Office for Research Advancement

NSF Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics

New S-Stem Solicitation - NSF 23-527

The main goal of the S-STEM program is to enable low-income students with academic ability, talent or potential to pursue successful careers in promising STEM fields. Ultimately, the S-STEM program seeks to increase the number of academically promising low-income students who graduate with a S-STEM eligible degree and contribute to the American innovation economy with their STEM knowledge. Recognizing that financial aid alone cannot increase retention and graduation in STEM, the program provides awards to institutions of higher education (IHEs) not only to fund scholarships, but also to adapt, implement, and study evidence-based curricular and co-curricular1 activities that have been shown to be effective supporting recruitment, retention, transfer (if appropriate), student success, academic/career pathways, and graduation in STEM.

Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. submitter's local time):

• ORD Letter of Intent Deadline - November 22, 2023

• Agency Deadline -  February 20, 2024 and Third Tuesday in February, Annually Thereafter

Eligibility/Limit on Number of Proposals per Discipline:    

OSU is not eligible to submit to Track 1. 

• An institution may submit up to two proposals (either as a single institution or as sub awardee or as a member of an inter-institutional consortia project) for a given S-STEM deadline.  Collaborative planning grants are exempt from this limit and do not have to participate in this limited submission process.
• Multiple proposals from an institution must not overlap with regard to S-STEM eligible disciplines.
• Institutions with a current S-STEM award should wait at least until the end of the third year of execution of their current award before submitting a new S-STEM proposal focused on students pursuing degrees in the same discipline(s). This 3-year waiting period restriction does not apply to collaborative planning grants.

S-STEM Eligible Degree Programs

Eligible degrees include those in all fields funded by NSF as long as there is demand in the regional or national workforce for professionals with those degrees, potential to address the long-term workforce needs of the United States, or other evidence of positive job prospects within the STEM workforce upon graduation with an undergraduate or graduate degree.

S-STEM Eligible Disciplines

1. Disciplinary fields in which research is funded by NSF, with the following exceptions:
   1. Clinical degree programs, including medical degrees, nursing, veterinary medicine, pharmacy, physical therapy, and others not funded by NSF, are ineligible degrees.
   2. Business school programs that lead to Bachelor of Arts or Science in Business Administration degrees (BABA/BSBA/BBA) are not eligible for S-STEM funding.
   3. Masters and Doctoral degrees in Business Administration are also excluded.
2. Technology fields associated with the S-STEM-eligible disciplines (e.g., biotechnology, chemical technology, engineering technology, information technology).

Proposers are strongly encouraged to contact Program Officers before submitting a proposal if they have questions concerning degree or disciplinary eligibility.

To submit a Notice of Intent to Office for Research Advancement:

Prepare the following information to enter in the InfoReady form:

• PI name, title, and contact information
• Descriptive Proposal Title
• Project Summary: 3 or 4 sentences or bullet points that provide an overview of the objective(s) of your proposed project, how you plan to do it, and the expected outcome.
• Team: 5 or 6 sentences or bullet points that highlight team expertise as it relates to the project.
• Preparatory activities. Please briefly describe any planning activities your team has already undertaken including planning grants, workshops, etc.
• Budget: Example: The total cost of the project is anticipated to be $ X, with $ Y being requested from the Agency. Agency funds will be used for: $ A for personnel; $ B for operations, and $ C for broader impacts/subcontracts etc.
• Submission history

PROJECT DESCRIPTION (1 page) - please use an 11 point or higher font with one-inch margins.

Clear and concise statement of:

• Project Objectives and Activities: Describe the project objectives and major activities. Include major partners if relevant.
• Track 3 only: Research question(s) and how the project will address the research question(s). How are the questions linked to the specific needs of the student population being served at the different institutions in the consortia? How will the proposed research lead to the advancement of research/knowledge in this area?
• What is the case made about the regional or national need for professionals with degrees being awarded in this project. What is the likelihood of low-income scholars to find a rewarding job in the STEM workforce upon graduation with either an undergraduate or graduate degree?
• Broader impacts: How will the project benefit society and contribute to the achievement of specific, desired societal outcomes? (Such outcomes include, but are not limited to: full participation of women, persons with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM); improved STEM education and educator development at any level; increased public scientific literacy and public engagement with science and technology; improved well-being of individuals in society; development of a diverse, globally competitive STEM workforce; increased partnerships between academia, industry, and others; improved national security; increased economic competitiveness of the United States; and enhanced infrastructure for research and education.)
• Abbreviated CV or biographical sketch of the principal investigator – separate page
• Optional - Suggest one or two names to serve on the internal review committee.

Notes:  First time InfoReady users will need to create an account following the directions on the InfoReady Home page for Oregon State University users at first use and then will have SSO login.  

*InfoReady does not save automatically, so data must be saved while applications are in process.

Questions, please email  research.development@oregonstate.edu