No. PD-26-1341 · U.S. National Science Foundation
Professional Formation of Engineers
- Award range
- Not specified
- Expected awards
- Not specified
- Application deadline
- No deadline listed
- Posted
- Apr 17, 2026
- Last verified
- Today
At a glance
AI summaryThe program supports education research to improve how engineers are trained and developed across different settings. It is for projects in engineering education and related formation of engineers, including classrooms, maker spaces, clubs, co-curricular activities, workplaces, internships, community experiences, research labs, and professional development. The text does not state award size, number of awards, or cost-share requirements. It says proposals are accepted anytime and includes no geographic restriction or set-aside.
AI-generated summary — verify against the announcement
What it funds
Official description from grants.gov
The Professional Formation of Engineers (PFE) initiative integrates engineering research and education to improve and expand the nation’s engineering workforce. PFE is defined as the formal and informal processes and value systems by which people become engineers. The goal of PFE is to create an ethical engineering workforce with a global outlook and the ability to adapt to the rapidly evolving technical environment. This will help build a future engineering workforce with the skills to compete in the global marketplace, support emerging technologies, and grow U.S. industry. PFE supports projects in the ENGINEER program relating to future and current engineers’ training and education in many contexts, including formal classrooms, informal maker spaces, clubs and co-curricular activities, and workplaces. Such training encompasses cooperative education and internships, community-based experiences, and research labs. It also involves many scales of analysis, from mentor/mentee relationships to large-scale online learning and professional development experiences. Engineers must develop and maintain these learning opportunities with clear pathways to and through the profession. Such pathways include formal and informal education, apprenticeships, credentialing, and licensure, and consider relationships with other professionals, technical workers, and community members. Finally, such opportunities include transitions across and within academia and industry. To understand and improve this system requires expertise in both engineering and the social sciences.
Who can apply
- Unrestricted
Program history
USASpending.govAssistance listing 47.041 · Engineering
Real awards this federal program has made — the whole assistance listing (47.041), not just this notice.
| Fiscal year | Awards | Median award | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY 2026 (so far) | 604 | $407,608 | $200,000 – $550,000 |
| FY 2025 | 1,537 | $389,666 | $282,237 – $549,621 |
| FY 2024 | 1,761 | — | — |
| FY 2023 | 1,862 | — | — |
| FY 2022 | 2,238 | — | — |
| FY 2021 | 2,436 | — | — |
Dollar figures are based on the 1,000 most recent awards we store, not all 10,438 — award counts are complete.
- NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY $7,674,141 · FY 2026
- VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY $4,000,000 · FY 2025
- NORTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY $3,848,048 · FY 2025
- CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY $3,000,000 · FY 2025
- NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY $3,000,000 · FY 2025
Source: USASpending.gov · refreshed Aug 19, 2026
Change history
Since we first indexed it- Aug 1, 2026 Grant announcement document replaced
- Jul 25, 2026 Grant announcement document replaced
- Jul 21, 2026 Grant announcement document replaced
- Jul 18, 2026 Grant announcement document replaced