Mathematical Biology

The Mathematical Biology Program supports research in areas of applied and computational mathematics with relevance to the biological sciences.  Successful proposals are mathematically innovative and address challenging problems of interest to members of the biological community. 

Some projects of interest to the Mathematical Biology Program may include development of mathematical concepts and tools traditionally seen in other disciplinary programs within the Division of Mathematical Sciences, e.g., topology, probability, statistics, computational mathematics, etc.  To receive appropriate and timely review, such proposals should be submitted directly to the relevant disciplinary program that has the earliest deadline, with other program(s) selected as secondary.  Note that proposals that use established mathematical and computational tools to address problems in the biological sciences are typically not appropriate for submission to DMS.  For further details on other disciplinary programs within DMS, see the corresponding program descriptions.

In general, if a proposal is appropriate for review by more than one NSF program, it is advisable to contact the program officers handling each program to determine when the proposal should be submitted and to facilitate the review process.  Usually, it is most appropriate to submit in line with the earliest program deadline.

The Mathematical Biology Program regularly seeks joint reviews of proposals with programs in the Directorates of Biological Sciences and Engineering.  Investigators are encouraged to discuss their project with program officers in relevant areas to determine if it should be submitted to more than one program.

Research in Undergraduate Institutions (RUI)

The Mathematical Biology Program accepts RUI proposals only during the full proposal submission window. Investigators submitting an RUI proposal should read the RUI solicitation (link below), as the rules for proposal format deviate from the Grant Proposal Guide.

Conferences

Principal Investigators should carefully read the program solicitation, "Conferences and Workshops in the Mathematical Sciences," (link below) to obtain important information regarding the substance of proposals for conferences, workshops, summer/winter schools, and similar activities.

To facilitate timely notification of the availability of support:

• proposals for conferences, workshops, etc., to be held in the US must be submitted 8 months in advance of the conference date;
• proposals to support group travel to meetings outside the US must be submitted 12 months in advance of the meeting date;
• proposals for conferences, workshops, etc., whose budget request exceeds $50,000 must be submitted during the program's annual submission window.