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NSF 20-536: Division of Integrative Organismal Biology Core Programs

Closed Closed Opportunity NSF 20-536

This grant is closed. A newer notice from the same program is open now: Major Research Instrumentation Program: (MRI) (NSF 27-500). Status: Closes January 29, 2027 (83 days left). It is in our archive of U.S. National Science Foundation notices from 2025.

U.S. National Science Foundation offered grants to any type of organization. It expected to make $60.0 million in total. It is no longer open on Grants.gov.

From the official notice on Grants.gov, last changed June 7, 2025. Checked November 7, 2026.

Other notices with this title

U.S. National Science Foundation has posted this title under other numbers: earlier or later rounds, or the same competition for another area. Each has its own dates and may change its rules.

NoticePostedDeadlineStatus
NSF 23-547June 6, 2025ClosedClosed
NSF 18-586June 6, 2025ClosedClosed
NSF 21-506June 6, 2025ClosedClosed

Key dates

PostedJune 6, 2025
Archived by Grants.govJune 7, 2025

Who can apply

This opportunity was open to any type of organization.

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Is this a realistic fit?

What the grant funds

The Division of Integrative Organismal Systems (IOS) Core Programs Track supports research aimed at understanding why organisms are structured the way they are and function as they do. Proposals are welcomed in all of the core scientific program areas supported by the Division of Integrative Organismal Systems (IOS). Areas of inquiry include, but are not limited to, developmental biology and the evolution of developmental processes, nervous system development, structure, modification, function, and evolution; biomechanics and functional morphology, physiological processes, symbioses and microbial interactions, interactions of organisms with biotic and abiotic environments,plant and animal genomics, and animal behavior. Proposals should focus on organisms as a fundamental unit of biological organization. Principal Investigators (PIs) are encouraged to apply systems approaches that will lead to conceptual and theoretical insights and predictions about emergent organismal properties. TheRules of Life Tracksupports integrative proposals that span the subcellular and cellular scales normally funded by MCB to the organ, tissue, organismal, and group scale typically funded by IOS, to population, species, community and ecosystem scales typically funded by DEB. Rules of Life proposals may also include enabling infrastructure through joint submission with DBI. Discovery of fundamental principles and enabling infrastructure will advance understanding and further predict how key properties of living systems emerge from the interaction of genomes, phenotypes, and developmental, social and environmental context across space and time. This track provides opportunities to advance understanding of the Rules of Life by new mechanisms for review and funding of proposals that span two or more divisions in the Biological Sciences Directorate.

Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development.

Who has won Biological Sciences grants before

From fiscal 2021 to 2025, Biological Sciences (47.074) awarded $4.2 billion across 6,885 grant awards, an average of $609,810 per award.

Largest recipients, fiscal 2021 to 2025
RecipientStateAwardsAmount
Battelle Memorial InstituteOhio8$381 million
Arizona State UniversityArizona57$108 million
Cornell UniversityNew York85$85.6 million
University of FloridaFlorida100$70.6 million
Michigan State University FoundationMichigan105$67.9 million

Top states: California ($471 million), Ohio ($463 million), New York ($288 million), Massachusetts ($180 million), Texas ($176 million).

Applying now

This notice no longer takes applications. Apply under the newer notice, NSF 27-500, which is open now.

The notice on Grants.gov keeps its full text and attachments, which is useful for planning a resubmission.

Questions people ask

Is NSF 20-536 still open?

No. It is no longer open on Grants.gov. A newer notice is open: NSF 27-500, closes January 29, 2027 (83 days left).

Who can apply for Division of Integrative Organismal Biology Core Programs?

U.S. National Science Foundation accepted applications from any type of organization.

What is the deadline for Division of Integrative Organismal Biology Core Programs?

Closed. Applications are no longer accepted; the program's newer notices are on this page when there are any.

How much funding is available?

About $60.0 million in total.

Who has won Biological Sciences grants before?

The largest recipients over five fiscal years were Battelle Memorial Institute, Arizona State University, Cornell University. The program made 6,885 awards worth $4.2 billion in that time.

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