Open · 22-603 · CFDA 47.050;47.074;47.075;47.076;47.083 · Discretionary

Mid-Career Advancement

Federal grant opportunity posted by U.S. National Science Foundation, cataloged on Grants.gov.

Varies
Award range
Open
Status
127d
Days left
45
Expected awards

The verdict

Mid-Career Advancement is an open discretionary opportunity from U.S. National Science Foundation, offering Varies by applicant across 45 expected awards. Applications close in 127 days. PlainGrants indexes 1,338 other opportunities from U.S. National Science Foundation.

Varies
award range
Open
127 days left
45
expected awards
47.050;47.074;47.075;47.076;47.083
CFDA program

Open desk with published close date

Mid-Career Advancement remains open until March 1, 2027 (127 days out). Award range Varies by applicant without a cost-share requirement.

According to Grants.gov (extract vintage 2026-08-10), this record reflects the officially published listing. See methodology.

Deadline tracker

127 days left to apply

Posted Jun 11 → closes Mar 1, 2027

Posted Jun 11 Closes Mar 1

Est. Total Funding

$18,000,000

Expected Awards

45

Instrument

Grant

Description

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 theirresearch 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 currentresearchprogram could substantively benefit from the protected time, mentored partnership(s), and resources provided through this program, such thatthere is a substantial enhancement to the PI's research and career trajectory, enabling scientific and academic advancementnot 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 (seehttps://new.nsf.gov/funding/opportunities/mca-mid-career-advancement/announcements/111199).PIs from EPSCoR jurisdictions are especially encouraged to apply.

Catch-all / unrestricted eligibility mark · 22-603

Grants.gov marks Mid-Career Advancement with a catch-all / unrestricted eligibility code (Others (see official listing text)). Read the official announcement text for the real applicant filter — the code alone is not a door list. The extract does not mark applicant cost-sharing as required. Instrument: Grant. Funding-activity code maps to Science and Technology / R&D (ST). This eligibility-code string dominates the U.S. National Science Foundation book (722 peers, 54% of 1,339).

Code 25
Others (see official listing text)

Codes are Grants.gov eligibility category values from the extract vintage 2026-08-10. Confirm the full eligibility statement on the official listing or the Grants.gov eligibility reference.

Official Listing on Grants.gov

View full details, application forms, and submission instructions.

View on Grants.gov

Agency Contact

NSF grants.gov support grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov

What to do next

Mid-Career Advancement is open with Varies by applicant awards and 127 days left on the clock.

  • Submit through Grants.gov (22-603) - verify SAM.gov registration and the current NOFO before drafting. Official listing
  • Look up CFDA 47.050;47.074;47.075;47.076;47.083 across all indexed listings before you commit to this opportunity alone. Eligibility finder
  • Compare award ranges across federal categories before you pick a single CFDA. All categories

Opportunity deadlines and eligibility change on Grants.gov; PlainGrants mirrors the extract and is not the submission system.

Disclaimer: This information is sourced from Grants.gov and SAM.gov and is for informational purposes only. Opportunity details, deadlines, and eligibility requirements change frequently. Always verify current information directly on Grants.gov before applying. PlainGrants is not affiliated with any federal agency.

Data sourced from the SAM.gov Assistance Listings and Grants.gov. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainGrants