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Applying to the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program
by Amruta J. Deshpande

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) should be no stranger to any undergrad in his or her final year. It is among the most important fellowships available for prospective graduate students. It provides $10,500 yearly towards education costs, $30,000 yearly in stipend for 3 years in addition to a one time $1000 travel grant. Unparalleled in financial award and prestige it takes a lot of work on your part to apply. Below is a compilation of advice received from former recipients, non-recipients, as well as panelists and the NSF itself. Also find a brief overview of criteria.

If you're a US Citizen, National or Resident Alien and have completed no more than 12 months of full-time graduate study, you are eligible to apply to the fellowship*. You are required to submit your personal profile, education and work experience, planned graduate program, personal statement, previous research experience, proposed plan of research, and a minimum of 3 references. This mouthful has translated to 40 hours of average minimum work per successful application in the past. There are 5 essays in the criteria mentioned above, all of which require careful consideration. Deadline for your application for Physics is November 13th, and all other fields' deadlines are earlier in November (references are due by 5 pm December 1st).

To start off, read every word of the fellowship information available on the NSF website GRFP Program Page. If anything is unclear, especially eligibility and other requirements, contact NSF to make certain and follow their directions to the T.

References will take the most time (not for you, but for the professors who will write them). Choose your professors wisely and well ahead of time (~1.5 months in advance); they are very important to your application. For general advice on asking for letters, read the Undergraduate Advising Newsletter sent out via email by Dr. Hershfield (if you email upnews, we will send it to you as well). In addition to suggested provisions in this article, provide your professors with your research proposal and evidence specific to what you want the ref. letter to focus on. Letters should confirm details you mention throughout your application. Sample areas letters can focus include your proposal, research ability, academics, leadership and outreach activities, etc. Your research proposal and ability are most important, so emphasize them with corroboration.

Your application will be read twice by professionals in varying fields and thrice if you are in the top 4 percent. Five hundred professionals meet for two days and go through 24,000 applications to choose recipients. Below are general pointers on what they'll look for in your essays.

General Pointers:

This column is only a general preview of all you'll consider in applying to the NSF fellowship. Everything mentioned above is important, yet it is not the entire set. You'll find more advice at the following website (and others when you Google "NSF GRFP"!): This one is particularly helpful.

*more specific details here

Additional References:
Application Guide | NSF Application