How We Make Funding Decisions - Funding at NSF | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation
Source: https://www.nsf.gov/funding/merit-review
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:36
How We Make Funding Decisions - Funding at NSF | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation
Updates to NSF Research Security Policies
On July 10, 2025, NSF issued an
Important Notice
providing updates to the agency's research security policies, including a research security training requirement, Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program annual certification requirement, prohibition on Confucius institutes and an updated FFDR reporting and submission timeline.
How We Make Funding Decisions
Funding at NSF
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Through its merit review process, the U.S. National Science Foundation ensures the proposals it receives are reviewed in a fair, competitive, transparent and in-depth manner.
An outline of NSF's proposal review process is provided on this page. This information is covered in greater detail in NSF's
Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) Chapter III
and on the
Overview of the NSF Proposal and Award Process
page.
On this page
How we approach funding
NSF strives to invest in a robust and diverse portfolio of projects that enables breakthroughs across all areas of science and engineering. The agency uses the following three principles in determining which proposals to fund as a part of its portfolio:
1.
All NSF projects should be of the highest quality and have the potential to advance, if not transform, the frontiers of knowledge.
2.
NSF projects, in the aggregate, should contribute more broadly to achieving societal goals.
3.
Meaningful assessment and evaluation of NSF funded projects should be based on appropriate metrics.
NSF's proposal review process
A brief outline of NSF's proposal review process is provided below. See
Chapter III of the PAPPG
and the
Overview of the NSF Proposal and Award Process
page for more details.
Once NSF receives a proposal, its program officers conduct a preliminary review to ensure it is complete and conforms to NSF's proposal requirements. If the proposal doesn't meet these requirements, it may be returned without review.
Typically, NSF program officers identify external reviewers, who are experts in the fields represented by the proposal, to review the proposal. The review may be conducted by
ad hoc
reviewers, a panel of experts, or a combination of both.
Reviewers evaluate the proposal using the two National Science Board-approved merit review criteria: intellectual merit and broader impacts. These criteria cover both the quality of the research and the project's potential impact on society. Program solicitations may also contain additional review criteria.
Input received from reviewers is used by NSF, along with other factors, to make a funding decision. When NSF is developing a portfolio of funded projects, it may consider additional factors such as different approaches to significant research and education questions; potential (with perhaps high risk) for transformational advances in a field; capacity building in a new and promising research area; or achievement of special program objectives.
NSF strives to be able to tell applicants whether their proposals have been declined or recommended for funding within six months.
Watch a six-minute overview of NSF's merit review process.
Our merit review criteria
The two
National Science Board
-approved merit review criteria are briefly outlined below, and covered in greater detail in
PAPPG III.A
:
Intellectual merit
The potential for the proposed project to advance knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields.
Broader impacts
The potential for the proposed project to benefit society and contribute to the achievement of specific, desired societal outcomes. Visit the
Broader Impacts
page to learn more about this review criterion.
In addition to assessing a proposal's intellectual merit and broader impacts, the following elements are considered for both review criteria:
To what extent do the proposed activities suggest and explore creative, original or potentially transformative concepts?
Is the plan for carrying out the proposed activities well-reasoned, well-organized and based on a sound rationale? Does the plan incorporate a mechanism to assess success?
How well qualified is the individual, team or organization to conduct the proposed activities?
Are there adequate resources available (either at the proposer's home organization or through collaborations) to carry out the proposed activities?
Pre-award reviews
If NSF is considering awarding you a grant or cooperative agreement, it may undertake one or more of the following reviews to assess your organization's ability to administer an NSF award:
Proposal budget review
NSF will assess your proposed budget to ensure the costs are reasonable, allowable and allocable.
Proposal budget review
Financial capability review
NSF will assess whether your organization has adequate financial resources or the ability to obtain resources necessary to administer the proposed project.
Financial capability review
Accounting system review
NSF will verify your accounting system's ability to manage federal funds, in accordance with applicable regulations and award terms and conditions.
Accounting system review
Additional resources
Prospective New Awardee Guide
Top
Updates to NSF Research Security Policies
On July 10, 2025, NSF issued an
Important Notice
providing updates to the agency's research security policies, including a research security training requirement, Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program annual certification requirement, prohibition on Confucius institutes and an updated FFDR reporting and submission timeline.
How We Make Funding Decisions
Funding at NSF
Share
Share on Facebook
Share on X (formerly known as Twitter)
Share on LinkedIn
Through its merit review process, the U.S. National Science Foundation ensures the proposals it receives are reviewed in a fair, competitive, transparent and in-depth manner.
An outline of NSF's proposal review process is provided on this page. This information is covered in greater detail in NSF's
Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) Chapter III
and on the
Overview of the NSF Proposal and Award Process
page.
On this page
How we approach funding
NSF strives to invest in a robust and diverse portfolio of projects that enables breakthroughs across all areas of science and engineering. The agency uses the following three principles in determining which proposals to fund as a part of its portfolio:
1.
All NSF projects should be of the highest quality and have the potential to advance, if not transform, the frontiers of knowledge.
2.
NSF projects, in the aggregate, should contribute more broadly to achieving societal goals.
3.
Meaningful assessment and evaluation of NSF funded projects should be based on appropriate metrics.
NSF's proposal review process
A brief outline of NSF's proposal review process is provided below. See
Chapter III of the PAPPG
and the
Overview of the NSF Proposal and Award Process
page for more details.
Once NSF receives a proposal, its program officers conduct a preliminary review to ensure it is complete and conforms to NSF's proposal requirements. If the proposal doesn't meet these requirements, it may be returned without review.
Typically, NSF program officers identify external reviewers, who are experts in the fields represented by the proposal, to review the proposal. The review may be conducted by
ad hoc
reviewers, a panel of experts, or a combination of both.
Reviewers evaluate the proposal using the two National Science Board-approved merit review criteria: intellectual merit and broader impacts. These criteria cover both the quality of the research and the project's potential impact on society. Program solicitations may also contain additional review criteria.
Input received from reviewers is used by NSF, along with other factors, to make a funding decision. When NSF is developing a portfolio of funded projects, it may consider additional factors such as different approaches to significant research and education questions; potential (with perhaps high risk) for transformational advances in a field; capacity building in a new and promising research area; or achievement of special program objectives.
NSF strives to be able to tell applicants whether their proposals have been declined or recommended for funding within six months.
Watch a six-minute overview of NSF's merit review process.
Our merit review criteria
The two
National Science Board
-approved merit review criteria are briefly outlined below, and covered in greater detail in
PAPPG III.A
:
Intellectual merit
The potential for the proposed project to advance knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields.
Broader impacts
The potential for the proposed project to benefit society and contribute to the achievement of specific, desired societal outcomes. Visit the
Broader Impacts
page to learn more about this review criterion.
In addition to assessing a proposal's intellectual merit and broader impacts, the following elements are considered for both review criteria:
To what extent do the proposed activities suggest and explore creative, original or potentially transformative concepts?
Is the plan for carrying out the proposed activities well-reasoned, well-organized and based on a sound rationale? Does the plan incorporate a mechanism to assess success?
How well qualified is the individual, team or organization to conduct the proposed activities?
Are there adequate resources available (either at the proposer's home organization or through collaborations) to carry out the proposed activities?
Pre-award reviews
If NSF is considering awarding you a grant or cooperative agreement, it may undertake one or more of the following reviews to assess your organization's ability to administer an NSF award:
Proposal budget review
NSF will assess your proposed budget to ensure the costs are reasonable, allowable and allocable.
Proposal budget review
Financial capability review
NSF will assess whether your organization has adequate financial resources or the ability to obtain resources necessary to administer the proposed project.
Financial capability review
Accounting system review
NSF will verify your accounting system's ability to manage federal funds, in accordance with applicable regulations and award terms and conditions.
Accounting system review
Additional resources
Prospective New Awardee Guide
Top