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Simpler Grants

No. 23-566 · U.S. National Science Foundation

Open

Archaeology Program Senior Research Awards

grants.gov listing Full announcement (NOFO)
Dealbreakers No cost share required Audit: not stated Reimbursement-only: not stated
Award range
Not specified
Expected awards
~30
Application deadline
Dec 1, 2026
Posted
Apr 16, 2025
Last verified
8 days ago

At a glance

AI summary

This program funds anthropologically relevant archaeological research, including field research and analysis of archaeological materials, as well as related archaeometry, CAREER, RUI/ROA, REU supplements, HRRBAA, RAPID, and EAGER proposals. Eligible applicants are the NSF categories listed in the NSF proposal guide; unaffiliated individuals may not apply, and senior research PIs and co-PIs must have a Ph.D. or equivalent education and experience. Typical senior research awards are about $200,000 to $350,000 total budget with no award ceiling, and the program expects 20 to 30 awards totaling about $5 million to $6 million. REU supplements may request up to $6,000 per student for no more than two students per year, and HRRBAA pilot awards are capped at $35,000 total costs for one year; no cost-share is stated. There are no geographic or time-period priorities, but NSF rarely funds foreign organizations directly and only supports the U.S. portion of collaborative projects.

AI-generated summary — verify against the announcement

What it funds

  • Science and Technology and other Research and Development
  • Research & Discovery
  • Researchers & Scholars
  • Arts, Culture, Humanities & Historic Preservation
Official description from grants.gov

The Archaeology Program supports anthropologically relevant archaeological research to increase understanding of past behaviors. This means that the value of the proposed research can be justified within an anthropological context. It is the responsibility of the investigator to explain convincingly why the focus of their research is significant and has the potential to contribute to anthropological knowledge. The program sets no priorities by either geographic region or time period. It also has no priorities in regard to theoretical orientation or question. While the program, in order to encourage innovative research, neither limits nor defines specific categories of research, most proposals either request funds for field research or the analysis of archaeological material through multiple approaches.

Who can apply

  • Others
Geographic restriction None found in the announcement — likely nationwide

Program history

USASpending.gov

Assistance listing 47.075 · Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences

Real awards this federal program has made — the whole assistance listing (47.075), not just this notice.

Fiscal year Awards Median award Middle half
FY 2026 (so far) 89 $574,558 $210,470 – $772,299
FY 2025 559 $208,544 $38,032 – $400,000
FY 2024 838 $193,570 $86,318 – $399,791
FY 2023 869 — —
FY 2022 895 — —
FY 2021 958 — —

Dollar figures are based on the 1,000 most recent awards we store, not all 4,208 — award counts are complete.

Who wins it Higher education (3,813), Business (195), Individuals (130) of 4,208 awards — categories can overlap.
Top states CA (104) · NY (88) · MA (74) · TX (73) · IL (32)
Largest recent awards
  1. REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN $10,999,998 · FY 2024
  2. NATIONAL OPINION RESEARCH CENTER $7,998,747 · FY 2025
  3. UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY RESEARCH FOUNDATION, THE $5,599,998 · FY 2024
  4. REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA $5,200,000 · FY 2024
  5. NATIONAL BUREAU OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH INC $3,065,935 · FY 2024

Source: USASpending.gov · refreshed Aug 5, 2026

Change history

Since we first indexed it
  1. Aug 1, 2026 Grant announcement document replaced
  2. Jul 25, 2026 Grant announcement document replaced
  3. Jul 18, 2026 Status: closed → open
  4. Jul 18, 2026 Deadline moved: Jul 1, 2026 → Dec 1, 2026
  5. Jul 11, 2026 Status: open → closed