NSF Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER)
CAREER is NSF's most prestigious award for early-career faculty, funding a five-year plan that integrates research and education.
1 open NSF CAREER call right now →
What it funds
A coherent research program and an education plan that grows out of it. The integration matters: reviewers look for an education component that is genuinely tied to the research, not an add-on.
Who can apply
Untenured assistant professors (or equivalent) in tenure-track or tenure-track-equivalent positions at U.S. institutions that award degrees in an NSF-supported field. You can submit no more than three CAREER proposals in total and cannot have received a CAREER award before.
Award size
A minimum of $400,000 over five years, including indirect costs, in every directorate.
Duration
5 years.
How applications are reviewed
Merit review on Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts. A letter from the department head confirming eligibility and support is required.
Deadlines
One deadline a year, in late July. The solicitation is updated every few years, so check the current one.
Our summary, checked against NSF guidance in October 2026. Rules, budgets and dates change: always confirm in the current announcement before you apply.
Open NSF CAREER calls
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Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER)
U.S. National Science FoundationUp to $400,000Deadline: July 28, 2027 ·
Recently funded NSF CAREER awards
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CAREER: Improving Software Test Quality and Developer Skills through Developer-in-the-Loop Test Optimization
National Science Foundation — Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering · $500,000
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CAREER: Hurricane Surge, Wave, and Debris-induced Forces in Non-stationary Urban Shorelines
National Science Foundation — Directorate for Engineering · $586,625
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CAREER: Tracing hydrologic and biogeochemical consequences of multiple disturbances in mountain watersheds
National Science Foundation — Directorate for Geosciences · $888,026
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CAREER: Leveraging Protein Engineering for Geotechnical Applications: Protein-Enhanced Biocementation for Soil Stabilization
National Science Foundation — Directorate for Engineering · $582,543
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CAREER: Towards Transformorphic Computing
National Science Foundation — Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering · $684,587
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CAREER: A Runtime for Efficient and Observable Compound AI Systems
National Science Foundation — Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering · $777,336
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