Grants / National Science Foundation / U.S. National Science Foundation

NSF 22-604: Launching Early-Career Academic Pathways in the Mathematical and Physical Sciences (LEAPS-MPS)

Closed Closed Opportunity NSF 22-604 ☆ Save

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.

• Award ceiling$250,000
• Award floor$100,000
• Total funding$12.0 million
• Expected awards48
• Cost sharingNot required
• Funding typeGrant

Key dates

Who can apply

This opportunity was open to the applicants described in the notice.

• Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)

*Who May Submit Proposals: Proposals may only be submitted by the following: -Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs): Two- and four-year IHEs (including community colleges) accredited in, and having a campus located in the US, acting on behalf of their faculty members. Special Instructions for International Branch Campuses of US IHEs: If the proposal includes funding to be provided to an international branch campus of a US institution of higher education (including through use of sub-awards and consultant arrangements), the proposer must explain the benefit(s) to the project of performance at the international branch campus, and justify why the project activities cannot be performed at the US campus. *Who May Serve as PI: You are eligible to serve as Principal Investigator under this program solicitation only if you · hold a doctoral degree in the typical disciplines of the fundamental research areas supported by the Divisions of the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences AND · are a new investigator,i.e., in the pre-tenure period, at the time of submission, as a tenure-track (or tenure-track equivalent) faculty member in a U.S. IHE eligible to receive NSF support AND · have not previously served as Principal Investigator or co-Principal Investigator on an NSF research grant, with the exceptions of Fellowship, Conference/Workshop, Equipment, Travel, Instrumentation infrastructure, and Research Opportunity Award (ROA) grants. Tenure-track equivalency - For a position to be considered a tenure-track-equivalent position, it must meet all of the following requirements: (1) the employee has a continuing appointment that is expected to last the duration of a LEAPS-MPS grant; (2) the appointment has substantial research and educational responsibilities; and (3) the proposed project relates to the employee's career goals and job responsibilities as well as to the mission of the department or organization. Co-Principal Investigators are not permitted, but collaborations with other scientists and/or visiting scientist status in other laboratories are permitted. <span style="font-size: 9pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif; color: black; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"></span>

Is this a realistic fit?

• Past Mathematical and Physical Sciences awards averaged $568,976; this notice allows up to $250,000 per award.
• Most of the program's money (80% over five years) went to colleges and universities.
• No cost sharing or match is required.

What the grant funds

The Launching Early-Career Academic Pathways in the Mathematical and Physical Sciences (LEAPS-MPS) call has an emphasis to help launch the careers of pre-tenure faculty in Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS) fields at institutions that do not traditionally receive significant amounts of NSF-MPS funding, such as some minority-serving institutions (MSIs), predominantly undergraduate institutions (PUIs), and Carnegie Research 2 (R2) universities. LEAPS-MPS has the additional goal of achieving excellence through diversity and aims to broaden participation to include members from groups historically excluded and currently underrepresented in the Mathematical and Physical Sciences, including Blacks and African Americans, Hispanics, Latinos, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and other Native Pacific Islanders. These grants are intended to support MPS principal investigators, particularly at the aforementioned institutions, for whom LEAPS funding would enable the PI to submit a subsequent successful proposal to a traditional, already-existing NSF funding opportunity, such as individual investigator programs, CAREER competitions, etc. By providing this funding opportunity, MPS intends to help initiate viable independent research programs for researchers attempting to launch their research careers such that LEAPS-MPS awards are followed by competitive grant submissions that build upon the research launched through this mechanism. This LEAPS-MPS solicitation welcomes proposals from principal investigators who share NSF's commitment to diversity. Awards are for 24 months and are up to $250,000 total costs (direct plus indirect). Proposals in response to this solicitation must be submitted for consideration tothe appropriate program in one of the five MPS Divisions.

Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development.

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.