Deadlines
For applying students:
January 25, 2023, 5:00PM PT - Application materials submitted by student to California Sea Grant via eSeaGrant
For California Sea Grant:
February 8, 2023, 2:00PM PT - Letters of Intent submitted by California Sea Grant via email to National Sea Grant Office Fellowship Program Managers
February 24, 2023, 8:59PM PT - Selected applications submitted by California Sea Grant via Grants.gov to National Sea Grant Office Fellowship Program Managers
Program Overview
Federal Agency Name(s): Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce
Funding Opportunity Title: 2023 NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship in Population and Ecosystem Dynamics and Marine Resource Economics
Funding Opportunity Number: NOAA-OAR-SG-2023-2007709
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 11.417, Sea Grant Support
Funding Availability: Anticipated start date is August 1, 2023, with projects to be completed by July 31, 2026. Application packages may propose up to $58,333 in federal funding plus at least 20% matching ($11,667) funding per year. These awards will be jointly funded by NMFS and Sea Grant. These fellowships can provide support for up to three years.
Dates: Applications are due to California Sea Grant by 5:00 pm PT, January 25, 2023.
The National Sea Grant College Program (Sea Grant) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) support Ph.D. graduate fellowships in two specific areas (1) population and ecosystem dynamics (PED) and (2) marine resource economics (MRE). The intent of this opportunity is to award a limited number of fellowships each year to students who are interested in careers related to population and ecosystem dynamics and marine resource economics with applications to living marine resources to achieve climate-ready fisheries using an ecosystem-based fishery management approach.
Student projects will focus on at least one of the following: 1) the population dynamics of living marine resources including protected species and species for which we seek sustainable fisheries; 2) stock assessment methodologies; 3) marine ecosystem modeling; 4) integrated ecosystem assessments; 5) ecosystem-based management of marine ecosystems; 6) economics of the conservation and management of living marine resources; and 7) quantitative survey analytical methodologies. These projects need to have a strong quantitative and applied resource management emphasis.
The fellowship can provide support for up to three years for highly qualified graduate students working towards a Ph.D. in quantitative programs including ecology, ecosystem ecology, population dynamics or related fields of study such as wildlife biology, fishery biology, marine biology, quantitative ecology, applied mathematics, applied statistics, simulation modeling, marine resource economics, natural resource economics, or environmental economics.
Selected fellows will work on thesis problems of public interest and relevance to NMFS and work with NMFS mentors at participating NMFS Science Centers or offices. The program priorities for this opportunity support NOAA’s overarching priorities, specifically by providing the science needed to further integrate changing ocean conditions into an ecosystem approach to fisheries management and to model and forecast those effects on fish stocks, their habitat and seafood productivity. If selected, each fellow will be required to work closely with an expert (mentor) from NMFS who may provide data for a fellow's thesis, serve on the fellow's committee, and/or host an annual summer internship at the participating NMFS facility. Mentors will be from participating NMFS Science Centers or offices.
For full information on this opportunity, please consult the resources developed by National Sea Grant:
NMFS-Sea Grant Joint Fellowship Program
2023 NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship Student Guide
Student Applicant Guide to Sea Grant Fellowships
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
Eligibility
The following entities are eligible to submit to this opportunity:
Prospective fellows enrolled towards a degree in a graduate program in a state or territory served by a Sea Grant program must submit applications to that program. Applications that are not approved and submitted by the student’s state Sea Grant program will not be considered for review.
Those eligible to submit to a Sea Grant Program:
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Prospective fellows must be United States citizens.
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At the time of application, prospective fellows must be admitted to a Ph.D. degree program at a U.S. accredited university in the U.S. in population dynamics, ecosystem dynamics, resource or environmental economics, or a related field such as wildlife biology, fishery biology, natural resource management, marine biology, quantitative ecology, applied mathematics, applied statistics, or simulation modeling at an institution of higher education in the United States or its territories.
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Alternatively, a prospective fellow may submit a signed letter from the institution indicating provisional acceptance to a Ph.D. degree program conditional on obtaining financial support such as this fellowship.
Interested students in states or territories without a Sea Grant program must submit their applications to the Sea Grant program to which they were referred to by the NMFS Fellowship Program Manager listed in section VII.
Sea Grant champions diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) by recruiting, retaining and preparing a diverse workforce, and proactively engaging and serving the diverse populations of coastal communities. Sea Grant is committed to building inclusive research, extension, communication and education programs that serve people with unique backgrounds, circumstances, needs, perspectives and ways of thinking. We encourage applicants of all ages, races, ethnicities, national origins, gender identities, sexual orientations, disabilities, cultures, religions, marital statuses, education levels, job classifications, veteran status types, income, and socioeconomic status types to apply for this opportunity.
Population and Ecosystem Dynamics
Sea Grant anticipates funding at least four new Ph.D. fellowships in 2023 to students who are interested in careers related to marine ecosystem and population dynamics, with a focus on modeling and managing systems of living marine resources. The emphasis will be on the development and implementation of quantitative methods for evaluating marine ecosystems for assessing the status of fish, invertebrate, and other targeted species stocks and for assessing the status of marine mammals, seabirds, and other protected species.
Marine Resource Economics
Sea Grant anticipates funding at least one new Ph.D. fellowship in 2023 to students who are interested in careers related to the development and implementation of quantitative methods for assessing the economics of the conservation and management of living marine resources.
Application Components
Please make sure to include your last name in the file names for each section of the proposal (e.g., Smith_budget.pdf or Smith_cv.pdf). Note: While there are two separate opportunities (Population and Ecosystem Dynamics and Marine Resource Economics) there is only one application, so applicants must indicate which concentration they are applying for on their cover sheet.
I. Project Narrative
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Signed Institutional Cover Page (not to exceed one page) - The title page should include the name and contact information of the prospective fellow, the title of the proposal, a brief project abstract, and should specify your project’s focus area (either PED or MRE). Summarize the financial information for the project, permit information, and include approval signatures from the fellow, faculty advisor, and institutional representative. Depending on the student’s research/concentration, the proposal title should read either "Last name_PED” or “Last name_MRE” as a prefix.
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Project proposal (not to exceed five pages) - The project proposal is intended to describe the proposed dissertation or the general intended area of study. The proposal itself must not exceed five pages single spaced. If a proposal is longer than five pages, only the first five will be shared with reviewers. References and figures should be included as an appendix and do not count towards the five page limit. It must be written by the prospective fellow and include the following:
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the number of years for which fellowship support is being sought;
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a brief summary of the work to be completed;
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a rationale for the proposed activity;
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scientific or technical objectives and/or hypotheses to be tested;
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appropriate details on methodology, and relevance of results.
Candidate projects will focus on at least one of the following: 1) the population dynamics of living marine resources; 2) stock assessment and survey methodologies; 3) marine ecosystem modeling; 4) integrated ecosystem assessments; 5) ecosystem-based management of marine ecosystems; and 6) economics of the conservation and management of living marine resources. Interdisciplinary topics are encouraged.
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Education and career goal statement (not to exceed two pages) - If a career goal statement is longer than two pages, only the first two pages will be shared with reviewers. The statement should discuss the student's interest in:
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the economics of the conservation and management of living marine resources, and/or
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quantitative marine ecology, with a focus on one or more of the following: development and implementation of methods for assessing marine ecosystems and/or stock status of living marine resources; ecosystem-based management; population dynamics of managed aquatic animals; quantitative survey methodologies; commitment to apply scientific expertise to serve society equitably (consider academics, volunteer activities, professional activities or personal experiences)
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Curriculum vitae (CV) - The student, the faculty advisor, and the NMFS mentor must each submit a CV which is not to exceed 2 pages. The CVs should not include personal, contact information or web links to external resources (e.g., LinkedIn, articles, blogs, etc.). If a CV is longer than two pages, only the first two pages will be shared with reviewers.
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Summary of academic training in quantitative methods - Provide a one-page single spaced maximum summary describing your academic training in quantitative methods; a listing of your top five classes in quantitative methods already taken; and classes you intend to take over the spring 2023 semester. Class listings should include course name (though course number e.g., MA 551 can be excluded) and a short description of content covered in course.
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Transcripts - Clear copies of all undergraduate and graduate student transcripts. These copies may be either official or unofficial transcripts. For students who have been accepted but not yet enrolled in a current Ph.D. program, the program’s acceptance letter is adequate to fill the requirement of Ph.D. transcripts.
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A minimum of two signed letters of recommendation - Each letter of recommendation must not exceed two pages single spaced. If a letter is longer than two pages, only the first two will be shared with reviewers. Each letter should describe and highlight any relevant historical or future conditions that have impacted the challenge identified. The letters must be from the following individuals:
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The student's faculty advisor. The letters should discuss the following attributes of the student: quantitative skills, self-motivation, response to setbacks, skills and involvement in teamwork, academic and performance and/or potential. (If multiple advisors are contributing, each one should provide a separate letter.)
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The student’s NMFS mentor. In addition to noting the NMFS staff member’s commitment to serve as a mentor, letters from NMFS mentors should briefly address the relevance of the research to NMFS, as well as a statement of broader impacts of the proposal. If multiple mentors are contributing, each one should provide a separate letter.
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Abbreviated Environmental Compliance Questionnaire (OMB Control No. 0648-0538)
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The student must ensure that the questionnaire is completed in full and includes detailed information regarding project location, methodology, and permits. Copies of all permits required for project activities should be included with application materials. If a permit is pending or planned, please provide this information.
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A separate questionnaire must be completed for each relevant action/project in the proposal.
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The questionnaire can be found here.
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Guidance on how to complete the questionnaire, including how to describe work that will not involve any environmental impact, can be found here. Examples of questionnaires can be found here.
If detailed information is not provided, NOAA via the federal program officer, may request additional information or place a specific award condition on the fellowship award prohibiting specific activities, if permits or other environmental compliance documentation is not currently available.
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Data Management Plan (not to exceed two pages)
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All applications must include a Data Management Plan that is compliant with NOAA’s Public Access to Research Results Plan. The Data Management Plan should not exceed 2 pages. The Data Management Plan should include descriptions of the types of metadata and data expected to be created during the course of the project, plans for disseminating the metadata and data to the broader community, and plans for long-term archiving of the metadata and data.
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If proposed activities will not generate any environmental data, such as the scoping activities and research competition, please include the following statement at the end of your proposal: “Because this project will not generate environmental data, a Data Management Plan is not required. “For more information, see Section VI.B.(9). For reference: https://nosc.noaa.gov/EDMC/documents/Data_Sharing_Directive_v3. 0.pdf
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II. Budget Narrative
The budget narrative must include the following budget components (eSeaGrant Budget Worksheets, Sea Grant 90-4 forms, and budget justification). Sea Grant 90-4 forms and budget justifications must be included for each individual project within an application. Additional budget narrative guidance can be found at: https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/gmd_budget_narrative_guidance_-_05-24- 2017_final.pdf
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eSeaGrant Budget Worksheets - Use the “Budgets” tab in eSeagrant to fill in and complete each yearly budget. Guidance on filling out the form is located in the Sea Grant General Application Guidance Document. Please ensure that a budget worksheet is completed for each yearly budget of the project (i.e., Year 1, Year 2, Year 3).
- Indirect costs are not allowable for either the Fellowship or for any costs associated with the Fellowship including waived indirect costs as match (15 CFR 917.11(e), "Guidelines for Sea Grant Fellowships").
- Non-federal matching funds equal to at least 20 percent (20%) of the federal funding request must be provided unless a waiver justified by statute is granted, such as the waiver for insular areas granted by the Department of Commerce pursuant to 48 U.S.C. 1469a. The cumulative match at the end of each year of the grant must not fall below 20 percent of the cumulative federal request up to that point. For example, if $58,333 in federal funds is requested (the maximum allowable annual request), matching funds must be at least $11,667. In other words, applications may not ‘under’ match in year one and ‘over’ match in year two. In-kind contributions from an advisor or NMFS mentor directly supporting this application may count towards this matching requirement.
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Budget Justification - For each year of the project (or each individual project within an application), a budget justification is required. Each budget justification should explain the budget items in sufficient detail to enable review of the appropriateness of the funding requested. Justifications should be added when filling out the “Budgets” tab in eSeaGrant. The budget should include funds for travel to the annual Fellows Symposium and may include funds for stipend, tuition, fees, equipment, supplies, discretionary travel, and other reasonable and appropriate project costs (see Section II, "Award Information"). Sub- contracts, if any, should have a separate budget page.
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Sea Grant 90-4 Form - (OMB Control No. 0648-0362). In addition to completing the Sea Grant Budget Worksheets, please complete the Excel 90-4 Budget Form and upload to eSeaGrant. The Sea Grant 90-4 Form can be found here.
Overall application forms as referenced in the Sea Grant General Application guide, such as the SF-424, SF424A, etc., will be completed by California Sea Grant.
Submission Information
If you are enrolled towards a degree in a graduate or professional program in California, then your application must come through California Sea Grant.
If you are enrolled towards a degree in a graduate or professional program in a state or territory not served by a Sea Grant program you must first contact the agency contact listed below to obtain a written referral to an eligible Sea Grant program. This referral must be included in the application package.
Application Deadline: January 25, 2023, 5PM PT
The electronic version of your application, with required signatures, must be submitted as PDFs via eSeaGrant (California Sea Grant's online submission portal):
If you have never used this website, you will need to register for an account. You can change the randomly-generated password once you log in successfully into the website.
Evaluation Criteria
For the NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship in Population and Ecosystem Dynamics and Marine Resource Economics the evaluation criteria are summarized below. For more details on the breakdown of evaluation criteria, please see the 2023 NMFS-SG Application Guide.
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Quality of project and applicability to program priorities. For the NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship, the project summary should provide evidence of important and innovative research and relate that research to relevant agency priorities (30 points).
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Relevant experience related to diversity of education; extra-curricular activities; honors and awards; and interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills (20 Points). For the NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship the curriculum vitae, career goal statement, and summary of academic training in quantitative methods should demonstrate the experiences of the student as they relate to marine or aquatic related fields.
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Academic record as it relates to quantitative coursework and related fields. For the NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship the academic record is evaluated using student transcripts (undergraduate and graduate), the summary of academic training in quantitative methods, and the curriculum vitae (CV) (20 Points).
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Recommendations and/or endorsements of the student. For the NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship in Population and Ecosystem Dynamics and Marine Resource Economics, the expertise of the major professor and proposed NMFS mentor will be taken into account (20 points total).
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Overall application cohesion (10 points total). For the NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship program, consider all aspects of the application materials (CV, summary of academic training in quantitative methods, project summary, education and career goal statement from the student, letters of recommendation).
Reporting Requirements
The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act (31 U.S.C. 6101 Note) includes a requirement for awardees of applicable federal grants to report information about first-tier subawards and executive compensation under federal assistance awards. All awardees of applicable grants and cooperative agreements are required to report to the Federal subaward Reporting System (FSRS) available at https://www.fsrs.gov/ on all sub-awards over $30,000. Refer to 2 CFR Part 170.
Financial reports are submitted semi-annually via Grants Online. Performance progress reports should follow program guidelines, must use the Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) format, and are submitted annually via Grants Online. Fellows will also be expected to present a review of the progress on their research during the annual NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship Research Symposium.
Deadlines:
For applying students:
January 25, 2023, 5:00PM PT - Application materials submitted by student to California Sea Grant via eSeaGrant
For California Sea Grant:
February 8, 2023, 2:00PM PT - Letters of Intent submitted by California Sea Grant via email to National Sea Grant Office Fellowship Program Managers
February 24, 2023, 8:59PM PT - Selected applications submitted by California Sea Grant via Grants.gov to National Sea Grant Office Fellowship Program Managers
Contacts
Proposal Format & eSeaGrant Questions:
Lian Guo, Research Coordinator
sgproposal@ucsd.edu
Budget Questions:
Carol Bailey-Sumber, Grants Analyst
sgbudget@ucsd.edu
Agency Contacts:
NMFS-SG Sea Grant Fellowship Program Manager
National Sea Grant College Program
Tel: (240) 507-3712
E-mail: oar.sg.fellows@noaa.gov