Tricks & Tips for Writing a Successful NSF DUE Grant
By Suzanne Dorée, Doug Ensley, April Strom
At the MAA MathFest2024 in Indianapolis, a panel of seasoned grant proposal writers and NSF program officers offered advice on planning and preparing proposals for grants from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE), particularly for the program called “Improving Undergraduate STEM Education,” or IUSE, for short. Is that an acronym within an acronym? You bet! Welcome to the world of NSF.
While the NSF provides abundant guidance on the requirements for a proposal (e.g., https://new.nsf.gov/funding/preparing-proposal) and university research offices often add their own advice as well as local requirements, the process can still feel daunting to first-time proposers. The MathFest panelists shared their experience working with a variety of grant-funded projects and offered advice on getting started. Many of the projects mentioned were funded through the IUSE program which supports curriculum and pedagogical projects from teaching-focused instructors and institutions. Here are some of the tips from the panel.
As you are thinking about preparing a proposal or just engaging in the world of NSF grants…
Tip 0. Don’t be afraid to seek guidance. Since you are reading this note, congratulations on achieving Tip 0. Also, do not hesitate to make contact with an NSF Program Officer as your ideas are coming together. Really! They are not scary. Most are academics on a short-term rotation at NSF – in other words, they are colleagues who want you to succeed. The Program Officers for your program of interest are listed on the official program solicitation on the NSF website. You can email them a one-page description of your project idea and ask for a Zoom meeting to discuss further before you invest more time in developing a proposal.
Tip 1. Volunteer to be a review panelist. Reviewing proposals written by others is a great way to become familiar with the structure of proposals as well as the dynamics of the panel review process. You might get some good ideas for how to structure your own proposal, and you will feel like an insider when you go to write out your own plans. Just contact one of the DUE Program Officers listed on the appropriate Program Solicitation on the NSF website. They are always recruiting reviewers, so reach out to them. What a good excuse to also address Tip 0.
Tip 2. Familiarize yourself with existing projects. Attending conference programming like poster sessions, webinars, panels, etc is a good way to familiarize yourself with grant-funded projects related to your interests, preferably in the same DUE program you would like to apply to. We have all been at those presentations where the first slide has an NSF logo and a project number acknowledging federal support. Do not be afraid to ask the presenters about their project, their experience putting it together, and how their presentation fits into their larger plans. In addition to building your knowledge about this world, you will be expanding your network in useful ways.
Tip 3. Build your resume before you apply. Principal Investigators for a program like IUSE, which focuses on teaching and learning, come from a variety of mathematical backgrounds. These grants are not just available to those in specific research fields. You can be in academic leadership, a math education researcher, or an instructor in the trenches aiming to improve the teaching and learning for students. IUSE is truly a big tent. As part of a proposal you will need to document your expertise and experience working on project-related tasks. Present and publish your work on teaching and learning, organize a session at a national conference, or pilot elements of the project. Engaging in leadership and organizational roles at your institution or within organizations like the MAA can also build your experience.
Tip 4. Get involved with an existing project. As you ask others about their projects, communicate your enthusiasm and look for opportunities to get involved. You will learn a lot about how to lay out a project by being involved in one. Even being a participant in someone else’s workshop can open your eyes to the many levels of details that go into a project. Perhaps you can join an existing grant project as part of your summer work or as a sabbatical project.
Once you feel ready to create your project proposal…
Tip 5. Consider scope and budget as you go. One experience shared at the MathFest panel was from people who have served on DUE review panels and saw proposals where the scope of work, timeline and budget seemed very out of sync. The major budget items and time commitments should be prominent parts of the proposal, and the rationale should seem obvious but well-supported by research.
Tip 6. Form your team thoughtfully. The expertise and experience of your senior personnel answer the question, “Can this team accomplish these tasks?” There are not full CVs attached to proposals, only sketches of recent projects or relevant activities of your key personnel. These summaries should strengthen your proposal and provide the most relevant activities that pertain to your project. NSF and panel reviewers will use this information to build confidence in the team’s capacity to successfully carry out the proposed project.
Tip 7. Get the evaluation plan set up as early as possible. What do you hope to accomplish in the project? An evaluation plan is very important, but for some proposals the evaluation plan seems tacked on as an afterthought. The evaluation plan should make sense in scope and detail with the rest of the proposal. The timeline, budgeted activities, people time, and evaluation process should appear seamless and all focused on the major project goals.
One last tip: Be prepared not to be funded on your first proposal submission. However, do not let a rejection of funding stifle your project, but rather use the feedback from the panel reviewers and NSF program officers to refine your project and enhance your proposal for a resubmission.
Good luck!
Doug Ensley is Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at Shippensburg University and the Director of the MAA OPEN Math project (NSF DUE 2111260).
Su Dorée is Professor of Mathematics at Augsburg University and was a member of the leadership team on the SUMMIT-P project that worked to build and sustain partnerships between mathematics and partner discipline faculty to work on the mathematics curriculum in the first two years.
April Strom is a Professor of Mathematics at Chandler-Gilbert Community College and PI for the Teaching for Prowess project (NSF DUE #2013232).