Alan T. Waterman Award

US NSF - Office of the Director - Alan T. Waterman Award

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Alan T. Waterman Award
BACKGROUND

Alan T. Waterman Award

Congress established the Alan T. Waterman Award in August 1975 to mark the 25th
Anniversary of the National Science Foundation and to honor its first Director. The annual
award recognizes an outstanding young researcher in any field of science or engineering
supported by the National Science Foundation. In addition to a medal, the awardee
receives a grant of $500,000 over a three year period for scientific research or advanced
study in the mathematical, physical, biological, engineering, social, or other sciences at
the institution of the recipient's choice.
The Waterman Award fact sheet, prepared by the Office of Legislative and Public Affairs,
is available at http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=102999.

Waterman Award Home
Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQ)
Recipients
Award Committee
Office of the Director
Office of the Director (OD)
Office of Cyberinfrastructure
(OCI)
Office of Equal Opportunity
Programs (OEO)
Office of the General Counsel
(OGC)
Office of Integrative Activities
(OIA)
- EPSCoR Office
Office of International Science
and Engineering (OISE)

ELIGIBILITY AND SELECTION CRITERIA
z Candidates must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents and must be 35 years of

age or younger or not more than 7 years beyond receipt of the Ph.D. degree by
December 31 of the year in which they are nominated. For example, candidates
eligible for the 2011 award must be born on or after 1975, or received their Ph.D.
on or after 2003.
z Candidates should have demonstrated exceptional individual achievements in
scientific or engineering research of sufficient quality to place them at the
forefront of their peers. Criteria include originality, innovation, and significant
impact on the field.
NOMINATION REQUIREMENTS
z Nomination packages consist of a nomination and four letters of reference

submitted via FastLane https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/honawards/

z The names of four references are required for each nomination. The references

cannot come from the nominee’s home institution. References must be requested
by the nominator and submitted by the established FastLane deadline.
z Nominations will not be reviewed by the Committee unless all the requirements
are met.
z Institutions may nominate an unlimited number of individuals.

Office of Legislative & Public
Affairs (OLPA)

INQUIRIES

Office of Polar Programs (OPP)

Please see the Frequently Asked Questions page for specific questions about the award
criteria or the nomination process. For any other questions, or for additional information,
please contact:
Mayra N. Montrose
Office of Integrative Activities
National Science Foundation
4201 Wilson Boulevard, Rm. 1270
Arlington, VA 22230
Phone: 703-292-8040
Fax: 703-292-9040

http://www.nsf.gov/od/waterman/waterman.jsp

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US NSF - Office of the Director - Alan T. Waterman Award

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The National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Virginia 22230, USA
Tel: (703) 292-5111 , FIRS: (800) 877-8339 | TDD: (800) 281-8749

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Alan T. Waterman Award

Privacy Act and Public Burden Statements

Privacy Act Statement
The information requested on the application materials is solicited under the authority of the National
Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended. It will be used in connection with the selection of qualified
applicants and may be disclosed to qualified reviewers and staff assistants as part of the review process,
and to government contractors as necessary to complete assigned work, and to a court or party in a court
or Federal administrative proceeding if the government is a party.
Notice of the decision may be given to nominators, and disclosure may be made of awardees? names,
home institutions, and field of study for public information purposes including press releases. See Systems
of Records, NSF-12, "Fellowships and Other Awards," 63 Federal Register 265 (January 5, 1998).
Submission of the information is voluntary; however, failure to provide full and complete information may
reduce the possibility of receiving an award.

Public Burden Statement
Pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5 (b), an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to an information collection unless it displays a valid OMB control umber. The OMB control number
for this collection is 3145-0035. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to
average 15 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions. Send comments regarding
this burden estimate and any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for
reducing this burden, to:
Suzanne H. Plimpton
Reports Clearance Officer
Facilities and Operations Branch, Division of Administrative Services
National Science Foundation
Email: splimpto@nsf.gov

National Science Foundation
4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Virginia 22230, USA
Tel: 703-292-5111, FIRS: 800-877-8339 | TDD: 703-292-5090

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Alan T. Waterman Award
Credit and Larger Version
June 15, 2009
Background. The National Science Foundation's (NSF) annual Alan T. Waterman Award
honors an outstanding young U.S. scientist or engineer. The awardee receives a grant of
$500,000 over three years for scientific research or advanced study in any field of
science, plus a medal and other recognition.

Education
Engineering

Public Law 94-86 of the 94th Congress established the Waterman Award in 1975 to mark
the 25th anniversary of the NSF and to honor its first director, Alan T. Waterman.

Mathematics
Nanoscience
People & Society
Physics

Criteria. A candidate must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, 35 years of age or
younger, or not more than seven years beyond receiving a Ph.D. by December 31 of the
year in which nominated. The candidate should have demonstrated exceptional individual
achievements in scientific or engineering research of sufficient quality to be placed at the
forefront of his or her peers. Criteria also include originality, innovation and a significant
impact on the individual's field.
Candidates. Nominations come from responses to a call for nominations sent to
universities and colleges; scientific, engineering and other professional societies and
organizations; and members of the National Academy of Sciences and the National
Academy of Engineering. The solicitation is also made available on the NSF web site.
Candidates are nominated on the basis of the above criteria.
Selection. The Waterman Award Committee reviews all nominations and supporting
documentation, then forwards its recommendation to the NSF director and to the National
Science Board for a final determination.
Recipients. Recent recipients include the following:

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2011 - Casey Dunn, Brown University, evolutionary biology
2010 - Subhash Khot, New York University, computer science
2009 - David Charbonneau, Harvard University, astronomy
2008 - Terence Tao, University of California, Los Angeles, mathematics
2007 - Peidong Yang, University of California, Berkeley, chemistry
2006 - Emmanuel Candes, California Institute of Technology, mathematics
2005 - Dalton Conley, New York University, sociology
2004 - Kristi Anseth, University of Colorado, Boulder, bioengineering
2003 - Angelika Amon, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, cell biology
2002 - Erich Jarvis, Duke University, neurobiology
2001 - Vahid Tarokh, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, wireless
communications
z 2000 - Jennifer Doudna, Yale, biochemistry
z
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-NSF-

Program Contacts
Mayra N. Montrose, NSF (703) 292-4757 mmontros@nsf.gov
Related Websites
Alan T. Waterman Award Home Page: http://www.nsf.gov/od/waterman/waterman.jsp

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports
fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering. In fiscal
year (FY) 2010, its budget is about $6.9 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through
grants to nearly 2,000 universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives over 45,000
competitive requests for funding, and makes over 11,500 new funding awards. NSF also
awards over $400 million in professional and service contracts yearly.
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Tel: (703) 292-5111, FIRS: (800) 877-8339 | TDD: (800) 281-8749

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