Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity Education Innovation and Scholarship for Service (CyberAI SFS)

The U.S. National Science Foundation, through its Directorate for STEM Education, administers the CyberAICorps Scholarship for Service program, an extension of the long-standing CyberCorps Scholarship for Service program. The program responds to the national shortage of professionals with expertise spanning artificial intelligence and cybersecurity. CyberAI is defined broadly to include both the use of artificial intelligence in cybersecurity operations and the security and resilience of artificial intelligence systems themselves. The program has two goals: increasing the number of CyberAI experts and supporting their placement and retention in government missions, and enhancing national capacity for educating and training artificial intelligence and cybersecurity professionals, educators, and researchers. The solicitation provides two funding tracks, the Scholarship Track and the Innovation Track. The Scholarship Track supports institutions that provide scholarships to eligible students who agree to work after graduation in the artificial intelligence or cybersecurity mission of a qualified government organization for a period at least equal to the duration of their scholarship. Scholarship proposals must designate either a Cyber focus area or an AI focus area. Cyber-focused scholars complete a formal cybersecurity program with at least four cybersecurity courses and at least two artificial intelligence courses. AI-focused scholars complete a formal artificial intelligence program with at least four artificial intelligence courses and at least two cybersecurity courses. Proposals must also provide meaningful opportunities for informal learning, mentored research, and applied artificial intelligence and cybersecurity projects. The Innovation Track supports transformative education projects involving artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, or their integration and may support instructional materials, experiential learning, curricular innovation, professional development, interdisciplinary training, communities of practice, and partnerships. The anticipated award range is 300000 dollars to 2500000 dollars per award, with up to 25 projects supported per fiscal year subject to available funds and proposal quality. The Scholarship Track has a maximum award of 2500000 dollars and a required three-year budget period. Scholarship funding includes annual stipends of 27000 dollars for undergraduate students and 37000 dollars for graduate students, tuition and mandatory education-related fees, and a 6000 dollar annual professional allowance per scholar. Up to 12000 dollars per student per year may also be requested for other direct project costs that contribute to project effectiveness. Scholarships do not cover meal plans, housing, or parking. Individual students may receive no more than three years of support. Innovation Track projects may last up to three years, have annual budgets between 100000 and 200000 dollars, and may receive no more than 500000 dollars. Voluntary committed cost sharing is prohibited, so there is no required matching contribution. Scholarship Track proposals may be submitted by accredited institutions of higher education with a campus in the United States. Community colleges may participate in that track only as sub-awardees of partnering four-year CyberAI SFS institutions. Innovation Track proposals may be submitted by accredited two-year and four-year institutions of higher education with a campus in the United States and by qualifying U.S.-located nonprofit, non-academic organizations directly associated with educational or research activities, including independent museums, observatories, research laboratories, professional societies, and similar organizations. Senior or key project personnel must generally hold either a tenured or tenure-track position or a primary, full-time, paid research, administration, or teaching appointment at a U.S.-based campus of an eligible organization. Scholarship Track institutions must also provide documented evidence of a strong existing formal program in artificial intelligence or cybersecurity. Scholarship recipients themselves must be U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents, meet applicable enrollment and academic requirements, demonstrate commitment to an artificial intelligence or cybersecurity career, complete required internships, and fulfill the government service obligation. Full proposals may be submitted through Research.gov or Grants.gov and must comply with the NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide and the solicitation-specific requirements. Collaborative proposals submitted as separate submissions from multiple organizations must use Research.gov. Letters of intent and preliminary proposals are not required. Required proposal elements include a compliant project title, an evaluation plan with project goals, expected outcomes, metrics, formative and summative assessment, and an assessment and reporting timeline, Results from Prior NSF Support when applicable, a graduate student mentoring plan when applicable, and permitted supplementary documentation. Scholarship Track proposals have additional requirements covering the project summary, evidence of a strong program, scholar recruitment and selection, mentoring and cohort activities, internship and service obligations, institutional responsibilities, and project management. Proposals are evaluated using the National Science Board criteria of Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts and may undergo ad hoc, panel, internal NSF, or site visit review. The Scholarship Track had a full proposal deadline of July 21, 2026 at 5 p.m. in the submitting organization's local time, followed by the third Tuesday in July annually thereafter. The solicitation also identified April 3, 2026 as a target date for the Innovation Track and an additional Scholarship Track competition. Because the annual Scholarship Track deadline has passed as of August 7, 2026 and the solicitation expressly establishes annual recurrence, the next expected Scholarship Track deadline is the third Tuesday of July 2027, which is July 20, 2027. The next recurring April target date is April 3, 2027. The program contact is the CyberAI SFS Program at sfs@nsf.gov. Technical questions concerning Research.gov may be directed to rgov@nsf.gov or 1-800-381-1532, while Grants.gov submission support is available at support@grants.gov or 1-800-518-4726. Standard NSF award conditions and reporting requirements apply, including annual project reports and a final project outcomes report.

Address both Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts; explicitly connect project goals to CyberAI SFS program goals and applicable success measures; define measurable outcomes and include formative and summative evaluation with an assessment timeline; demonstrate the required strength of the academic program for Scholarship Track proposals; verify that every solicitation-specific component is included because noncompliant proposals may be returned without review.