NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING CONSORTIUM FOR NONPROLIFERATION | DE FOA 0003437

Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0003437

The Nuclear Science and Engineering Consortium for Nonproliferation (DE-FOA-0003437) is a funding opportunity from the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), specifically the Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Research and Development (DNN R&D). Its core aim is to strengthen the United States' ability to detect and counter nuclear proliferation by funding university-based basic research that directly supports and complements the more applied, mission-driven R&D conducted at DOE National Laboratories and other DOE sites. In practical terms, the program is designed to push forward new science, methods, and enabling technologies that can help identify foreign nuclear weapons development, uncover illicit diversion of special nuclear material, and detect and characterize nuclear explosions worldwide.

A central theme in the opportunity is the deliberate pairing of roles between universities and the national labs. Universities are expected to tackle the hardest foundational and exploratory research problems, proving out new concepts, techniques, and approaches in areas where basic science breakthroughs are still needed. National laboratories, in turn, are positioned to take those concepts and drive them toward mission-specific capability improvements, including integration into operational systems or eventual transfer to industry for commercialization. The FOA emphasizes transparency and strong linkages between Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) and DOE labs as the mechanism for turning early-stage ideas into usable, real-world nonproliferation tools.

The technical scope of the work spans a set of disciplines that are foundational to nuclear nonproliferation and nuclear security. The opportunity explicitly calls out nuclear physics; nuclear science and engineering; radiation detection; nuclear materials science; radiochemistry; and mass spectrometry. These fields map directly onto the kinds of measurements and analyses needed to detect signatures of nuclear activities, discriminate benign sources from threat-relevant sources, and build credible technical assessments for decision-makers. The research is framed as "basic" research at universities, but it is expected to be tightly aligned with DNN R&D mission needs and complementary to lab programs focused on applied development and fieldable capability.

Beyond the science itself, the FOA places major weight on workforce development as a strategic outcome. A key secondary benefit of the funded research is to develop a diverse, highly skilled pipeline of students and early-career professionals who can become the next generation of technical leaders across nuclear mission areas. The opportunity highlights roles such as scientists, engineers, technicians, and operational personnel, and it connects the training value of the consortium to future work in nonproliferation, arms control, incident response, intelligence, and energy. While DOE National Laboratories are described as the primary beneficiaries in terms of future hiring and research staffing, the program is also intended to strengthen capability across academia, private industry, and other federal agencies involved in national security and nuclear-related missions, including the Departments of Energy, State, Defense, Homeland Security, and Justice, as well as the Intelligence Community.

Structurally, NNSA intends to fund this effort through a cooperative agreement, which typically implies substantial programmatic engagement from the federal sponsor compared to a standard grant. The NOFO states an intent to award one five-year cooperative agreement to a consortium of accredited IHEs that will serve as the vehicle to receive and administer federal financial assistance for student and faculty research, fellowships, and scholarships supported by DNN R&D. DOE National Laboratories are expected to participate as consortium members, and the member universities are expected to have defined contributions and receive defined portions of the total funding. The consortium may include student and research fellows and is expected to operate with a long-term objective of building and sustaining expertise in scientific disciplines that are directly relevant to nuclear nonproliferation.

Eligibility is limited to institutions of higher education, including public/state-controlled and private institutions of higher education. The opportunity also makes clear that NNSA particularly encourages applications that include or support a broad range of institution types, including Hispanic-serving institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), and Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions. This emphasis aligns with the workforce-development purpose of the program and the broader goal of building a diverse national talent base for nuclear security missions.

Key administrative details provided include the activity category (Science and Technology and other Research and Development), the funding instrument (Cooperative Agreement), and the CFDA/Assistance Listing number (81.113). The opportunity was created on 2025-01-03, with an original closing date of 2025-04-04. The listed award ceiling is $25,000,000. The posting also notes "ExpectedAwards: 25," but the narrative description emphasizes awarding one five-year cooperative agreement to a consortium; taken together, that suggests the consortium award may distribute funding across multiple subawards, projects, or participating institutions and supported researchers, even if the prime award mechanism is a single overarching cooperative agreement.

Overall, this opportunity is best understood as a large, multi-institution university consortium model designed to (1) accelerate foundational research in areas that underpin nonproliferation detection and characterization, (2) tightly connect university innovation to national lab mission execution and operational transition pathways, and (3) build a sustained pipeline of trained experts who can carry these technical capabilities forward across the U.S. nuclear security enterprise.

• The NNSA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING CONSORTIUM FOR NONPROLIFERATION" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.113.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2025-01-03.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-04-04. (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 $25,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 25 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

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