The NSF Office of Polar Programs awards $3.8 million to early-career scientists


The National Science Foundation (NSF) Office of Polar Programs (OPP) has awarded $3.8 million to early-career scientists as part of the OPP Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (PRF) Program.

The PRF provides opportunities for early-career scientists, including social scientists, to accomplish one or more of the following goals:

  • Expand their work across traditional disciplinary lines
  • Develop new partnerships connecting the polar regions and/or non-polar research communities
  • Provide entry to researchers who have traditionally had limited access to polar research resources, sites, and facilities

Bowhead whale
Credit: USFSW/Brad Benter
Bowhead whales seen in the Bering Sea during the April 2006 US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Walrus Survey.

The program encourages new investigators who have not previously worked in polar regions and/or innovative techniques that have not previously been applied to polar science into polar research. Additionally, the OPP-PRF aims to support beginning investigators with experiences that will establish them in positions of leadership in the scientific community.

NSF as awarded 13 grants as part of the PRF, with seven representing the Arctic research community and six representing the Antarctic research community. To learn more about the grantees and their projects, visit the OPP Postdoctoral Research Fellowship awardees page.

This is the first year of funding for the Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program. Learn more about future opportunities on the NSF solicitation webpage.