| National Science Foundation and Political Science: Changes and Opportunities |
By Brian D. Humes, Program Officer, Political Science Program, National Science Foundation
Over the past two years, there have been several changes in the Political Science Program at the National Science Foundation (NSF). First, Frank Scioli moved from program officer in the Political Science Program (a position he held for 25 years) to Senior Science Advisor in the Division of Social and Economic Sciences. While he is missed, Scioli is still available for consultation to the current program officers.
In another change, I replaced Scioli as program officer in the Political Science Program. Previously, I served for approximately one and one-half years as a temporary program officer (rotator). In addition, I serve on faculty at Michigan State University and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Phil Paolino, University of North Texas, is the program’s rotator in his second year.
Finally, the annual budget for the program has increased dramatically over the past two years from approximately $1.2 million to $7.2 million. This increase, along with increased co-funding contributions from other programs, such as Social Psychology, Sociology, Geography, and Regional Sciences, has resulted in five to six additional regular awards each year. The number of Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grants also has increased.
In addition to increased funding opportunities within the Political Science Program, there are several other funding opportunities either within the foundation or the Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences that may be of interest to political scientists: Human and Social Dynamics (HSD), Cyber-enabled Discovery and Innovation (CDI), and the Science of Science and Innovation Policy (SciSIP).
The HSD initiative is a foundation-wide activity that is beginning its fifth and probably final year. HSD aims to increase our collective ability to understand the complexities of change, the dynamics of human and social behavior at all levels, and the cognitive and social structures that create, define, and result from change as well as to manage profound or rapid change and to make decisions in the face of changing risk and uncertainty. Each proposal submitted to this initiative requires at least three principal investigators from at least two different disciplinary backgrounds. In addition, the proposed work must be interdisciplinary in nature. While the 2008 solicitation is not yet available, it should be similar to the 2007 version, which can be found on the NSF website at http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=11678&org=SBE . Proposals are due in February 2008.
CDI is a new foundation-wide five-year initiative to create revolutionary science and engineering research outcomes made possible by innovations and advances in computational thinking. Computational thinking is defined to encompass computational concepts, methods, models, algorithms, and tools. There are three themes for submissions to CDI. These are
- From Data to Knowledge — enhancing human cognition and generating new knowledge from a wealth of heterogeneous digital data;
- Understanding Complexity in Natural, Built, and Social Systems — deriving fundamental insights of systems comprising multiple interacting elements; and
- Building Virtual Organizations — enhancing discovery and innovation by bringing people and resources together across institutional, geographical and cultural boundaries.
Further information on this competition can be found on the NSF website at http://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/cdi/ . This competition requires letters of intent, which are due by November 30, 2007.
A final special funding opportunity, SciSIP, is contained within the Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences. The goals of SciSIP are to understand the contexts, structures, and processes of science and engineering research, to evaluate reliably the tangible and intangible returns from investments in research and development, and to predict the likely returns of future research and development investments. Possible topics within this competition could include the impact of government regulation on scientific and engineering research. The 2008 solicitation for this competition is not yet available. The 2007 solicitation can be found on the NSF website at http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=501084&org=SBE Please note that the specific topics addressed in this solicitation will change over time. If your current research does not fit the upcoming call for proposals, it may fit a future one.
Finally, there is one other opportunity within the Political Science Program. Phil Paolino will be returning to the University of North Texas at the beginning of August 2008, and we are currently looking for his replacement. He holds a rotating position, which is a two- to three-year temporary position. Approximately one-half the program officers at the NSF hold such positions. Traditionally, the Political Science program has had two program officers, one permanent and one temporary. The position entails helping to manage the program. Activities include selecting reviewers and panelists, deciding which proposals to recommend for funding after taking into consideration the recommendations of reviewers and panelists, answering questions about the proposal process, conducting outreach, and carrying out your own research. Program officers are allotted ample time for their own research and are given a travel budget that can be used to aid in this process. Candidates should hold a Ph.D. in Political Science or a related field, have at least six years of post-graduate research experience, and have a solid research record. There are no restrictions on the field of study, theoretical approach, or methodological approach. Past experience with the NSF as a panelist or award recipient is helpful but not required. The position will be posted in the APSA’s job newsletter as well as on the NSF website at http://www.nsf.gov/publications/vacancy.jsp?org=SBE&nsf_org=SBE
If you have any questions about Political Science program, funding opportunities, or the job position, please feel free to contact either Phil Paolino (ppaolino@nsf.gov) or me (bhumes@nsf.gov). We will be happy to answer any of your questions or address any of your concerns.
Note: Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the National Science Foundation.