U.S. National Science Foundation
Mid-Career Advancement (MCA)
Key facts
- Deadline
- Due Mar 1, 2027 · 145 days left
- Award size
- Not specified — see notice
- Total available
- $18M · about 45 awards
- Cost share / match ?
- Not required · Work out your budget and match
- Who can apply
- Other (see eligibility)
- Where
- Anywhere in the U.S., including Tennessee
Before you apply: federal grants require an active SAM.gov registration (Unique Entity ID) and a Grants.gov account. Registration is free but can take weeks, so start now, not when the deadline is close. Grant-ready checklist
How this fits you
- Available in Tennessee (nationwide program)
- No cost share required
- Past Tennessee awards on file: 169
Tell us who you are to see whether you're eligible.
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Official notice: https://simpler.grants.gov/opportunity/400b428e-a4b2-46bc-82a2-dc9bdfc8fe82 · Printed from grantme.click/grants/2baa60c2-4e8f-41da-a573-872b19b181f0
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About this grant
The MCA program offers an opportunity for scientists and engineers at the mid-career stage (see restrictions under Additional Eligibility Information) to substantively enhance and advance their research program and career trajectory. Mid-career scientists are at a critical career transition stage where they need to advance their research programs to ensure long-term productivity and creativity but are often constrained by service, teaching, or other activities that limit the amount of time devoted to research.
The MCA program provides protected time, resources, and the means to gain new skills through synergistic and mutually beneficial partnerships, typically at an institution other than the candidate's home institution. Partners from outside the Principal Investigator's (PI) own subdiscipline or discipline are encouraged, but not required, to enhance interdisciplinary networking and convergence across science and engineering fields. Research projects that envision new insights on existing problems or identify new problems made accessible with cutting-edge methodology or expertise from other fields are encouraged.
A key component of a successful MCA will be the demonstration that the PI's current research program could substantively benefit from the protected time, mentored partnership(s), and resources provided through this program, such that there is a substantial enhancement to the PI's research and career trajectory, enabling scientific and academic advancement not likely without this support.
The MCA is the only cross-directorate NSF program specifically aimed at providing protected time and resources to established scientists and engineers targeted at the mid-career stage. Participating programs in the Directorates for Biological Sciences (BIO), Geosciences (GEO), Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SBE), and Education and Human Resources (EHR) will accept MCA proposals. To help identify the disciplinary program in which the MCA should be reviewed, PIs are urged to investigate the research areas supported by the different directorates and participating programs.
PIs are strongly encouraged to discuss the suitability of their MCA proposal with a Program Officer from the appropriate directorate (see https://new.nsf.gov/funding/opportunities/mca-mid-career-advancement/announcements/111199). PIs from EPSCoR jurisdictions are especially...
Eligibility (from the notice)
*Who May Serve as PI:
PIs must be a) at the Associate Professor rank (or equivalent; see Additional Eligibility Information) and b) at that rank for at least 3 years by the proposal submission date. PIs must have current or proposed research that falls within the purview of a participating disciplinary program.
Pilot PUI Track in Directorates for Biological Sciences and Geosciences only, extends PI eligibility: Researchers at the Full Professor rank (or equivalent; see Additional Eligibility Information) at PUI institutions only and with proposed research that falls within the purview of a participating program within the Directorate for Biological Sciences or the Directorate for Geosciences may also apply.
The collaborative partner(s) may not be listed as co-principal investigator(s) on the cover page. Instead the partner(s) should be designated as senior/key personnel or consultants.
Should we apply? (2-minute check) Ask a partner for a letter
Your schedule, working back from the deadline
- Oct7
Check that your SAM.gov registration is active (or start it now)
Grants.gov: allow up to 10 business days for SAM registration, weeks or months if information isn't verified. It must be renewed every year. Grants.gov - Feb8
Ask partners for letters of support or commitment
Suggested: partners need about three weeks to write and sign letters. - Feb22
Finish a complete draft for a final review
Suggested: leave about a week for someone else to read the draft. - Feb27
Submit
Grants.gov: submit at least 24–48 hours before the deadline: uploads fail, systems slow down, errors need fixing. Grants.gov blog - Mar1
Deadline
From the funder.
Save this grant to put these dates in your tracker and private calendar.
Who in Tennessee has won this program
95 awards to Tennessee recipients in 7 counties since 2016. Largest shown:
| Recipient | Where | Amount | FY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville, Davidson County | $13.3M | 2019 |
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville, Davidson County | $9.3M | 2024 |
| Fisk University | Nashville, Davidson County | $5M | 2021 |
| Tennessee Technological University | Cookeville, Putnam County | $4.7M | 2021 |
| University Of Tennessee | Chattanooga, Hamilton County | $3.3M | 2024 |
| University Of Memphis | Memphis, Shelby County | $3.3M | 2022 |
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville, Davidson County | $3M | 2024 |
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville, Davidson County | $3M | 2021 |
| Tennessee State University | Nashville, Davidson County | $3M | 2026 |
| Tennessee Technological University | Cookeville, Putnam County | $3M | 2024 |
| Tennessee Technological University | Cookeville, Putnam County | $3M | 2022 |
| Middle Tennessee State University | Murfreesboro, Rutherford County | $3M | 2024 |
Source: USAspending.gov. Past awards show who this program funds; they don't guarantee future awards.
Tennessee groups that got this money through a state agency or another grantee
This federal money also reaches local groups as subawards. 74 subawards on file. Largest shown:
| Recipient | Where | Through | Amount | FY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville, Davidson County | Georgia Tech Research Corp | $1.2M | 2023 |
| Meharry Medical College | Nashville, Davidson County | Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University | $767K | 2025 |
| University Of Tennessee | Knoxville, Knox County | Arizona State University | $638K | 2026 |
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville, Davidson County | University of Missouri System | $586K | 2023 |
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville, Davidson County | Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University | $534K | 2024 |
| The University Of Tennessee | Pulaski, Giles County | University of North Alabama | $433K | 2026 |
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville, Davidson County | University of Florida | $396K | 2026 |
| University Of Tennessee | Memphis, Shelby County | Colorado State University | $386K | 2023 |
| University Of Tennessee | Knoxville, Knox County | Regents of the University of Michigan | $348K | 2024 |
| Tennessee State University | Nashville, Davidson County | University of Illinois | $298K | 2025 |
| Tennessee State University | Nashville, Davidson County | University of Illinois | $298K | 2024 |
| St Jude Children'S Research Hospital Inc | Memphis, Shelby County | University of Missouri System | $291K | 2023 |
Source: USAspending.gov subaward reports (prime recipients report subawards of $30,000 or more).
About the program (47.050)
Geosciences — (GEO)
How applications are judged
Not Applicable.
Matching requirements
This program has no statutory formula.
Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
Examples of funded projects
Not Applicable.
About the program (47.074)
Biological Sciences — (BIO)
How applications are judged
Not Applicable.
Matching requirements
This program has no statutory formula.
Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
Examples of funded projects
Not Applicable.
About the program (47.075)
Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences — (SBE)
How applications are judged
Not Applicable.
Matching requirements
This program has no statutory formula.
Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
Examples of funded projects
Not Applicable.
About the program (47.076)
STEM Education (formerly Education and Human Resources) — (EDU)
How applications are judged
Not Applicable.
Matching requirements
This program has no statutory formula.
Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
Examples of funded projects
Not Applicable.