Young Investigator Program

Submission Date

Submission date has passed, provided for information purposes only.

Program Description

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) is interested in receiving proposals for its Young Investigator Program (YIP). YIP seeks to identify and support academic scientists and engineers who are in their first or second full-time tenure-track or tenure-track-equivalent academic appointment and for FY13, have begun their first appointment on or after Nov. 1, 2007, and who show exceptional promise for doing creative research. The program's objectives are to attract outstanding faculty members of Institutions of Higher Education (hereafter also called "universities") to the Department of Navy's (DoN's) research program, to support their research, and to encourage their teaching and research careers.

Proposals addressing research areas described in the ONR science and technology (S&T) department section of ONR's website, which are of interest to ONR program officers and division directors will be considered. Contact information for each division (a subgroup of an S&T department) is also listed within that section. Potential applicants may contact the appropriate division director or the program officer who is the point-of-contact for a specific technical area, to discuss their research ideas. Brief informal pre-proposals may be submitted to facilitate these discussions. Such discussions can clarify the content and breadth of the priority research areas and enhance the match between a subsequent proposal and DoN research needs.

An individual wishing to apply for a Young Investigator award must submit a research proposal and a supporting letter through the appropriate university officials. ONR makes awards to institutions, not individuals. The research proposal should follow the format described in ONR broad agency announcement (BAA) 13-003–highlighted in ONR's BAA listings–in Section IV titled, "Application and Submission Information."

Proposals may request up to $170,000 per year for three years. These funds may be budgeted against any reasonable costs related to the conduct of the proposed research, for example, salary for the young investigator, graduate student support, supplies and operating expenses. Additional funds (beyond the basic $170,000 yearly amount) for capital equipment which enhances the young investigator's proposed research may be requested for the first budget period, based on the needs of the research. Requesting funds for capital equipment will not decrease the probability of receiving an award; additional support for equipment will be decided separately from award selections and will depend upon availability of funds.

Eligibility Requirements

Awards under this announcement will be made only to U.S. Institutions of Higher Education which award degrees in science, engineering and/or mathematics. Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and minority institutions (MIs) are encouraged to submit proposals and join others in submitting proposals. However, no portion of this announcement will be set aside for HBCU and MI participation. Further, the principal investigator of a proposal must be a U.S. citizen, national or permanent resident (on the date proposals are due), holding a first- or second full-time tenure-track or tenure-track-equivalent faculty position at that university. The principal invstigator must–for fiscal year 2013–have started her/his first full-time appointment on or after Nov. 1, 2007. The term "national" of the United States includes a native resident of a possession of the United States, such as American Samoa.

ONR Program Manager

Bill Lukens, Ph.D.
Point of contact: Paula Barden
Email: paula.barden.ctr@navy.mil