Young Faculty Award (YFA) 2027
DARPA funds early-career researchers in academia and equivalent nonprofit research institutions to pursue innovative high-impact research relevant to Department of War national security needs.
⚑ Targeted to junior/early-career faculty or equivalent positions at nonprofit research institutions. · Award instrument is a cooperative agreement. · Primarily for high-risk, high-impact research; not a training or service program. · Funding amount/ceiling listed as $0 in the notice metadata; verify the full solicitation for actual award details.
This is a broad DARPA early-career basic research call, but the stated emphasis is on transformative technical capabilities in defense, computing, AI, and materials. IPPRA’s fit is mostly limited to social-science work on defense attitudes or risk perception, which is not the program’s core target here.
JUDGED AGAINST THE ROSTER'S PUBLICATION DOSSIER · GPT-5.4-MINI · 2026-10-21
Unit fits — one characterization, each unit's own rules
| Physical Sciences & Engineering (demo) | 90 strong | technical depth: central; funds basic research |
| IPPRA | 58 good | portfolio topic: national_security_defense (primary); social/behavioral work is minor; funds basic research |
| Tom Love Innovation Hub | 30 weak | prototyping/demonstration stage; deep-tech content |
Description
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Young Faculty Award (YFA) program aims to identify and engage rising stars in junior research positions in academia and equivalent positions at non-profit research institutions, particularly those without prior DARPA funding, to expose them to Department of War (DoW) needs and DARPA’s mission to create and prevent technological surprise for national security. The YFA program provides high-impact funding to researchers early in their careers to develop innovative new research that enables transformative DoW capabilities. Ultimately, the YFA program developes the next generation of researchers focused on national security issues.
Eligibility
All responsible sources capable of satisfying the Government's needs may submit a proposal that shall be considered by DARPA. See the Eligibility Information section of the BAA for more information.
Apply
View on Grants.gov → CONTACT: DARPA - Defense Sciences Office <YFA2027@darpa.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.