Request for Proposal
LANL-TAMUS Graduate Fellowship Program
Federal Fiscal Year 2025
Program Title:
LANL-TAMUS Graduate Fellowship Program (LANL-TAMUS GFP)
Application Deadline:
October 20, 2024, due by 11:59 p.m. Central Time (CT)
Notification Date:
December 2, 2024
(Pending finalized funding mechanism)
Program Start Date:
January 1, 2025
Program Overview:
The Texas A&M University System (TAMUS) and Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) have a close, long-standing and strategically important collaborative relationship that offers graduate students unique research, training, and career development opportunities. The TAMUS National Laboratory Office, in partnership with LANL, sponsors innovative research, fosters new collaborations between TAMUS faculty and national laboratory scientists, and provides unique training opportunities for TAMUS graduate students and postdoctoral fellows.
The LANL-TAMUS Graduate Fellowship Program (LANL-TAMUS GFP) was developed to provide a competitive Fellowship award that provides up to a year of support for Ph.D. candidates who wish to conduct dissertation research with LANL, including in-residency time at the laboratory. TAMUS graduate students who have advanced to doctoral candidacy are eligible to request a graduate research fellowship. The proposal must include a research plan approved by the TAMUS dissertation advisor and identify a research mentor at LANL who will provide mentorship, guidance, and oversight during the Fellowship period in collaboration with the student’s TAMUS dissertation advisor. Fellows must remain enrolled at their TAMUS campus, and in good academic standing, for the term of the Fellowship.
The Program goals and funding priorities support:
- Collaborative research between TAMUS faculty and laboratory scientists
- TAMUS graduate students in programs that promote interaction between laboratory scientists and TAMUS graduate programs, including mentoring support
- Research that takes advantage of unique laboratory facilities, especially involving students
- Research in all fields and topics aligned with the mission of LANL
Other Information: Applicants are encouraged to review the LANL Mission (https://mission.lanl.gov/) and the 2024 LANL Lab Agenda (see: https://discover.lanl.gov/publications/lab-agenda/) to understand LANL priorities.
Eligibility and Limitations:
Eligibility is based on the applicant’s status at the application deadline. Applicants must self-certify that they are eligible to receive the Fellowship and must meet all the following eligibility criteria.
Applicant Status: Must be a U.S. citizen and a graduate doctoral student at a TAMUS member institution with a minimum GPA of 3.2.
Application History: Must not have previously received a LANL-TAMUS GFP award. This is a one-time only award and is not renewable.
Number of Times an Individual May Apply: Students can apply only once per annual competition, given they have not previously received a LANL-TAMUS GFP award.
Award Information
The fellowship provides funding to cover a stipend, educational expenses, and travel allowance for each Fellow during the fellowship year. Although the fellowship is awarded to individual students within The Texas A&M University System (TAMUS), the funds are disbursed to the institution where the Fellow is enrolled. The institution is responsible for managing and distributing the stipend and other fellowship funds to the recipient.
Type of Award: Fellowship
Number of Awards: Up to 4 fellowships per year (2 sponsored by TAMUS NLO, 2 sponsored by LANL)
Funding Amount: $75,000 per fellowship
Duration: 1 year of support (non-renewable)
Funds Usage: Stipend, fringe benefits, tuition and fees, student travel and applicable research materials allowed. Capital equipment not allowed. No overhead will be assessed against this fellowship.
Application Requirement, Preparation, and Submission
All application documentation should be submitted as one PDF document to nlogrants@nlo.tamus.edu. Only the specified information will be reviewed; any additional materials will not be considered. Do not include links to web pages in your application, except when citing references in the References Cited section. Ensure that any images are included within the page limits. The review process will be based solely on the materials received by the application and reference letter deadlines. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.
Font and Format:
- Standard 8.5″ x 11”-page size
- Times New Roman 11-point for all text, except for text within images
- Times New Roman for all text, Cambria Math for equations, and Symbol for non-alphabetic characters. It is recommended to insert equations and symbols as images
- 1″ margins on all sides
- Single-line spacing
- Ensure that cited references include the name of the journal (abbreviations are acceptable)
Application Package:
All items 1 through 8 listed below should be submitted as a single PDF as part of the application.
- Cover page:
- TAMUS Applicant Name
- TAMUS University and Department
- Expected Graduation Date
- Citizenship (Status/Country)
- Phone
- Current Resume
- Fellowship Proposal (Abstract + 4 pg. max.): Must include an abstract, research plan, and mentorship/training plan
- Abstract (500 words max.): Provide a concise overview of the proposed research, including the scope, objectives, and the specialized facilities, data, instrumentation, or other unique resources that will be utilized at Los Alamos National Laboratories (LANL).
- Research Plan (3 pg. max.): Detail the specific aims, research activities, and scholarly contributions of the proposed research. Highlight the innovative aspects that will advance the field and describe the laboratory facilities, data, or resources to be used. Explain the significance of conducting this research with a LANL mentor and why this collaboration is essential to achieving your research objectives. While the research is for a one-year period, provide an overview of how it fits into your extended graduate research experience.
- Mentorship and Training Plan (1 pg. max.): Outline the mentorship structure (both at TAMUS and LANL) and the value the LANL co-mentor will bring. Include specific training and mentorship activities, resources provided, and details of the joint mentorship structure.
- Applicant Statement (1 pg. max.): Describe your background and why you are a strong candidate for this fellowship. Discuss your research and career goals and how this partnership with LANL will support them. Additionally, explain how you contribute to your technical community through leadership, outreach, mentorship, or other personal efforts.
- Nomination Letter (1 pg. max.): A letter from your doctoral advisor confirming approval of the proposed research objectives and your good academic standing. The letter should include the date you advanced or are expected to advance to candidacy and, for advanced students, the anticipated graduation date.
- Letter of Support from LANL Researcher (1 pg. max.): A letter from a LANL researcher detailing how the proposed work aligns with LANL’s mission as described in the Lab Agenda. The letter should also confirm their commitment to providing the necessary resources, mentorship, and training as described in the proposal.
- Reference and Support Letter (1 pg. max.): The letter should be from an additional technical expert beyond the student’s TAMUS advisor and LANL co-mentor. It should address the applicant’s merit by detailing the nature of your relationship with the applicant. It should include comments on the applicant’s potential to contribute to LANL missions, along with insights into their academic potential, prior research experiences, and the proposed research. Reference should not be a relative/family member.
- Unofficial Transcripts
Application Review Information
Applications are independently reviewed by an interdisciplinary panel of subject matter experts from TAMUS and LANL selected to avoid any conflicts of interest with the applicants.
Review Principles and Criteria
Qualifications and Academic Preparation:
The applicant’s academic record should demonstrate their potential to conduct successful research and make significant progress toward their degree with minimal start-up time. Evidence of strong and appropriate preparation for the research through coursework, prior research, or training is essential.
Technical Merit of the Research Plan:
The proposed research should represent a significant advancement in scholarship and be suitable for the applicant’s current stage in their degree program. It must also be feasible within the proposed one-year timeframe. The research’s relevance to LANL’s mission should be clearly demonstrated and endorsed by the LANL mentor. The added value of collaboration with LANL, such as the relevance of LANL expertise and the use of LANL facilities or resources, will also be considered.
Strength of Mentorship, Training, and Potential for Long-term Partnership:
The proposal and letters should clearly illustrate the quality and engagement of both the LANL mentor and the TAMUS dissertation advisor’s support and endorsement of the research and mentorship/training plan. The mentorship and training plan should ensure that the student receives adequate time, supervision, and access to all necessary resources. The proposal and letters must demonstrate collaborative and integrated oversight by both the TAMUS faculty advisor and LANL mentor, as well as a research plan that requires a collaborative approach with potential for future partnership.
Reporting Requirements
Acknowledgment of Support and Disclaimer:
All publications, presentations, and creative works based on activities conducted during the Fellowship must acknowledge LANL-TAMUS Support and provide a disclaimer by including the following statement in the Acknowledgements or other appropriate section:
“This material is based upon work supported by the Los Alamos National Laboratory-The Texas A&M University System Graduate Fellowship Program. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Los Alamos National Laboratory or The Texas A&M University System.”
Activities Report:
Fellows are required to submit an Activities Report at the midpoint and end of the fellowship to nlogrants@nlo.tamus.edu. The report should include the following and be submitted as a single PDF.
- Cover Page with:
- Project title
- Fellow name
- Contact information
- Project period
- LANL collaborator information
- Summary of the project
- Major goals and objectives
- Research questions
- Research design, methods, analytical and data analysis techniques
- Expected applicability of the research, especially in relation to LANL’s mission
- Participants and other collaborating organizations
- Changes in approach from original design and reason for change, if applicable
- Outcomes
- Activities/accomplishments
- Results and findings
- Limitations
- Artifacts
- List of products (e.g., publications, conference papers, technologies, websites, databases), including locations of these products on the Internet or in other archives or databases
- Data sets generated (broad descriptions will suffice)
- Dissemination activities
Program Contact:
Name: National Laboratory Office Grants Coordinator
Email: nlogrants@nlo.tamus.edu