Joint DMS/NIGMS Initiative to Support Research at the Interface of the Biological and Mathematical Sciences

The Joint DMS/NIGMS Initiative to Support Research at the Interface of the Biological and Mathematical Sciences is a collaborative program between the National Science Foundation’s Division of Mathematical Sciences and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences at the National Institutes of Health. The initiative seeks to advance research that integrates mathematics, statistics, and computational methods with biological and biomedical sciences. Both agencies recognize the importance of fostering new collaborations and supporting innovative work at the intersection of these disciplines. The program emphasizes the development of novel quantitative approaches to address key questions in biological and biomedical research and supports projects that can lead to transformative advances in both the life sciences and mathematical sciences. The solicitation provides two tracks for applicants. Track 1 supports exploratory, high-risk, high-reward projects or those from new collaborative teams. These awards can provide up to $600,000 for projects lasting three years. Track 2 is designed for larger projects led by well-established teams, with budgets up to $1,200,000 and durations of three to four years. Approximately 15 to 25 awards are anticipated each cycle, contingent on the quality of proposals and availability of funds. Funding may come from either NSF or NIGMS, at the discretion of the agencies rather than the applicants. Annual program funding is projected at $5,000,000, with up to $2,000,000 contributed by NSF and up to $3,000,000 by NIGMS. Proposals must clearly identify significant biological or biomedical questions within the NIGMS mission while also developing innovative mathematical, computational, or statistical methods. Collaborative teams of life scientists and mathematical scientists are strongly encouraged, though single investigators with proven expertise across both areas may also apply. Proposals must demonstrate how the mathematical or statistical work will drive advances in biological or biomedical understanding. Projects solely focused on a single disease or system without broader relevance to fundamental biological processes are ineligible. Additionally, proposals building directly on prior funding from this joint initiative are not accepted. Applications must be submitted electronically via Research.gov or Grants.gov and must follow the NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide. Required elements include a project description divided into intellectual merit and broader impacts sections, a project management plan, and supplementary documents as applicable. No letters of intent or preliminary proposals are required. Proposals must adhere strictly to formatting and submission requirements; deviations can result in administrative return without review. Cost sharing is not permitted, and foreign institutions are not eligible to receive funding, though international collaborators may participate with separate funding. Applications are reviewed jointly by NSF and NIH program staff and external peer reviewers, using both NSF’s intellectual merit and broader impacts criteria and NIH’s five core criteria: significance, investigators, innovation, approach, and environment. Proposals recommended for funding by NIH require a formal NIH R01 application and may undergo additional review by the National Advisory General Medical Sciences Council. Proposals are evaluated for both their contribution to mathematical or statistical innovation and their potential to impact fundamental biomedical questions. The application window for this program runs from September 1 to September 18 annually, with deadlines at 5:00 p.m. submitter’s local time. Proposals must be submitted during this period each year. This is a recurring annual program, and the next cycle is expected to reopen on September 1, 2026. Interested applicants are encouraged to contact program officers before submission to discuss project suitability. Key contacts include Zhilan J. Feng (NSF/DMS, dms-nigms@nsf.gov), Vu Dinh (NSF/DMS, vdinh@nsf.gov), John E. Kolassa (NSF/DMS, jkolassa@nsf.gov), Tapabrata Maiti (NSF/DMS, tmaiti@nsf.gov), Peggy Wang (NIH/NIGMS, peggy.wang@nih.gov), and Han Nguyen (NIH/NIGMS, han.nguyen@nih.gov).

Applicants strongly encouraged to contact program staff before submission to confirm project relevance. Proposals not conforming to requirements will be returned without review.