About NSF

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is the only federal agency charged with supporting all fields of basic science and engineering. NSF was created by Congress in 1950 “to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, and prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense...”1 The following section contains background information about the structure, priorities, and performance of NSF and the rationale for its creation.

• NSF Homepage
• NSF At a Glance (NSF)
• NSF Strategic Plan FY 2011-2016 (NSF)
• NSF Factsheet (TFFAI)
• NSF BIO Factsheet (Age of Biology) (AIBS)
• 1945 Letter to the President by Vannevar Bush Calling for the Creation of NSF (Science: The Endless Frontier 1945) (UMN)
   
• NSF Directorates (NSF):
  • Biological Sciences
  • Computer and Information Science and Engineering
  • Engineering
  • Geosciences
  • Mathematical and Physical Sciences
  • Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences
  • Education and Human Resources