Broader Impacts 2.0: Frequently Asked Questions about Revisions to NSF’s Broader Impacts Criterion

In October 2012, the National Science Foundation (NSF) released a new version of the Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) that included significant changes to the review elements and considerations underlying the Merit Review Criteria. This was the first major revision of the Criteria in 15 years. Of particular note were significant changes to the criteria used by panelists, reviewers, and program officers to evaluate a proposal’s broader impacts. To help inform Florida ocean scientists of these changes in anticipation of proposal submission deadlines in early 2013, the Center for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence – Florida (COSEE-Florida) sponsored a series of lunchtime seminars (Broader Impacts 2.0® Lunches) at six universities and research institutes throughout Florida. Nearly 150 scientists of all career stages (graduate students to senior scientist) participated in the interactive sessions. Participant questions during the seminars were transcribed and used to generate the following list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).