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Funder · Federal agency

National Science Foundation

Funds National Science Foundation, the United States agency supporting broad competitive science and engineering programs.

United Stateswww.nsf.gov
Key stats
Annual funding$8.826B
Programs15
Active grants4
Total grants11
About

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is the primary U.S. federal agency for basic and applied research across science and engineering outside medical sciences. Established in 1950, it supports about 11,000 competitive awards a year and reaches roughly 350,000 researchers, entrepreneurs, students, and teachers across about 1,900 institutions. FY2025 appropriations were $8.826 billion, and NSF is r…

Programs & grants under this funder
NSF Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER)

Helps NSF Faculty Early Career Development Program for faculty who combine outstanding research with excellent STEM education.

1 grant
NSF CAREER
Between cycles
— pool
NSF EPSCoR (Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research)

Helps NSF EPSCoR for United States institutionsnited States jurisdictions underrepresented in federal research funding.

1 grant
NSF EPSCoR — Active Tracks (Seed)
Open
— pool
NSF Gen-4 Engineering Research Centers (ERC)

Helps NSF Gen Engineering Research Centers for Large interdisciplinary research center grants for university.

NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)

Helps NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program for STEM PhD students.

1 grant
NSF GRFP — Fellowship
Open
— pool
NSF I-Corps

Helps United States research teams in NSF I-Corps test market fit through customer discovery and commercialization coaching.

NSF Major Research Instrumentation Program (MRI)

Helps NSF Major Research Instrumentation Program for United States institutionsnited States universities and research organizations.

NSF NAIRR Operations Center (NAIRR-OC)

Helps NSF NAIRR Operations Center for United States institutionsnited States researchers and educators.

NSF Research Traineeship Program (NRT)

Helps NSF Research Traineeship Program for Graduate-student training grants for innovative.

1 grant
NSF NRT — Research Traineeship (Seed)
Open
— pool
NSF Partnerships for Innovation (PFI)

Offers research teams and universities in United States that are turning innovation ideas into reliable market-ready products.

NSF PFI-RP Research Partnerships Pillar

Invests research teams and universities in United States to build innovation work toward measurable commercialization outcomes.

NSF PFI-TT Translation Pillar

Administers innovative organizations in United States to connect innovation teams to commercialization pathways and real buyers.

NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)

Helps NSF Research Experiences for United States institutionsndergraduates for existing NSF grants.

1 grant
NSF REU — Sites and Supplements (Seed)
Open
— pool
NSF SBIR/STTR (America's Seed Fund)

Supports United States deep-tech founders through non-dilutive development grants for innovative technology.

6 grants
NSF SBIR Phase I
Between cycles
$60M pool
NSF SBIR Phase II
Between cycles
$90M pool
NSF SBIR/STTR Fast-Track Pilot
Between cycles
$25M pool
NSF SBIR/STTR Scientific Instrumentation Pilot
Closed
$40M pool
NSF STTR Phase I
Between cycles
$25M pool
NSF STTR Phase II
Between cycles
$15M pool
NSF SBIR Phase I

Funds United States small businesses building research technologies for science missions through the National Science Foundation route.

NSF SBIR Phase II

Funds United States small businesses to mature proven concepts into development work through the National Science Foundation route.

Last verified: 1 Jun 2026Source: www.nsf.gov