UM NSF CAREER Development Group – 2018 Cohort

Early Career Development Grants are NSF’s most prestigious awards for junior faculty. CAREER awardees develop activities to integrate research and education, setting them up for successful careers as teacher/scholars. Over the last 9 years, 8 UM faculty members have competed successfully for these prestigious awards—many with the help of mentorship and guidance from previous UM CAREER award winners.

The Office of Research and Sponsored Programs believes there is the potential for 3-5 UM faculty per year to win NSF CAREER awards. To that end, ORSP, in collaboration with the ORSP Research Development Fellows, the Deans of Liberal Arts, Engineering, Pharmacy, and Education, and previous UM NSF CAREER Award Winners, announces the UM NSF CAREER Development Group. Assistant professors[1] whose research interests align with the National Foundation (e.g., STEM and STEM Education) are invited to join the group as members of the 2018 Cohort—even if you are not sure that you want to submit an NSF CAREER proposal.

The group will meet once a month from October 2017 through June 2018. Each meeting, group members will hear a short presentation from one or more fellow UM faculty who have previously won NSF CAREER awards, won other NSF grants, or served as an NSF reviewer, from other UM folks about resources to strengthen proposals. Each month, cohort members will be challenged to develop a new section of their own NSF CAREER proposal, and to iteratively improve previously written sections. Some members may elect to pair up with a previous CAREER Award Winner or ORSP Research Development Fellow as part of the pilot new Grant Mentors Program.[2] Cohort members will also be invited to voluntarily share and exchange constructive proposal feedback with their fellow cohort members. By June of 2018, each member should have a full NSF CAREER proposal drafted, including all of the required components. Those who elect to submit in 2018 will be further mentored and assisted through submission time in mid July. Those who decided not to submit will nonetheless have gone through the full process of developing a complete NSF proposal, and may elect to reuse or adapt components of their proposal for another opportunity within NSF.

Cohort members will also be encouraged to seek out, and be provided funds to attend, NSF-sponsored CAREER Development workshops held across the country, and to share what they learn there with their fellow cohort members. 

In August 2018, those who submitted CAREER proposals in 2018 or received CAREER awards in 2018 will be collectively recognized at a reception or dinner with their Chairs and Deans, the Vice Chancellor for Research, the Provost, and/or the Chancellor.

To participate in, or provide support to, the 2018 CAREER Cohort, please e-mail reseachfellows@olemiss.edu or jghale@olemiss.edu. 

[2] For details about the Grant Mentor program, see http://research.olemiss.edu/grant-mentors. In August 2018, those who submitted CAREER proposals in 2018 or received CAREER awards in 2018 will be collectively recognized at a reception or dinner with their Chairs and Deans, the Vice Chancellor for Research, the Provost, and/or the Chancellor.

To participate in, or provide support to, the 2018 CAREER Cohort, please e-mail reseachfellows@olemiss.edu

Tentative Schedule, 2017-2018 [3]

October:         M 9^th, 2:00 – 3:30 pm; Th 12^th, 3:00 – 4:30 pm;
                        M 16^th, 2:00 – 3:30 pm; Th 19^th, 3:00 – 4:30 pm;

                        http://www.research.olemiss.edu/upcoming-presentations

                        Sign up for any one of these times at the link above.                            

• Learn about the NSF CAREER Development Group;
• Meet the UM CAREER Awardees and Research Development Fellows
• Overview of the NSF CAREER Program & Solicitation;
• Merit Review Principles;                     
   

November:     Project Summaries: Overview, Intellectual Merit, Broader Impacts
December:     Education Plans and Broader Impacts
January:        Resources for Mentoring Undergraduate and High School Researchers
February:       Budget and Budget Justification
March:           Departmental Letter; Other Letters of Collaboration and Support
April:              Biographical Sketches, Collaborators, and Other Affiliations; Current and Pending Support; Results of Prior NSF Support
May:               Data Management Plans; Postdoctoral Mentoring Plans; Facilities, Equipment and Other Resources
June:              Presentation, Feedback, and Editing
July:                Submit CAREER proposals to NSF (optional)
August:           Recognition/Celebration Event: Reception or Dinner