and
thoroughness of a paper submitted for publication. Sufficient information
should be provided so that reviewers will be able to evaluate the proposal
in accordance with the two merit review criteria established by the National
Science Board. (See Chapter III.)
NSF expects strict adherence to the rules of proper scholarship and
attribution. The responsibility for proper attribution and citation rests
with authors of a proposal; all parts of the proposal should be prepared
with equal care for this concern. Serious failure to adhere to such standards
can result in findings of misconduct in science. NSF policies and rules
on misconduct in science and engineering are discussed inGrant Policy
Manual (GPM) Section 930.
PROPRIETARY OR PRIVILEGED INFORMATION
Patentable ideas, trade secrets, privileged or confidential commercial
or financial information, disclosure of which may harm the proposer, should
be included in proposals only when such information is necessary to convey
an understanding of the proposed project. Such information must be clearly
marked in the proposal or included as a separate statement accompanying
the signed proposal Cover Sheet and be appropriately labeled with a legend
such as,
“The following is (proprietary or confidential) information that (name
of proposing organization) requests not be released to persons outside
the Government, except for purposes of review and evaluation.”
The box for “Proprietary and Privileged Information” must be checked
on the Cover Sheet when the proposal contains such information. While
NSF will make every effort to prevent unauthorized access to such material,
the Foundation is not responsible or in any way liable for the release
of such material. (See also Chapter VI, Section J, “Release
of Grantee Proposal Information.”)
C. WHO MAY SUBMIT PROPOSALS
Scientists, engineers and educators usually initiate proposals that
are officially submitted by their employing organization. Before formal
submission, the proposal may be discussed with appropriate NSF program
staff. Graduate students are not encouraged to submit research proposals,
but should arrange to serve as research assistants to faculty members.
Some NSF divisions accept proposals for Doctoral Dissertation Research
Grants when submitted by a faculty member on behalf of the graduate student.
The Foundation also provides support specifically for women and minority
scientists and engineers, scientists and engineers with disabilities,
and faculty at primarily undergraduate academic institutions.
CATEGORIES OF PROPOSERS
Except where a program solicitation establishes more restrictive eligibility
criteria, individuals and organizations in the following categories may
submit proposals:
-
Universities and colleges-- US universities
and two-and four-year colleges (including community colleges) acting
on behalf of their faculty members.
-
Non-profit, non-academic organizations -- Independent
museums, observatories, research laboratories, professional societies
and similar organizations in the US that are directly associated with
educational or research activities.
-
For-profit organizations -- US commercial organizations,
especially small businesses with strong capabilities in scientific
or engineering research or education. An unsolicited proposal from
a commercial organization may be funded when the project is of special
concern from a national point of view, special resources are available
for the work, or the proposed project is especially meritorious. NSF
is interested in supporting projects that couple industrial research
resources and perspectives with those of universities; therefore,
it especially welcomes proposals for cooperative projects involving
both universities and the private commercial sector.
-
State and Local Governments -- State
educational offices or organizations and local school districts may
submit proposals intended to broaden the impact, accelerate the pace
and increase the effectiveness of improvements in science, mathematics
and engineering education in both K-12 and post-secondary levels.
-
Unaffiliated Individuals -- Scientists, engineers or
educators in the US and US citizens may be eligible for support, provided
that the individual is not employed by, or affiliated with, an organization,
and:
-
the proposed project is sufficiently meritorious and otherwise complies
with the conditions of any applicable proposal generating document;
-
the proposer has demonstrated the capability and has access to any
necessary facilities to carry out the project; and
-
the proposer agrees to fiscal arrangements, that, in the opinion
of the NSF Division of Grants & Agreements, ensure responsible
management of Federal funds.
Unaffiliated individuals should contact the appropriate program before
preparing a proposal for submission.
-
Foreign organizations -- NSF rarely provides support
to foreign organizations. NSF will consider proposals for cooperative
projects involving US and foreign organizations, provided support
is requested only for the US portion of the collaborative effort.
-
Other Federal agencies -- NSF does not normally
support research or education activities by scientists, engineers
or educators employed by Federal agencies or Federally Funded Research
and Development Centers (FFRDCs). A scientist, engineer or educator,
however, who has a joint appointment with a university and a Federal
agency (such as a Veterans Administration Hospital, or with a university
and a FFRDC) may submit proposals through the university and may receive
support if he/she is a bona fide faculty member of the university,
although part of his/her salary may be provided by the Federal agency.
Under unusual circumstances, other Federal agencies and FFRDCs may
submit proposals directly to NSF. Preliminary inquiry should be made
to the appropriate program before preparing a proposal for submission.
D. WHEN TO SUBMIT PROPOSALS
Many NSF programs accept proposals at any time. Other programs, however,
establish target dates 3 ,
deadlines 4 or
submission windows 5
for submission of proposals to allow time for their consideration by review
panels that meet periodically. These target dates, deadlines, and submission
windows are published in specific program announcements and solicitations
that can be obtained from the NSF Clearinghouse at pubs@nsf.gov
or electronically through the NSF website at http://www.nsf.gov.
6 Unless
otherwise stated in a program announcement or solicitation, proposals
must be received by the specified date (and time, where indicated.) If
the deadline date falls on a weekend, it will be extended to the following
Monday; if the date falls on a holiday, it will be extended to the following
business day. The deadline date only will be waived in extenuating circumstances.
Inquiry about submission also may be made to the appropriate program.
Proposers should allow up to six months for programmatic review and
processing (see Chapter III for additional
information on the NSF merit review process). In addition, proposers should
be aware that the NSF Division of Grants and Agreements generally makes
awards to academic institutions within 30 days after the program division
makes its recommendation. Grants being made to organizations that have
not received an NSF award within the preceding two years, or involving
special situations (such as coordination with another Federal agency or
a private funding source), cooperative agreements, and other unusual arrangements
may require additional review and processing time. Proposals that are
time sensitive (e.g., conference, group travel, and research involving
ephemeral phenomena) only will be accepted for review if, in the opinion
of the cognizant Program Officer, they are received in sufficient time
to permit appropriate NSF review and processing to support an award in
advance of the activity to be supported. Every effort is made to reach
a decision and inform the proposer promptly. Until an award is made, NSF
is not responsible for any costs incurred by the proposing organization.
E. HOW TO SUBMIT PROPOSALS
1. Electronic Requirements
In order to provide better service to its customer communities, and
to achieve significantly greater efficiencies in proposal handling and
internal record-keeping, the National Science Foundation is rapidly moving
toward all-electronic business practices. To accomplish this goal, in
September 1998, the NSF Director issued Important Notice 123, Working
Towards a Paperless Proposal and Award System (http://www.nsf.gov/cgi-bin/
getpub?iin123). Important Notice 123 describes NSF’s vision for the
future in electronic business and outlines the schedule for implementation.
As stipulated in this Notice, effective October 1, 2000, ALL proposals
to NSF must be submitted electronically via the NSF FastLane system. 7
For proposers who cannot submit electronically,
a deviation must be approved in advance of submission of the paper proposal
in accordance with GPG Chapter II, Section
A.
Upon receipt of the proposal by NSF, proposals are generally converted
to hard copy for distribution to the reviewer community. The rationale
for this step is that the wide variance of equipment available to reviewers
may not, at this time, assure that an all-electronic review process would
be successful or totally fair to proposers. In the near future, NSF envisions
that it will be possible to avoid this printing step and send proposals
out for review solely by electronic means.
Special Instructions for Proposals That Contain
High Resolution Graphics or Other Graphics Where Exact Color Representations
are Required for Proper Interpretation by the Reviewer
For cost and technical reasons, the Foundation cannot, at this time,
reproduce proposals containing color. Therefore, PIs generally should
not rely on colorized objects to make their arguments. PIs who must include
in their project descriptions very high resolution graphics or other graphics
where exact color representations are required for proper interpretation
by the reviewer, must submit the required number of copies of theentire
paper proposal (including the signed paper copy of the proposal Cover
Sheet) for use in the review process. This submission is in addition to,
not in lieu of, the electronic submission of the proposal via FastLane.
Upon submission of the proposal, the proposing organization will be
notified of the required number of paper copies of the proposal that must
be submitted to NSF. The exact number of copies required will appear in
an electronic message at the time of FastLane submission and will depend
on the NSF Division selected. 8
Such proposals must be postmarked (or provide a legible proof
of mailing date assigned by the carrier) within five working days following
the electronic submission of the proposal.
Unless the proposal contains very high resolution graphics or other
graphics where exact color representations are critical to the review
of the proposal, proposers should not send in paper copies.
2. Submission Instructions
A proposal needs to be submitted only once to NSF, even if the proposer
envisions review by multiple programs. The submission of duplicate or
substantially similar proposals concurrently for review by more than one
program without prior NSF approval may result in the return of the redundant
proposals. (See Chapter IV, Section B for further information on proposal
return.) Unless stated otherwise in a proposal-generating document, proposals
should not be addressed or sent directly to the cognizant Program Officer.
After submission of the proposal electronically via FastLane, proposers
are required to submit one signed paper copy of the Cover Sheet (NSF Form
1207, Pages 1 and 2). 9 /10
The Cover Sheet must be postmarked (or provide
a legible proof of mailing date assigned by the carrier) within five working
days following the electronic submission of the proposal and forwarded
to the following address: 11
National Science Foundation DIS-FastLane Cover Sheet 4201 Wilson Blvd.
Arlington, VA 22230
A proposal may not be processed until NSF has received the complete
proposal (including signed Cover Sheet).
3. Acknowledgement of Proposal Receipt
The acknowledgement of the receipt of the proposal will reference both
the NSF proposal number and the cognizant NSF program to which the proposal
has been assigned. Once the proposal is submitted, PIs can access the
proposal number via the “View Submitted Proposal” list in the FastLane
Proposal Preparation module. If a proposal acknowledgement is not received
or proposal number is not reflected in the FastLane System, contact the
FastLane Help Desk at (800) 673-6188, or (703) 292-8142 or by e-mail to
fastlane@nsf.gov.
When the proposal is assigned to an NSF program, the cognizant program
information is available through the FastLane “Proposal Status Inquiry”
function for PIs and through the “Recent Proposals” report for sponsored
projects offices. Communications about the proposal should be addressed
to the cognizant Program Officer with reference to the proposal number.
Proposers are strongly encouraged to use FastLane to verify the status
of their submission to NSF.
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