We have several faculty submitting NSF CAREER proposals and have had some push back regarding the updated instructions on Letters of Collaboration which state:
Letters of Collaboration – Letters of support should not be submitted, as they are not a standard component of an NSF proposal. On the other hand, letters of collaboration, limited to stating the intent to collaborate and not containing
endorsements or evaluation of the proposed project, are allowed. Letters of collaboration should follow the single-sentence format:
“If the proposal submitted by Dr. [insert the full name of the Principal Investigator] entitled [insert the proposal title] is selected for funding by the NSF, it is my intent to collaborate and/or commit resources as detailed in the
Project Description.”
Departure from this format may result in the proposal being returned without review. The Project Description should document the need for and nature of collaborations, such as intellectual contributions to the project, permission to
access a site, an instrument, or a facility, offer of samples and materials for research, logistical support to the research and education program, or mentoring of U.S. students at a foreign site. Requests for letters should be made by the PI well in advance
of the proposal submission deadline, because they must be included at the time of submission. Please note that letters of recommendation for the PI are not permitted.
We are recommending that faculty strictly follow the single-sentence format and include
only that information but were wondering if anyone had interpreted the instruction differently……i.e. that as long as that specific sentence/format was included, additional information could be included as well.
Thank you in advance – it has been a long (and hot) week here in Wichita!
Karen J. Davis, MBA, CRA
Director, Pre-Award
Wichita State University
1845 Fairmount
Wichita, KS 67260-0007
316-978-6808