Opportunities

Important NSF EDU Core Research (ECR:Core) program update issued by NSF on August 26, 2025For the Oct 2, 2025 deadline, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Directorate for STEM Education (EDU) Core Research (ECR:Core) competition (NSF 21-588) will only accept proposals for fundamental STEM education research focused on undergraduate education, graduate education, higher education and the STEM workforce. These proposals should be submitted to either the Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE) or the Division of Graduate Education (DGE) as appropriate. Investigators who would typically submit to the ECR:Core solicitation for fundamental STEM education research projects focused on early childhood or K-12 education levels or in informal settings are encouraged to apply to the NSF STEM K-12 solicitation (NSF 25-545).

The ECR Hub has provided the following resource to explain the differences between the existing ECR:Core solicitation and the new STEM K-12 solicitation: https://ecrhub.org/resource/comparing-nsf-stem-k-12-versus-ecrcore   

The EDU Core Research (ECR) program offers this ECR:Core solicitation and invites proposals for fundamental research (curiosity-driven basic research and use-inspired basic research) that contributes to the general, explanatory knowledge that underlies STEM education in one or more of the three broadly conceived Research Areas: Research on STEM Learning and Learning Environments, Research on Broadening Participation in STEM fields, and Research on STEM Workforce Development. Within this framework, the ECR program supports a wide range of fundamental STEM education research activities, aimed at learners of all groups and ages in formal and informal settings.

Fundamental research generates knowledge and understanding with the potential for broad relevance. The potential implications of ECR fundamental research for improving STEM education practice may be indirect and long-term rather than direct and immediate. Moreover, whether they include basic or use-inspired basic research, all successful ECR:Core proposals focus on the advancement or refinement of foundational knowledge for STEM education.

The amount of funding and duration requested in proposals submitted to the ECR:Core solicitation should align with the maturity of the proposed work and the size and scope of the empirical effort. The solicitation has three levels of funding with a range of budget sizes, and proposals may request a duration of 3 to 5 years for any level: (1) Level I proposals may request up to $500,000; (2) Level II proposals may request up to $1,500,000; (3) Level III proposals may request up to $2,500,000. All proposals should justify the level of funding and duration in the project description.

Deadline: October 2 2025 by 5pm submitting organization's local time