Understanding Broader Impacts for NSF Proposals

The National Science Foundation (NSF) requires that every proposal include a Broader Impacts section. In fact, it is one of two standard merit review criteria established by the organization.

Think about that. Every proposal submitted to the NSF must address the broader impact of the work proposed. Every proposal must integrate the proposed research with activities that are designed to increase participation, enhance education, increase scientific literacy and public engagement, improve individuals in society, create a strong workforce, inform public policy, increase our national competitiveness…..the list goes on. The NSF, on average, receives 50,000 proposals per year.

You can have your proposal stand out with excellent intellectual merit and you can seal the deal when you have outstanding broader impacts. Thus, broader impacts are critical in developing your NSF proposal. However, connecting the work you do to this criterion can be challenging.

In 2018, an NSF award created the Center for Advancing Research Impact in Society (ARIS). The center builds on existing work completed by the National Alliance for Broader Impact (NABI), which no longer exists. Housed at the University of Missouri, ARIS seeks to “share practices and resources around BI, knowledge mobiliz(s)ation, societal impacts, valorization, and research uptake”. 

They accomplish this work through workshops, trainings, webinars, and disseminating materials.

You can learn more about ARIS here: https://www.researchinsociety.org/.

Download their wonderfully detailed “Broader Impacts Guiding Principles and Questions for NSF Proposals” here: https://www.researchinsociety.org/media/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/Pro/ARIS/Docs/nabi_guiding_principles.pdf

Access their Broader Impacts Wizard: https://aris.marine.rutgers.edu/wizard/intro.php

Other resources (PDF, video, etc.) can be found here: https://researchinsociety.org/resources/

There are many resources available to you as you begin to examine how broader impacts can be included in your proposal. Be sure to take advantage of all that is out there as you begin to design your proposal to NSF.