Funding Opportunities

Current MCB funding opportunities

The Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) and the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences (MCB) accept proposals to core solicitations as well as special solicitations. MCB also announces its interest in specific areas or alerts the community to new opportunities through Dear Colleague Letters. Below are opportunities which may be of interest to MCB applicants.

MCB Solicitations: 

  • Core Programs: NSF 24-539
  • Transitions to Excellence in MCB Research (Transitions): NSF 21-508
  • Designing Synthetic Cells Beyond the Bounds of Evolution (Designer Cells): NSF 24-505

Solicitations of Interest to MCB PIs:

  • ACED: Accelerating Computing-Enabled Scientific Discovery (ACED): NSF 24-541
  • Emerging Mathematics in Biology (eMB): NSF 24-513
  • Responsible Design, Development, and Deployment of Technologies (ReDDDoT): NSF 24-524
  • Future Manufacturing (FM): NSF 24-525
  • Emerging Frontiers In Research And Innovation (EFRI): Biocomputing through EnGINeering Organoid Intelligence (BEGIN OI): NSF 24-508
  • Molecular Foundations for Biotechnology (MFB): NSF 23-554
  • Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER): NSF 22-586 (NSF Wide)
  • Accelerating Innovations in Biomanufacturing Approaches through Collaboration Between NSF and the DOE BETO funded Agile BioFoundry (NSF-DOE/ABF Collaboration): NSF 22-549
  • Mid-Career Advancement (MCA): NSF 22-603
  • Research and Mentoring for Postbaccalaureates in Biological Sciences (RaMP): NSF 23-514
  • Research Experiences for Teachers Sites in Biological Sciences (BIORETS): NSF 21-584
  • Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU): NSF 22-601
  • Track 3 (Helium) in the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) solicitation:  23-519
  • Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI-2022/23): NSF 24-508
  • Leading Culture Change Through Professional Societies of Biology (BIO-LEAPS): NSF 22-542
  • Biology Integration Institutes (BII): NSF 23-511
  • Building Synthetic Microbial Communities for Biology, Mitigating Climate Change, Sustainability and Biotechnology (Synthetic Communities): NSF 22-607
  • BioFoundries to Enable Access to Infrastructure and Resources for Advancing Modern Biology and Biotechnology (BioFoundries): NSF 23-585
  • Global Centers (GC): NSF __-___ (Awaiting Publication) https://new.nsf.gov/funding/opportunities/global-centers-gc

Dear Colleague Letters (DCL) of interest to MCB PIs:

NEW SCIENCE DIRECTIONS

  • Leveraging Innovations From Evolution (LIFE): NSF 24-049
  • Global Centers Program Competition – Addressing Societal Challenges through the Bioeconomy: NSF 24-023
  • STEM Access for Persons with Disabilities (STEM-APWD): NSF 23-160
  • Convergence Accelerator 2023 Topics – Equitable Water Solutions, Chemical Sensing Applications, and Bio-Inspired Design Innovations: 23-066
  • Bio-Inspired Design Collaborations to Accelerate the Discovery-Translation Process (BioDesign): 23-055
  • Sentinel Systems that Detect, Recognize, Actuate, and Mitigate Emergent Biological Threats (DREAM Sentinels): NSF 22-077
  • Plant Synthetic Biology: NSF 20-045
  • Tool Development for Cell Biology (Tools4Cells): NSF 23-121
  • Announcement of Upcoming Topics for the 2022 NSF Convergence Accelerator Solicitation: NSF 22-036

INTERNATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

  • NSF-DBT/ India | Special Guidelines for Submitting Collaborative Proposals under U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) of India Collaborative Research Opportunities: NSF 24-054
  • Research Collaboration Opportunity in Europe for NSF Recipients: NSF 24-053
  • NSF-Swiss NSF Lead Agency Opportunity: NSF 23-049
  • NSF-French National Research Agency (ANR) Quantum Information Science and Engineering Lead Agency Opportunity: NSF 23-159
  • ANR – NSF/MCB/PHY Lead Agency Opportunity at the Molecular and Cellular Biosciences – Physics Interface: NSF 24-015
  • UKRI/BBSRC- NSF/BIO Lead Agency Opportunity in Biological Informatics, Microbes and the Host Immune System, Quantum Biology and Synthetic Cell (BBSRC): NSF 23-143
  • Special Guidelines for Submitting Collaborative Proposals under National Science Foundation (NSF) and US-Israel Binational Science Foundation (BSF) Collaborative Research Opportunities: NSF 20-094
  • NSF-DFG Lead Agency Opportunity in Molecular and Cellular Biology: NSF 22-015

SUPPLEMENTS TO ENHANCE BROADER IMPACTS

  • Research Experience for Teachers (RET): Funding Opportunity in the Biological Sciences: NSF 23-146. Supplements may also be requested directly from your Program Director.
  • Research Assistantships for High School Students (RAHSS) Funding to Broaden Participation in the Biological Sciences: NSF 23-145. Supplements may also be requested directly from your Program Director.
  • Non-Academic Research Internships for Graduate Students (INTERN) Supplemental Funding Opportunity NSF 21-013. Supplements may also be requested directly from your Program Director.
  • Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU): NSF 22-601. Supplements may also be requested directly from your Program Director.

Special Research Funding Opportunities:

  • EAGER/RAPID/RAISE/Conference (by invitation only). All submissions must be made in accordance with the PAPPG: NSF 24-1
  • Research Coordination Networks (RCN): NSF 23-529

Opportunities for Undergraduate- and Minority- Serving Institutions:

  • Facilitating Research at Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (RUI) and Research Opportunity Award (for ROA): NSF 14-579
  • Historically Black Colleges and Universities – Excellence in Research Program (HBCU – EiR): NSF 23-598 (NSF wide)
  • Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI Program): NSF 22-611 (NSF wide)
  • Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU): NSF 23-601
  • Building Research Capacity of New Faculty in Biology (BRC-BIO): NSF 22-500

Opportunities for Students and Postdoctoral Researchers:

  • Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP): NSF 23-605 (NSF wide)
  • Postdoctoral Research Fellowships in Biology (PRFB): NSF 23-620 (Division of Biological Infrastructure)