Elevate your research with this four-part series for college faculty.

The 2025 CAREER Proposal Development Series marked the inaugural year of a dedicated, multi-faceted support initiative at NC State. This comprehensive series is designed specifically to assist university faculty in crafting highly competitive proposals for the National Science Foundation Early Career Development (CAREER) Program. This prestigious award for early-career faculty supports those who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars.

In line with the College of Engineering’s (COE) commitment to sustained success for its faculty, the Engineering Office of Faculty Development and Success (Engr OFDS) will continue this annual collaboration with key campus partners, the Proposal Development Unit (PDU) and the Campus Writing and Speaking Program (CWSP), ensuring ongoing, high-quality proposal and writing support for faculty pursuing this important and career-defining award. 

NSF CAREER Proposal Workshop

March (TBD)

Any university faculty interested in developing competitive CAREER proposals are encouraged to attend an annual workshop hosted by the PDU in the Office of Research and Innovation, with support from CALS, COS, and COE. This workshop covers key aspects of proposal development. Contact Matt Hooker, Assistant Director for Engineering, Physical Sciences and Other at mwhooker@ncsu.edu for more information.

Writing Retreats

These writing retreats are facilitated by Kirsti Cole, PhD, Co-director of the CWSP and are open to all university faculty. They are specifically designed to assist in developing and strengthening successful CAREER proposal writing. Retreats will be held from 9 am-12 pm in March and April at the Hunt Library Faculty Research Commons, 5th floor, Centennial Campus. For updated dates or more information, contact engineeringfds@ncsu.edu or check our LinkedIn.

Writing Retreat 1: Designing Your Proposal | March 

Focus Areas

• Expand and refine the Project Description outline developed in the PDU workshop
• Develop a detailed draft of the Education & Broader Impacts components
• Identify and recruit internal departmental reviewers.

Retreat Activities

1. Example Proposal Analysis: Faculty review past award-winning CAREER proposals to identify key structural elements. Faculty will use a structured worksheet to guide their analysis and extract key takeaways.
2. Mind-mapping exercise: Refining research aims to focus on broader impacts.
3. Education Plan strategy session: Participants draft and refine their broader impact plan with peer discussion.
4. Peer review session: Faculty exchange outlines and provide structured feedback.

Writing Retreat 2: Structuring and Strengthening Your Draft | April 

Focus Areas

• Expand and refine the introduction, research objectives, and significance of the Project Description
• Identify and address gaps in the draft
• Develop and refine an initial budget

Retreat Activities

1. Annotated NSF CAREER Abstracts: Participants analyze sample abstracts to understand reviewer expectations.
2. Live Writing Sprints: Faculty refine their research objectives and significance sections, followed by peer feedback.
3. Budget Justification Workshop: Faculty work on developing a clear and compelling budget narrative with templates and examples. Faculty will also review a sample budget justification from a successful proposal to illustrate best practices.
4. Common Pitfalls Discussion: Group discussion of common CAREER proposal mistakes and strategies to avoid them.

Writing Retreat 3: Finalizing & Polishing Your Proposal | April

Focus Areas

• Complete the first full draft of the Project Description
• Collect and refine departmental letters
• Finalize biosketch, Current & Pending, and other required documents

Retreat Activities

1. Proposal Checklist & Reviewer Lens: Participants use a reviewer’s checklist to assess their drafts. Faculty will apply a reviewer’s perspective to ensure alignment with NSF evaluation criteria.
2. Departmental Letters Writing Session: Faculty draft, revise, and seek feedback on departmental letters.
3. Supporting Documents Review: Faculty workshop biosketches, current & pending Support, and postdoctoral mentoring plans in peer groups.
4. Final Editing Sprints: Faculty refine language and clarity of their proposals before external review. A rubric will be provided to help faculty evaluate their own work and ensure alignment with NSF expectations.

Just-In-Time Individual CAREER Proposal Review | June 

The Engineering Office of Faculty Development and Success (OFDS) is continuing its annual mentorship program to strengthen grant proposals from COE faculty. (College of Science (COS) faculty has been invited since 2024). Starting in 2026, faculty can register to be paired witha former awardee (sages) and have their proposals reviewed asynchronously. The reviewers will provide personalized feedback to help candidates finalize their submission packages for the July deadline, regardless of the proposal’s current status (draft or near-final). Contact engineeringfds@ncsu.edu for more information.

PDU Proposal Review (for COE faculty members only) | June

This final part of the series is exclusively offered to COE faculty. The Dean will sponsor individualized reviews by the PDU for up to five COE proposals. Sages will consult with Associate Dean Ducoste to select the proposals for this excellent review opportunity.