Date

To lean more about the CAREER Program and the PECASE Awards visit:
http://www.nsf.gov/home/crssprgm/career/
Contacts for the CAREER program are listed for each NSF division at:
http://www.nsf.gov/home/crssprgm/career/contacts.htm
The message below is an abridged version of NSF's official program document
which can be read HTML, Word, PDF, or plain text at:

http://www.nsf.gov/cgi-bin/getpub?nsf0089

Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program

Including the description of the NSF component of the
Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE)

DEADLINE DATES:

July 25, 2000 Biological Sciences (BIO)
Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE)
Education and Human Resources (EHR)

July 26, 2000 Engineering (ENG)

July 27, 2000 Geosciences (GEO)
Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS)
Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SBE)
Office of Polar Programs (OPP)

Cognizant Program Officer(s):

INTRODUCTION

To sustain and strengthen the Nation's science, mathematics, and
engineering capabilities and to promote the use of those capabilities in
service to society, the National Science Foundation (NSF) is dedicated
to working in partnership with individuals and their institutions to
support the early career development activities of those faculty members
who are most likely to become the academic leaders of the 21st century.
Because of the critical roles played by faculty members in integrating
research and education, and fostering the natural connections between
the processes of learning and discovery, NSF has established the Faculty
Early Career Development (CAREER) program. The intent of the program is
to provide stable support at a sufficient level and duration to enable
awardees to achieve the education and research career-development
objectives of the program. This program is a Foundation-wide activity
that offers the National Science Foundation's most prestigious awards
for new faculty.

Each year NSF selects nominees for Presidential Early Career Awards for
Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) from among the most meritorious new
CAREER awardees. The PECASE program recognizes outstanding scientists
and engineers who, early in their careers, show exceptional potential
for leadership at the frontiers of knowledge. This Presidential Award is
the highest honor bestowed by the United States Government on scientists
and engineers beginning their independent careers.

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

A. CAREER Program
This premier program emphasizes the importance the Foundation places on
the early development of academic careers dedicated to stimulating the
discovery process in which the excitement of research is enhanced by
inspired teaching and enthusiastic learning. NSF especially encourages
women, members of underrepresented minority groups, and persons with
disabilities to apply.

Successful applicants will propose creative, integrative, and effective
research and education plans. The proposals will demonstrate activities
that exemplify the process of continuous learning and the quest for new
knowledge; such activities will enable the weaving of knowledge
creation, integration and transfer into a robust whole. Program
information can be accessed on the CAREER Web page at:
http://www.nsf.gov/home/crssprgm/career/start.htm

B. PECASE Program

NSF will select up to twenty nominees for this award from among the most
meritorious PECASE-eligible CAREER awardees who applied to the FY 2001
CAREER program.

III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION
A. CAREER Program

Criteria. Applicants for the FY 2001 competition MUST MEET ALL of the
following requirements:

  • be untenured as of July 24, 2000;

  • as of October 1, 2000:

  • be employed in a tenure-track position at an institution in the U.S.,
    its territories or possessions, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, that
    awards baccalaureate or advanced degrees in a field supported by NSF,
    and

  • have entered their first tenure-track, academic position within the
    last 4 years, i.e., after October 1, 1996, and

  • have earned their first doctorate within the last 8 years, i.e., after
    October 1, 1992; and

  • have not previously received an NSF PECASE or CAREER award. Prior or
    concurrent Federal support for other types of awards or for
    non-duplicative research does not preclude eligibility.

Exemptions. The following are the only exceptions to the eligibility
criteria listed above. Individuals in these categories may also be
eligible to apply.

  • Individuals in "tenure-track-equivalent" positions whose appointments
    are continuing faculty appointments having substantial educational
    responsibilities at institutions or departments that do not offer
    tenure.

  • Non-tenured faculty who entered their first full-time tenure-track
    appointment before October 1, 1996, or who received their first earned
    doctorate degree before October 1, 1992, but who have interrupted their
    careers for family leave or serious health problems.

Prior to proposal submission, eligibility exemptions must be requested
from AND approved by an NSF CAREER Directorate contact.

See "CAREER Contacts List" on the CAREER Web page at:
http://www.nsf.gov/home/crssprgm/career/conacts.htm

Note that CAREER Division contacts and program officers are not authorized
to grant eligibility exemptions; only Directorate contacts are authorized to
grant exemptions. If careful documentation leads to an exemption being
granted, the full text of the approval received from the NSF CAREER
Directorate contact must be submitted in the Deviation Authorization
Section of the FastLane Proposal Preparation module (see Section V. of
these guidelines).

B. PECASE Program

In addition to meeting the eligibility requirements of the CAREER
program listed above, PECASE nominees must be U.S. citizens, nationals,
or permanent residents who hold such status on or before July 24, 2000.
To be considered for the PECASE award, eligible applicants must check
the "PECASE Eligibility" box on the proposal Cover Sheet prior to
proposal submission. Individuals can receive only one PECASE award.

IV. AWARD INFORMATION

  • Duration. 5 years.

  • Amount.

  • CAREER award size practices vary by NSF organizational unit.
    For additional information, applicants are strongly encouraged to refer
    to the CAREER FAQ's Section on "Budget and Award Administration
    Information," which can be accessed on the CAREER Web page:
    http://www.nsf.gov/home/crssprgm/career/guide.htm
    For the FY 2001 competition, the minimum CAREER award, including indirect
    costs, will total $250,000.

  • PECASE. Beginning with the FY 2001 competition, the PECASE award will
    be an entirely honorary award for all NSF recipients and does not
    provide additional funds.

  • Supplemental Funding. CAREER awards are eligible for supplemental
    funding, as described in the GPG, Section VI. B.4.