The OVPR anticipates the next NSF Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers (MRSEC) deadline being July 2019. MRSECs are comprised of two or three Interdisciplinary Research Groups (IRGs) per center and led by a single faculty member acting as director of the center. While the IRGs do not have to be thematically connected, the director must be able to articulate a vision for the center.

CMU will be limited to 1 submission of a pre-proposal. In the interest of identifying candidate IRGs and center-level leadership, as well as providing adequate time for a team to craft a strong proposal, the OVPR will be leading an internal proposal and review process. Please note, we are asking for prospective IRGs to submit pre-proposals.

Successful IRGs should address a major materials topic or area synergistically; involve researchers with complementary backgrounds, skills, knowledge; span synthesis, theory, characterization, evaluation, and applications; and be more than a collection of individuals. Pre-proposals should address how the proposed IRG meets these critera.

Completion of this form is required to be considered for the internal review process. Late submissions will not be accepted. If you have any questions, please contact Jessica Higby at jvig@andrew.cmu.edu. 

Investigator Information

Enter information for the primary point of contact/investigator for the pre-proposal application and administration.

NSF MRSEC Pre-Proposal Information

Please attach your application materials as a single PDF according to the following format:

• Title page (1 page) - Title, list of investigators and affiliations and an abstract (200 words or less)
• Project narrative (2 pages, no smaller than 11pt Times font)
• Optional page for additional figures/tables (i.e. 1 page, with no additional narrative)
• References (please try to limit to 1 page)
• No budget page is required.