Best practices for writing a successful NSF MRI grant proposal

Insights for winning HPC cluster funding

Published April 2016

The Major Research Instrumentation Program (MRI), administered by the National Science Foundation’s Office of Integrative Activities, is a game-changer for universities and researchers who want to secure funding for the high performance computing solutions that drive research and discovery.

The demand for HPC continues to grow. This growing demand will make MRI grants more competitive and difficult to obtain. In fiscal year 2014, the NSF received 811 MRI proposals and awarded 205 grants. That means last year, an MRI grant proposal had a 1 in 4 chance of success. One eighth of the proposals requested budgets of greater than $1 million.

This white paper is intended to give you specific instructions and best practices for applying for an NSF MRI grant for the purpose of purchasing high performance computing solutions.