This document has been archived and replaced by NSF 13-114
(http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf13114).
Title: Frequently Asked Questions by Ocean Sciences PIs for the CAREER
Competition
Date: 06/26/12
NSF 12-102
Frequently Asked Questions by Ocean Sciences PIs for the CAREER Competition
June 26, 2012
1. Why would I submit a CAREER proposal rather than a regular science
proposal to OCE?
The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program offers the
National Science Foundation's most prestigious awards in support of
junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through
outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of
education and research within the context of the mission of their
organizations. In addition, CAREER awardees are eligible to be
nominated for the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists
and Engineers (PECASE). PECASE Awards are intended to recognize
some of the finest early career scientists and engineers who show
exceptional potential for leadership at the frontiers of scientific
knowledge during the twenty-first century.
Beyond the great honor, a CAREER proposal gives the PI an
opportunity to develop expertise in both facets of his/her
position-as a scholar and an educator. The research and education
components should be intertwined in such a way that the PI grows in
his/her skills and knowledge in both dimensions of the work. At the
same time, a well-designed education component will positively
impact the audience served and the institution overall.
2. When is the right time to submit a CAREER proposal?
A PI can submit a proposal to the CAREER program three times. Your
success in writing a successful CAREER proposal may be increased
with prior experience in proposal writing. In addition, prospective
PIs are more successful when they more fully understand the
expectations of their position within their institution and can
build upon existing programs and opportunities at their
institution.
3. I recently joined the faculty as a non-tenure track Assistant
Research Professor. Within the institution all new hires come
under the Research Track rather than tenure track. I have
teaching, service and research responsibilities just like a tenure
track professor, and I get salary from the University to do those
duties. Am I eligible for a CAREER award?
NSF provides some guidance on what is considered a CAREER-eligible
tenure-track equivalent appointment, but it is up to the proposer
and the proposer's institution to determine whether or not the
appointment meets these requirements. For a position to be
considered a tenure-track-equivalent position, it must meet all of
the following requirements: (1) the employing department or
organization does not offer tenure-track positions to any new
hires; (2) the employee is engaged in research in an area of
science or engineering supported by NSF; (3) the employee has a
continuing appointment that is expected to last the five years of
the grant; (4) the appointment has substantial educational
responsibilities; and (5) the proposed project relates to the
employee's career goals and job responsibilities as well as to the
goals of the department or organization. Adjunct, Instructor, or
Visiting positions are not considered CAREER-eligible
tenure-track-equivalent positions. Through the official submission
of your CAREER proposal you are indicating that your position meets
the CAREER-eligibility requirements. In addition, your Department
Chair will verify that your position is CAREER-eligible in the
Departmental letter.
4. I am an assistant professor at an undergraduate institution that
does not give graduate degrees. Am I eligible to apply?
Yes. NSF encourages submission from primarily undergraduate
institutions offering two or four year degrees.
5. How can I include other experts in my work? Science research is
increasingly interdisciplinary and many young scientists work on
large projects with large teams. It is a way for young scientists
to broaden their expertise. Yet the CAREER program does not allow
any co-investigators. What can be done about this?
You may provide funds for others to work on your research or
educational activities, but they may not be listed as Co-PI or in
the senior personnel section of the proposal-either in the primary
budget or within a sub award to a collaborating institution. This
requirement precludes including salary for other faculty or senior
personnel at your institution or any subawardee institution.
However, there are a number of strategies for collaborating with
other experts on your CAREER project, other than having them as a
co-investigator. You may pay someone outside your institution as a
consultant to your project. You may pay for collaborators' travel,
field/lab expenses, materials and supplies, or access fee to a
laboratory, whether they are within or external to your
institution.
Beyond formally including someone in your proposal, you can also
develop your overall research portfolio with multiple projects, the
CAREER being just one of them. This is an excellent strategy
whether you submit a CAREER proposal or not. In your other
projects, you may be working on an interdisciplinary team to
address a large, complex problem. Your CAREER proposal could be
developed as a complementary broadening investigation that allows
you to build upon the expertise in the team project, but work
independently on a particular research direction.
6. How do I choose a pathway for my education component?
The education component should be tightly integrated with your
research. Like your scientific research it should be focused, have
a clear and established need, specific goals, and a means of
evaluating whether those goals are met. It is best when it is
aligned with your personal goals as an educator and your
institution's educational goals. Ideally, your education component
is as exciting and motivating to you as the science component.
7. What are common mistakes PIs make in developing their education
component?
A very common mistake is to propose too many different and
unrelated activities. Choose one or two meaningful activities and
do them really well.
Another common mistake is to propose activities without having done
any background research on what is possible, what has already been
done, or whether the work is needed. Do your homework and develop a
solid plan, with clear and meaningful goals, based on a real need.
Find out who has done similar work and learn from their
experiences.
A third common mistake is not taking advantage of existing
educational programs and services on your campus, professional
societies or elsewhere that are available to you. Most universities
have a teaching and learning center with resources and experts to
help you develop innovative courses and determine the impact of
those innovations on your students' learning. Many campuses have
centers that conduct outreach to local schools. Partnering with
them can provide you with critical support and guidance that can
increase the potential for success in your project and reduce the
time you must invest. You can include these collaborators in your
proposal as consultants and other personnel, but not as
co-Investigators.
8. I have heard that I need to do some evaluation of my education
component. What is this and how do I do it?
Evaluation can take many forms, from elaborate to quite simple, but
the goal is the same-to provide evidence of the impact of your
work. Consider this analogy. In your scientific research, you are
pursuing a question, testing a hypothesis, developing experimental
methods, and analyzing the results to try to understand a process
or phenomena. In the end, you have evidence whether your efforts
have effectively tested the hypothesis and answered the question.
The same process applies to your education efforts. You may develop
an innovative curriculum module, a software application for use in
teaching or partner with a museum on an exhibit. In any of these
activities there should be a question that piques your curiosity.
For example, you might wonder whether developing a new
simulation-learning tool will it make it easier for students to
understand a complex process? Your hypothesis might be that by
allowing students to control the simulation and look at the process
from multiple perspectives at different stages, they will better
understand the key concept. Your goal might be for all students to
understand the process, as shown by their ability to do a
particular task or solve a particular problem. The evaluation would
be designed to help you determine how well you designed the tool
and whether it helps students learn the content better. An
evaluation expert knows how to design your evaluation and how to
gather the appropriate data to determine the impacts.
For more information please contact the following Program Officers in
Ocean Sciences:
OCE Biological: Lewis Incze [1]lincze@nsf.gov; David Garrison
[2]dgarriso@nsf.gov
OCE Chemical: Simone Metz [3]smetz@nsf.gov
OCE Education: Michelle Hall [4]mihall@nsf.gov; Elizabeth Rom
[5]elrom@nsf.gov
OCE Physical: Baris Mete Uz [6]bmuz@nsf.gov
OCE Marine Geology/Geophysics: Bil Haq [7]bhaq@nsf.gov
References
1. mailto:lincze@nsf.gov
2. mailto:dgarriso@nsf.gov
3. mailto:smetz@nsf.gov
4. mailto:mihall@nsf.gov
5. mailto:elrom@nsf.gov
6. mailto:bmuz@nsf.gov
7. mailto:bhaq@nsf.gov