Workshops and peer review sessions for applicants to the 2025 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program
The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program is a prestigious fellowship opportunity for early-stage STEM graduate students, including PhD students in the biosciences. The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Fellowships provide 3 years of funding for graduate education in a STEM field, and PhD students must apply no later than fall of the second year in their PhD program.
In August and September, the BRET ASPIRE Program is hosting three informational workshops about the NSF GRFP, and facilitating a peer review of draft application essays for biosciences PhD students who plan to apply this fall. Attendance at the informational workshops (either this year or in 2023) is required for applicants to participate in the peer review process.
P.S. If you miss the workshops, you can still take advantage of the compendium of NSF GRFP resources we’ve compiled on the ASPIRE Funding Resources website, to help support you in your application. This includes examples of successful NSF GRFP applications donated by previous VU fellows that are available to view in the ASPIRE Grant Repository.
Workshop #1 – Overview of the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)
Tuesday, August 13, 3:30-4:30p
Light Hall 208
Advance registration requested here
In this session, NSF Graduate Research Fellow Leah Oswalt will give an overview of the NSF GRFP and strategies for developing a competitive application, followed by a Q&A panel with recent GRFP award recipients from life science-related disciplines. Topics will include eligibility criteria, the application process, how to decide when to apply and which “field of study” to choose, writing compelling essays, and resources for becoming a competitive applicant and writing your application. This event is part of the ASPIRE UP career and professional development series. All interested graduate students are welcome. Advance registration is requested.
Workshop #2 – Writing Compelling Essays for the NSF GRFP
Friday, August 23, 3:30-4:30p
Light Hall 415
Advance registration requested here
This workshop will dive deeper into the requirements for the NSF GRFP Personal Statement and Research Plan essays. Participants need to bring an updated copy of their CV or resume to reflect on their activities and accomplishments to highlight in their essays. This session will also include a formal presentation with writing tips and deeper discussion of the Broader Impact and Intellectual Merit criteria on which NSF proposals are evaluated. This event is part of the ASPIRE UP career and professional development series. All interested graduate students are welcome. Advance registration is requested.
Workshop #3 – Q&A with NSF GRFP Fellows and Initial Review of Essay Outlines or Draft Essays
Wednesday, September 11, 3:30-4:30p
Light Hall 411
Advance registration requested here
Applicants for the 2025 NSF GRFP will break into small groups for Q&A sessions with faculty who have reviewed NSF GRFP applications and VU graduate students from the life sciences who are previous Winners/Honorable Mentions. Come with questions pertinent to your own application. You may also bring outlines or drafts of your application essays to this session to receive in-person feedback from fellows. This event is part of the ASPIRE UP career and professional development series. Advance registration is requested.
Peer Review of 2025 NSF GRFP Applications
Conducted mid-September to early October
The deadline to request peer review has passed
Vanderbilt applicants for the 2025 NSF GRFP program will be paired with a previous NSF GRFP Winner or Honorable Mention to receive written feedback on their draft personal statement and/or research plan essay. To be eligible to participate in peer review, applicants must be applying to one of the life sciences-related fields of study, or be in a PhD program affiliated with the Vanderbilt School of Medicine.
To participate in the peer review process facilitated by ASPIRE, we ask that 2025 applicants:
- attend the ASPIRE-sponsored NSF GRFP workshop(s). Attendance in 2023 is acceptable. (Students in Biological Sciences are exempt from this requirement if they have taken the BioSci grant-writing course.)
- be enrolled in a BRET-affiliated PhD program, including the IGP or QCB (but not MSTP; see list of BRET-affiliated programs here)
- submit advanced drafts of their essay(s).
Peer reviewers will be assigned on a rolling basis beginning in September. The last day to fill out the form to request peer review is September 21 at 12pm. The last day to send your essays to your assigned peer reviewer is September 26 at 5pm. Peer reviewers will return comments to you no later than October 7 so that you have time to incorporate their feedback before the 2025 NSF GRFP application deadlines.