Is Life Sciences Losing Its Appeal? NSF Graduate Fellowship Shifts Focus Toward AI and Quantum Fields}
The NSF graduate fellowship increasingly favors AI and quantum research, raising concerns about the decline of life sciences and the impact on future scientific diversity and innovation.
Editor | Bai Cai Ye
The prestigious NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) typically awards about one-fifth of its recipients in life sciences. However, the latest round of 500 winners, announced in early June, included no ecologists, neuroscientists, or molecular biologists. Meanwhile, computer scientists received a much higher share than in previous years, with the program offering a $37,000 annual stipend for three years.
NSF has not explained the stark difference between this year's winners and the 1,000 recipients announced two months earlier. The new distribution appears aligned with Donald Trump’s initiatives prioritizing AI and quantum information science.
Some scientists worry this shift reflects a broader political stance against federal investments aimed at broadening participation in science, as most winners are male, white, or Asian.
Since its inception in 1952, the program has supported students across all NSF-funded fields, producing 50 Nobel laureates. Yet, many believe the 2025 intake, less than half of previous years, diverges from NSF’s mission to cultivate the next generation of American scientists and engineers. Last month, NSF officials expressed hope that private sector funding would fill the gap, intensifying concerns.
Analysis by former GRFP directors Gisele Muller-Parker and Susan Brennan shows that biologists were largely excluded in the second round. According to data shared with Science, about 214 students in these fields were nominated as fellows in April, but none of the 962 honor nominees received awards in the second round.
Similarly, in psychology, only 7 out of 187 honor nominees, and in social sciences, only 8 out of 114, received fellowships. Earth sciences fared poorly, with only 25 of 242 honor nominees awarded.
In contrast, computer science saw over half of 203 honor nominees (125 students) awarded fellowships. Physics and astronomy had about 101 winners out of 260 nominees, and engineering saw 123 awards among 594 initial nominees.
Decades of congressional adjustments to NSF’s STEM funding, most recently in 2022, aimed to address critical STEM needs, but these definitions now encompass all fields NSF traditionally supports, from advanced semiconductors to climate change research. Muller-Parker and Brennan question why NSF shifted focus without explicit legislative backing.
In a joint email to Science, they stated, “Without evidence that certain STEM disciplines should be prioritized over others, we believe this trend is inappropriate.” They warn that continuing this path could pose “significant risks” to the training of future STEM talent in the U.S.
Alexandra Harmon-Threatt, a pollination ecologist at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, agrees: “Lack of comprehensive investment is shortsighted and will harm America’s scientific future. These students won’t make major contributions for 5, 10, or 15 years, and we can’t predict where critical gaps will emerge.”
NSF declined to comment on selection criteria or reasons for uneven distribution.
Christian Cazares, a neuroscientist at UC San Diego, highlighted demographic disparities among underrepresented minorities, which exacerbate existing challenges. “Students believe the process is merit-based,” said Cazares, a first-generation college student from Mexico. “If the fellowship now simply reflects government priorities, it sends a message that these students are less welcome in science.”
Kelsey Lucas, a freshwater ecologist at the University of Calgary, argued that the skewed distribution indicates NSF’s increased focus on applied research. “Science is about exploring the unknown and solving major problems,” she said. “Cutting back on global aquatic biology programs and awarding grants mainly to privileged groups means abandoning perspectives that could lead to innovative solutions for current challenges.”
Related article: https://www.science.org/content/article/prestigious-nsf-graduate-fellowship-tilts-toward-ai-and-quantum