The Science, Mathematics and Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship for Service Program Cooperative Agreement
One cooperative agreement will fund an entity to administer the SMART Scholarship-for-Service Program, including scholarships, internships, enrichment activities, mentorships, and related STEM talent-development activities for DoW-relevant fields.
⚑ ONE cooperative agreement award only · Long period of performance: up to 10 years · Notice does not restrict to universities; applicant must have management capability and resources to administer the program · SMART is a scholarship-for-service program with service commitment to DoW civilian workforce
This is a workforce-development and scholarship-administration cooperative agreement for STEM talent pipelines, not the team’s research on public risk perception, education policy evaluation, or weather/energy/security attitudes. IPPRA might intersect with workforce policy at the margins, but this is primarily program implementation for DoW personnel development rather than a plausible PI-level research fit.
JUDGED AGAINST THE ROSTER'S PUBLICATION DOSSIER · GPT-5.4-MINI · 2026-10-01
Unit fits — one characterization, each unit's own rules
| Physical Sciences & Engineering (demo) | 60 good | technical depth: central; funds training education (capped) |
| IPPRA | 40 partial | education policy/evaluation (core line, primary); signature methods: community engaged, policy analysis; social/behavioral work is minor; funds training education, not research (capped); capped at 40 (non-research funding) |
| Tom Love Innovation Hub | 15 none | deep-tech content; no commercialization signal |
Description
The Department of War (DoW) seeks innovative applications to cooperatively partner with eligible entities in the implementation and execution of the SMART Scholarship-for-Service Program. The Department intends to award ONE (1) CA award, with a maximum award of up to $1,300M over a ten-year period of performance.
The National Defense Education Program (NDEP) supports the Department's priorities to improve lethality, warfighting, and readiness by developing America’s future technical workforce poised to create advanced technologies, tools, and capabilities necessary to ensure the United States (U.S.) military remains the most powerful and advanced, capable of deterring adversaries and protecting American interests at home and abroad. NDEP is executed by OUSW(R&E) and ensures the Department’s ability to develop and access high-quality science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) talent vital to addressing key areas of national defense and supporting the warfighter.
NDEP activities provide authentic DoW-relevant learning experiences through a variety of DoW STEM initiatives in the form of scholarships, internships, enrichment activities, project/research-based competitions, and mentorships. One of the main NDEP efforts in addressing talent development and recruitment is through the SMART Program, pursuant to Section 4093 of Title 10, United States Code (U.S.C.).
The SMART Program enables the Department to transform its STEM workforce while addressing near-term workforce demands. Per 10 U.S.C. 4093, the SMART program awards highly competitive scholarships for undergraduate and graduate degrees in any of the 22 STEM academic disciplines critical to national security. Upon graduation, and subject to DoW component requirements, scholars may be considered for a one-for-one employment service commitment within the DoW Civilian workforce. SMART scholars perform many aspects of the national security mission including science and technology, research and development, manufacturing, test and evaluation, maintenance and in-service support, medical research, warfighter support, infrastructure and construction, material decommission and disposal, and intelligence gathering and analysis activities.
The SMART program ensures the Department has a steady infusion of high-quality technical talent, prepared in areas of critical importance, and ready to apply their technical knowledge, skills, and abilities to fulfill the DoW mission. Since its inception in Fiscal Year (FY) 2005, SMART has awarded over 8,000 scholarships to students pursuing undergraduate and graduate STEM degrees. To date, over 4,900 scholars have completed their academic pursuit and transitioned into DoW Workforce.
Opportunity Day will be held virtually on 29 October 2026 from 1300 to 1600 EST . To register, email osw.smart@mail.mil with subject heading W911NF-27-R-A001 Opportunity Day. More details will be provided prior to the event.
Eligibility
To be qualified potential applicants must have the following: •Management capability and adequate financial and technical resources to administer the program of activities envisioned under the SMART Program, •A satisfactory record of administering such programs or activities (if a prior recipient of an award) •A satisfactory record of integrity and business ethics • Be otherwise qualified and eligible to receive a CA under applicable laws and regulation.
Apply
View on Grants.gov → CONTACT: Megan A Deluca Grantor <megan.a.deluca.civ@army.mil>
Proposal brief SEE AN EXAMPLE →
A one-page internal memo: fit assessment, submission requirements, document scaffold, and next steps dated back from the deadline — tailored to your project idea if you add one.
Proposal shell · Department of Defense (BAA-style) conventions SEE A DOD EXAMPLE →
Funder-faithful document skeletons — Department of Defense (BAA-style)'s document set with section headings, page limits, reviewer guidance, and writing prompts; add a project idea to get [DRAFT] starter bullets. Download as .md for Word or Overleaf.