Future Investigators in NASA Earth and Space Science and Technology (FINESST) solicits proposals from accredited U.S. universities and other eligible organizations for graduate student-designed and performed research projects that contribute to SMD's science, technology, and exploration goals. The Future Investigator (FI), i.e., the student, shall have the primary initiative to define the proposed FINESST research project and must be the primary author, with input or supervision from the proposal's Principal Investigator (PI), as appropriate. The Future Investigator (FI) named on the proposal is primarily responsible for writing a FINESST proposal.
The proposal must present a well-defined research problem/activity and a justification of its scientific significance to NASA, as well as a detailed approach for its conduct. All FINESST proposals must address their relevance to at least one participating SMD division (see Section 4.1.1). The proposer should reference Section 2 regarding suitable research topic(s).
Deadline: Feb. 5, 2025
A principal investigator (PI) may submit an unlimited number of FINESST proposals, but a student shall only be named as a Future Investigator (FI) on one proposal to this competition.
Since there are many graduate degree types that are earth and space science or technology related, FINESST does not limit eligibility based on study discipline or degree type.
An FI may be pursuing a graduate degree in a department or school that does not have earth or space in the name, and be eligible to propose to FINESST as long as they meet the eligibility requirements listed below by the proposal due date: • applied to, or • been admitted to, or • be enrolled as a graduate student, i.e., a Master’s or Ph.D. degree student, or both, in a relevant discipline (see above), at an eligible, accredited U.S. university located within the United States, its territories or possessions, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.