IUSE/Professional Formation of Engineers: Revolutionizing Engineering Departments | 19 614

Opportunity Information: Apply for 19 614

The National Science Foundation (NSF) funding opportunity "IUSE/Professional Formation of Engineers: Revolutionizing Engineering Departments" (RED), Funding Opportunity Number 19-614, is a discretionary grant program meant to drive deep, department-level transformation in undergraduate engineering and computer science education. It builds on what NSF and related education programs have already achieved over the past several years: substantial improvements in the first-year engineering experience (more authentic engineering content, active learning, design exposure, and early professional skills) and stronger senior-year capstone design experiences that ask students to integrate technical knowledge with professional judgment and communication. RED starts from the observation that the middle of the curriculum, especially the sophomore and junior years, often fails to carry forward and deepen the professional and integrative competencies students need for capstone design and for real engineering practice. In other words, students may get an engaging introduction in year one and a culminating capstone in year four, but not a coherent developmental pathway in between.

RED is positioned within the NSF Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE) framework and the Professional Formation of Engineers (PFE) initiative, and it is supported by multiple NSF directorates, including Engineering (ENG), Education and Human Resources (EHR), and Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE). The program emphasizes that meaningful, lasting improvement in student learning and professional identity formation requires more than isolated course redesigns. Instead, it calls for organizational and cultural change inside departments, involving faculty, students, staff, and often industry partners in rethinking what an engineering program is, how it is delivered, and how students are supported in becoming engineers. Prior RED-funded efforts have included bold moves such as rethinking what content is considered foundational (the "canon"), restructuring how courses fit together, building new departmental structures, and creating stronger educational collaborations with industry. The unifying theme is transformation at the departmental system level rather than incremental tweaks.

The opportunity is organized into two tracks that reflect different but complementary pathways for change. The first track, RED Innovation, supports teams that want to develop and test new, potentially high-risk/high-reward approaches and change strategies capable of transforming undergraduate engineering education. These projects are about creating genuinely new models, structures, and cultures within departments. The second track, RED Adaptation and Implementation (RED-A&I), is aimed at spreading what works by helping departments adapt and implement evidence-based organizational change strategies that have already shown promise in other contexts. Rather than copying a model verbatim, RED-A&I focuses on thoughtful translation to local circumstances, recognizing that departmental culture, institutional constraints, student populations, and regional workforce needs can differ widely. Both tracks are expected to address the cultural, organizational, structural, and pedagogical shifts needed to create departments where students are actively engaged, develop both technical and professional capabilities, and form strong identities as professional engineers.

A key requirement embedded in the program description is that projects should center on the department's disciplinary courses and overall program, not just introductory experiences or standalone capstone enhancements. The intent is to create a coherent developmental arc across the entire undergraduate experience, with particular attention to strengthening the sophomore and junior years so that students repeatedly practice and deepen the skills and mindsets expected in professional practice. That includes not only technical competence but also the professional capacities that capstone design demands, such as decision-making, reflective judgment, teamwork, and communication, developed progressively rather than left to the end.

From an administrative standpoint, the award instrument is a grant, with an award ceiling of $2,000,000 and an anticipated six awards under this solicitation. The CFDA numbers listed for the opportunity are 47.041 and 47.076. The solicitation was created on September 25, 2019, with an original closing date of February 7, 2020. Eligibility is listed broadly as "Others" with further clarification referenced in the solicitation's eligibility section. Overall, RED is best understood as a program for departments ready to commit to sustained, evidence-informed, and community-engaged transformation that changes how engineering education is structured and experienced across the full curriculum, with the end goal of producing graduates who are better prepared to think, act, and identify as professional engineers.

• The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "IUSE/Professional Formation of Engineers: Revolutionizing Engineering Departments" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.041, 47.076.
• This funding opportunity was created on Sep 25, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 07, 2020. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $2,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 6 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

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