*Who May Submit Proposals: Proposals may only be submitted by the following: - MPS-Ascend Postdoctoral Research Fellowships are awards to individuals; proposals are submitted directly by the fellowship candidate to NSF. Each candidate must identify one or more scientific mentor(s) and host institution(s) in the proposal. Activities supported by the MPS-Ascend Fellowship program may be conducted at any appropriate U.S. host institution as defined in Section II, "Program Description." *Who May Serve as PI: Proposers must self-certify that they are eligible to receive the Fellowship. An individual (also referred to as a Fellow or proposer) is eligible to submit a proposal to the MPS-Ascend Postdoctoral Research Fellowship program if all the following criteria are met: ;lt;ul type="discgt; ;lt;li;gt;Must be a U.S. citizen (or national) or legally admitted permanent resident of the United States (i.e., have a "green card") at the time the proposal is submitted;;lt;/li;gt; ;lt;li;gt;Presents research, professional development, and broadening participation plans that fall within the purview of one of the Divisions (Astronomical Sciences, Chemistry, Materials Research, Mathematical Sciences, or Physics) within the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences;;lt;/li;gt; ;lt;li;gt;May not have previously been a principal investigator or co-principal investigator of an NSF award (other than a graduate research fellowship or an award in support of a conference or workshop);;lt;/li;gt; ;lt;li;gt;May not submit a research plan duplicated in another NSF proposal currently under consideration;;lt;/li;gt; ;lt;li;gt;Must have completed all the requirements for a doctoral degree before the postdoctoral appointment start date;;lt;/li;gt; ;lt;li;gt;;lt;span;gt;It is anticipated that the research will be conducted at an institution other than the Fellowship candidate;apos;s doctoral-granting or current postdoctoral fellowship institution. However, if the Fellowship candidate chooses to remain at their current institution, the Project Description should include a strong justification of how this choice benefits their research and career development.;lt;/span;gt;;lt;/li;gt; ;lt;/ul;gt; ;lt;span;gt;Proposals that fail to meet the above eligibility requirements may be returned without review.;lt;/span;gt; Proposers uncertain about the eligibility requirements are strongly encouraged to contact a cognizant NSF program officer listed in this solicitation before preparing the proposal. Fellowships must begin no later than September 1, following the submission deadline. ;lt;span;gt;By signing and submitting the proposal, the fellowship candidate is certifying that they meet the eligibility criteria specified in this program solicitation. Willful provision of false information in this request and its supporting documents or in reports required under an ensuing award is a criminal offense (U.S. Code, Title 18, Section 1001).;lt;/span;gt; ;lt;a id="elig_prop_num_txt" name="elig_prop_num_txtgt;;lt;/a;gt;