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Nomination Guidelines

Criteria
The Enrico Fermi Award is bestowed by the President of the United States to an individual or individuals of international stature in recognition of a lifetime of exceptional scientific, technical, engineering, and/or management achievements related to the development, use, control, or production of energy.  (This is broadly interpreted as encompassing all basic and applied research, science, and technology supported by the U.S. Department of Energy and its programs.)

  • The Fermi Award is given for a lifetime of achievement.
  • Only living nominees will be considered.
  • The Fermi Award is not limited to U.S. citizens.
  • The Fermi Award is not limited to scientists whose work has been funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (or its predecessor agencies).

A Fermi Award recipient receives:

  • a citation signed by the President of the United States and the Secretary of Energy;
  • a gold medal bearing the likeness of Enrico Fermi; and
  • a $375,000 honorarium. (In the event the Fermi Award is given to more than one individual in the same year, the recipients share the honorarium.)

Nomination Materials and Deadline

Nomination is made by a letter of justification, curriculum vitae, and bibliography of significant publications. Please omit secondary publications and meetings. Do not include complete articles by the nominee.

A nomination must be accompanied by at least three and not more than six letters of support from individuals who are familiar with the work.

Questions about the Enrico Fermi Award may be addressed to fermi.award@science.doe.gov.

 

Office of Science Department of Energy