National Science Foundation
Arlington, VA
Agency facts
- Acronym
-
- NSF
- Agency code
- 4900
- Organization
-
-
NSF
- OISE
Show all 57
-
NSF
- Contract obligations
- $727,970,379 In FY2025
- Website
- nsf.gov
Agency codes and contract spending come from SAM.gov/FPDS.
Contract obligations by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Obligated |
|---|---|
| FY2027 To date | $1,081,908 |
| FY2026 | $601,994,903 |
| FY2025 | $727,970,379 |
| FY2024 | $802,907,036 |
| FY2023 | $645,371,887 |
Top contractors by obligations
| Rank | Contractor | Obligated, FY2026–FY2027 | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leidos, Inc. | $243,277,419 | |
| 2 | Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. | $53,934,806 | |
| 3 | Battelle Memorial Institute | $41,504,192 | |
| 4 | Directviz Solutions, LLC | $21,205,967 | |
| 5 | By Light Professional It Services LLC | $16,436,544 | |
| 6 | Synectics For Management Decisions, Inc. | $14,361,648 | |
| 7 | Thornton Tomasetti, Inc. | $13,741,502 | |
| 8 | ICF Incorporated, L.L.C. | $11,763,849 | |
| 9 | Accenture Federal Services LLC | $7,876,464 | |
| 10 | Criterion Systems, L.L.C. | $7,828,199 |
See the full FY2025 ranking of National Science Foundation contractors, by parent company.
Top contract vehicles by obligations
| Rank | Vehicle | Obligated, FY2026–FY2027 | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) | $97,216,131 | |
| 2 | Alliant II | $70,371,350 | |
| 3 | Solutions for Enterprise Wide Procurement V (SEWP V) | $24,993,119 | |
| 4 | Chief Information Officer - Solutions and Partners 3, Small Business (CIO-SP3 SB) | $15,475,498 | |
| 5 | Evaluation, Assessment, and Program Management Services | $8,181,298 | |
| 6 | 8(a) STARS III (STARS III) | $5,787,341 | |
| 7 | NCSES Technical and Analytical Support Services | $2,709,066 | |
| 8 | Veterans Technology Services 2 (VETS 2) | $2,403,070 | |
| 9 | One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services - Small Business (OASIS SB) | $2,059,657 | |
| 10 | Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) | $1,206,299 |
10 of 19 vehicles listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Contract opportunities
Show 40 more
Latest 50 of 813 listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Contracting staff
| Rank | Person | SAM.gov records, last 2 years |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jennifer Shymansky | 120 |
| 2 | Kristina Price | 112 |
| 3 | Jonathan Schmeelk | 82 |
| 4 | Charles Loss | 69 |
| 5 | Angela Johnson | 64 |
| 6 | Benjamin Patterson | 61 |
| 7 | Michelle Parrott | 60 |
| 8 | Bethany Stutler | 58 |
| 9 | Alexandra Roig Vitali | 54 |
| 10 | Kenovy Rodriguez | 46 |
| 11 | Christine Beinhacker | 45 |
| 12 | Soundjata Carty | 36 |
| 13 | Kevin Giardini | 19 |
| 14 | Katrina Barry | 13 |
| 15 | Devin Faggs | 13 |
| 16 | Brett Nidiffer | 8 |
| 17 | Alyssa Todaro | 3 |
| 18 | Joseph C. Dorsey | 3 |
| 19 | Leresa Garrett | 1 |
| 20 | Kelly Ryan | 1 |
About this agency
The National Science Foundation, an independent civilian agency that administers federal research funding across science, engineering, and education, operates a highly asymmetric portfolio dominated by grant-making, with contract activity serving a smaller support function. NSF has obligated $161.84 billion in federal grant dollars across 378,137 awards since 1990, while managing a separate contract portfolio of $12.83 billion across 9,363 awards since 1978. The agency funds research through multiple directorates covering biological sciences, mathematical and physical sciences, engineering, geosciences, computer and information sciences, education and human resources, and technology innovation and partnerships.
NSF's grant program dwarfs its contract activity. Over the last five years, NSF awarded 12,176 grants in 2023, 11,553 in 2024, 9,009 in 2025, 5,816 in 2026, and 179 year-to-date in 2027. The grant portfolio is highly fragmented by recipient: the top five universities—Regents of the University of Michigan (802 awards, $509.2 million federal dollars), University of Pennsylvania State University (666 awards, $305.7 million), University of Washington (656 awards, $402.6 million), Purdue University (649 awards, $288.4 million), and University of Wisconsin System (630 awards, $310.8 million)—account for only 7 percent of recent awards by count. By federal dollars obligated, the top five are University of Texas at Austin ($722.1 million), University of Michigan ($509.2 million), University of Illinois ($405.3 million), University of Washington ($402.6 million), and University of Colorado ($363.3 million), collectively representing 1 percent of combined federal dollars. Grant funding is predominantly structured as Project Grants (98 percent of awards, 370,729 awards) with a smaller share of Cooperative Agreements (2 percent, 7,408 awards).
NSF's contract portfolio is substantially smaller and more concentrated. Over the last five years, NSF awarded 368 contracts in 2022, 387 in 2023, 377 in 2024, 175 in 2025, and 182 year-to-date in 2026, reflecting a notable decline in recent activity. The contract portfolio is highly fragmented by contractor: Federal Management Partners LLC leads by award count with 64 awards valued at $37.4 million, followed by Heritage Interiors LLC (42 awards, $14.2 million) and Thundercat Technology LLC (39 awards, $12.5 million); these top three account for only 13 percent of recent awards. By potential value, Research Triangle Institute leads with $69.3 million across 17 awards, but the top five contractors represent only 1 percent of combined contract potential value, indicating that NSF transacts heavily through Schedule task orders, BPA calls, or awards with unreported dollar figures. Contract awards are predominantly open competition: 78 percent carry no set-aside, while small-business awards constitute 10 percent of the portfolio (897 awards), 8(a) sole-source awards 9 percent (862 awards), and service-disabled veteran-owned small business, HUBZone, and woman-owned small business set-asides together under 2 percent.
Recent contract opportunities reflect NSF's focus on emerging technology platforms and innovation ecosystem support. NSF ELEGANT (NSF-OTASO-FY26-ELEGANT, due December 18, 2026) seeks an Ecosystem Coordinator and Expert Performer Teams to advance low-dimensional microelectronics for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing through Other Transaction Agreements. NSF X-Labs Initiative solicitations (NSF-Topic3-FY26-XLabsPhysicalAI, due January 7, 2027) solicit proposals for platform technologies in AI for physical systems, including robotics and cyber-physical systems, under Other Transaction authority. A Request for Information on NSF X-Labs topics (NSF-XLABS-RFI-SEP2026, due October 30, 2026) seeks public input on future platform technology opportunities. NSF also solicited commercial business intelligence data feed services (49100426Q0043, closed August 6, 2026) to support TIP analytics initiatives, and posted a pre-solicitation on Starlink Low Earth Orbit satellite communications equipment and services (49100426K0008).
Recent grant opportunities span foundational research, infrastructure, and workforce development across NSF's disciplinary scope. The Artificial Intelligence, Formal Methods, and Mathematical Reasoning program (24-554) supports research at the interface of AI and mathematical reasoning, eligible to institutions of higher education and qualifying non-profit research organizations. Quantum Leap Challenge Institutes (24-599, Cooperative Agreement) funds large-scale interdisciplinary quantum information science research through multi-institutional partnerships. Materials Innovation Platforms (25-521, Cooperative Agreement) accelerates materials research through mid-scale user facilities, open to U.S. institutions of higher education. Science and Technology Centers: Integrative Partnerships (22-521 and 24-594, Cooperative Agreements) fund exceptionally innovative, complex research projects requiring large-scale, long-term investment, limited to domestic institutions with doctoral research programs. Strengthening American Infrastructure (25-534) solicits human-centered, use-inspired research on infrastructure, open to institutions of higher education, for-profit firms, non-profits, and federally recognized tribal nations. Core research opportunities in biological sciences (26-517), chemistry (26-519), mathematical sciences (26-520), physics (26-523), engineering systems (26-518), and geosciences (26-516) support foundational research across NSF's scientific portfolio. Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation—Wave-Based Computing (26-524, due February 11, 2027) funds transformative computing research with awards up to $2 million over four years. Expeditions in Computing (26-525, due July 27, 2027) supports ambitious, multidisciplinary research agendas with awards up to $15 million over seven years, limited to institutions of higher education. Workforce and education programs including Data Science Corps (24-560), IUSE Innovation in Two-Year College STEM (23-584, due December 9, 2026), Hispanic-Serving Institutions ELPSE (24-551), and Professional Formation of Engineers RIEF (20-558, due November 10, 2026) target STEM education and workforce development at specified institution types.
Description
The National Science Foundation supports research and education across all fields of science and technology, primarily through grants.
Quick answers
What is National Science Foundation?
National Science Foundation (NSF) is a federal agency.
What offices are part of National Science Foundation?
National Science Foundation has 57 sub-agencies and offices with their own GovTribe pages, including Budget Division, Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering and Directorate for Education and Human Resources.
How much does National Science Foundation spend on contracts?
Contracts funded by National Science Foundation and its offices obligated $727,970,379 in fiscal year 2025 and $2,779,326,114 in fiscal years 2023 through 2027.
Who are National Science Foundation's largest contractors?
The contractors National Science Foundation and its offices obligated the most to in fiscal years 2026 and 2027 are Leidos, Inc. ($243,277,419), Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. ($53,934,806) and Battelle Memorial Institute ($41,504,192).
Which contract vehicles does National Science Foundation use most?
The contract vehicles National Science Foundation and its offices obligated the most through in fiscal years 2026 and 2027 are Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) ($97,216,131), Alliant II ($70,371,350) and Solutions for Enterprise Wide Procurement V (SEWP V) ($24,993,119). Orders through any contract vehicle obligated $230,026,125 in those years, 38% of its contract obligations.
What is National Science Foundation's latest contract opportunity?
The latest contract opportunity from National Science Foundation is Save the Date: Notice of Industry Day for Arctic Research Support and Logistics Services, special notice, posted November 9, 2026.
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