Research in the Formation of Engineers — U.S. National Science Foundation funding opportunity
U.S. National Science Foundation · Federal agency

Research in the Formation of Engineers

The NSF Engineering Directorate (ENG) has launched a multi-year initiative, theProfessional Formation of Engineers, to create and support an innovative and inclusive engineering profession for the 21stcentury. Profession...

72
match
Deadline Fixed Location Alabama Type grant Level Federal Open posted Sep 17, 2023
✦ AI Summary
  • Who can apply: Federal-level applicants (see eligibility for details).
  • Funding amount: total funding pool ~$5,600,000.
  • Issued by: U.S. National Science Foundation.
Sign in to generate AI summary
How was this generated?

The “key facts” mode pulls structured fields directly from the official source posting (amount, deadline, eligibility tags). The AI mode adds a short plain-English narrative on top, generated from the same source. Always verify with the agency before applying.

AI-generated. Always verify with the official source.

Deadline
Fixed
Total pool
$5.6M

About this opportunity

The NSF Engineering Directorate (ENG) has launched a multi-year initiative, theProfessional Formation of Engineers, to create and support an innovative and inclusive engineering profession for the 21stcentury. Professional Formation of Engineers (PFE) refers to the formal and informal processes and value systems by which people become engineers. It also includes the ethical responsibility of practicing engineers to sustain and grow the profession in order to improve quality of life for all peoples. The engineering profession must be responsive to national priorities, grand challenges, and dynamic workforce needs; it must be equally open and accessible to all. Professional Formation of Engineers includes, but is not limited, to: Introductions to the profession at any age; Development of deep technical and professional abilities in both formal and informal settings/domains; Development of of doing; Development of identity as an engineer and its intersection with other identities; and Acculturation to the profession, its standards, and norms. The goal of the Research in the Formation of Engineers (RFE) program is to advance our understanding of professional formation. It seeks both to deepen our fundamental understanding of the underlying processes and mechanisms that support professional formation and to demonstrate how professional formation is or can be accomplished. Ultimately RFE aims to transform the engineer-formation system, and thus the impact of proposed projects on this system must be described. Principal Investigators (PIs) should provide a roadmap detailing how they envision the proposed research will eventually broadly impact practice within the engineer-formation system, even if these activities are not within the scope of the submitted proposal. In order to accomplish its goals, RFE welcomes proposals in two categories: Research Projects, and Design and Development Projects. Research Projects address fundamental questions of professional formation, while Design and Development Projects provide new approaches to achieving professional formation. Additional details are provided below. Projects in both categories should address the iterative cycle in which research questions that advance understanding are informed by practice and the results of research are, in turn, translated into practice. In other words, proposals should explain how the research results will scale. Successful projects identify specific target audiences, effective communication channels, and novel partnerships to ensure effective propagation and scaling. Proposal titles should begin with either “Research:” or “Design and Development:” as appropriate. Research Projects Research proposals are particularly welcome in the following areas: Research that addresses lifelong learning by the engineering workforce. Research on the impact of engineering education research. Proposals addressing this topic could investigate questions such as: How can we measure the impacts of engineering education research? What are effective strategies for scaling reforms? How can we translate knowledge from research to practice? What are the roles of technologies, networks and communities in achieving impact? RFE does not support scale-up studies for specific interventions. Research that addresses culture change in engineering education. Included in this topic are investigations of normative cultures of engineering at any level in the engineering education ecosystem and how these cultures may disadvantage certain groups. Research that addresses engineering formation at the two-year college level in both formal and informal settings. Research that addresses engineering formation at the graduate education level in both formal and informal settings. Research that investigates engineering in P-12 settings.

Funding agency

U.S. National Science Foundation
Federal agency

Tags

Technology & Software Arts & Culture Education & Research Climate & Environment Transportation & Logistics Science, Tech & Engineering (STEM)
Want help applying?

Our specialists will check your eligibility, prepare the application, and walk you through every step — for free. Create a free account →

Who can apply

Eligibility details aren't on file yet — check the agency source link in the Documents tab for the latest rules.

Geographic eligibility

  • Alabama
  • Alaska
  • Arizona
  • Arkansas
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Hawaii
  • Idaho
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Maine
  • Maryland
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • Mississippi
  • Missouri
  • Montana
  • Nebraska
  • Nevada
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New Mexico
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • North Dakota
  • Ohio
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • Pennsylvania
  • Rhode Island
  • South Carolina
  • South Dakota
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Utah
  • Vermont
  • Virginia
  • Washington
  • West Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • Wyoming
  • District of Columbia

How to apply

We don't have application instructions on file yet — head straight to the official source.

Apply on agency site
Tip from our team:

Read the agency's eligibility checklist before you start — it's almost always shorter than the full NOFO and will tell you in 90 seconds whether to keep going.

Need help getting in touch with the right agency contact?

Create a free account and our specialists will guide you through the application end-to-end.

Source documents

View on agency site
Canonical NOFO, application packet, and forms
No supplemental documents yet.

Direct downloads (NOFO PDFs, application forms, FAQs) will appear here once our team attaches them. For now, the agency site has the canonical packet.

Citation details

Source systemgrants.gov
Source ID350230
PostedSep 17, 2023

Frequently asked questions

No FAQs yet.

Have a question about this fund? Sign in to open a ticket about this fund.

Similar grants

Construction & Housing
Transportation Department

Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Fiscal Year 2025 and 2026 Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Program

83
match

- **Who can apply:** Federal-level applicants (see eligibility for details). - **Issued by:** Transportation Department. - **About:** The Federal Railroad Administration has published a Notice of Funding Opportunity (…

Amount varies Rolling Nationwide, USA
Transportation & Logistics
Transportation Department

Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Fiscal Years 2025-2026 Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program for Projects Located on the Northeast Corridor (Partnership-NEC)

97
match

- **Who can apply:** Federal-level applicants (see eligibility for details). - **Issued by:** Transportation Department. - **About:** The Federal Railroad Administration has published a Notice of Funding Opportunity (…

Amount varies Rolling Nationwide, USA
Agriculture & Farming
Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery

Farm and Ranch Solid Waste Cleanup and Abatement Grant Program FR91

71
match

Purpose: The Farm & Ranch Solid Waste Clean Up & Abatement Grant program provides funding for cleaning up and preventing illegal dumping on agricultural properties (CCR, Section 17991(d)). Each fiscal year has four ap…

Amount varies Rolling California, USA
Nonprofit & Community
CA State Library

2026-2027 LSTA Digital Literacy and Access

68
match

Purpose: Public libraries provide access to digital resources and the skills to safely use those resources, which are key components of the Broadband for All Initiative . The goals of this opportunity are to help libr…

Amount varies Rolling California, USA
Apply on agency site