Natasha Latouf

The Future Investigators of NASA Earth and Space Science and Technology (FINESST) Program is a NASA program that funds graduate students to perform work that specifically aligns with NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD) goals. The best resource I found while writing my FINESST was Michel J. Radke’s Website (linked in the sidebar), which provides a fabulous break down of the program, along with step-by-step instructions on the process. As such, I highly recommend that you go read that website, as I will not be providing the same step by step breakdown. I will, however, provide a few tips and tricks I learned while writing my FINESST.

If you are interested in applying for a FINESST with a NASA/JPL advisor, or any kind of co-advisor, go to the last section!

General Overview:

The FINESST can cover up to 3 years of funding, but you can propose for as much as you would like! This means that if you're a more senior grad student, you can request less money (which can sometimes strengthen your case!). The FINESST requires multiple sections: a Science and Technical Management section (6 pages), References and Acknowledgements (no page limit) Open Science and Data Management Plan (OSDMP, 2 pages), a Research Readiness statement (1 page), a Mentoring Plan (2 pages), 2 pages of CVs for the FI (that's you!) and the PI, Current and Pending Statements(no page limit), and a Budget and Narrative (2 pages). All of these must be submitted as one pdf file through NSPIRES, which is the website used for all NASA proposal submissions. For further information about each section in detail, I again refer you to Michael Radke's website!

Anecdotal Thoughts and Advice:

I know; that seems like a lot. And to be honest, it is. The FINESST is meant to be your first foray into writing a proposal from start to finish as the PI (Or in this case, FI). A large part of the FINESST that in my opinion was different from the GRFP was the amount of mental effort it exerted - I had to come up with a project I would actually complete, and intelligently argue for it in 6 pages - which is a lot less space than you think it is. On top of that, creating all these documents such as a budget or a C&P, that I had never made before. So, here are the main things I learned that I wish I knew while I was applying:

1) Start early! I know it's easier said than done, but in this case I actually don't mean writing - I mean talking with your advisor to figure out a compelling project, and mentally preparing for the process of writing.

2) Reach out to your institution! Generally, your institution has to put together the budget, or at least they can - this makes it far, far easier for you because they can handle the overhead costs, and the inate way that NSPIRES expects a budget. The nice thing about the FINESST is that because it is a ROSES proposal, most institutions are prepared to handle the requirements; in fact, there's a section of the FINESST application in NSPIRES that an institutional representative needs to fill out!

3) Take a look at setting up an NSPIRES account and starting the application EARLY - it takes some time to figure it out, and there are additional pieces of writing that are required for the FINESST! You need to add your collaborators on to the proposal - who all must ACCEPT, so leave time for them to check their email or be reminded if needed. You will also need to prepare a proposal summary and fill out the business data and program specifc data. Even though these aren't things that are necessarily difficult, they are still tedious administrative tasks that take time. I used this as a way to be doing something productive when I didn't feel like working on the proposal.

4) Get as many eyes on your proposal as possible - including most importantly, out of field experts!! Your proposal will be read and reviewed by a panel that may not have experts in your field on it, so it has to be easily understandable for everyone! I personally had 7 different people review my proposal, ranging from my advisor, to a trusted professor, to my husband, to a university staffer at the Office of Fellowships. Now, that's a lot of people - you don't need that many. BUT having all those different opinions really helped.

5) Don't be afraid to add some personality to it! Add highlight boxes, bullet points, italics, bold, anything you want - but the panel will be reading many, many proposals. If you hand over a large block of text, that's hard to read carefully. But having texture to a proposal makes it easier to read, and the formating DOES influence panel decisions very slightly. Think about it: if you were handed one very polished essay, carefully writted, and then one that is just a large block of text that hasn't been formatted, which one would you rather read? Same principal, do you prefer reading a textbook page that has images and summary lists, or just a large block of text? Right; it matters psychologically! This isn't a make or break point at all; but I have found it to be very helpful for legibility and captivating interest.

Applying with a co-Advisor:

Some of you might be in the same position I found myself in: my university advisor (the chair of my committee) is NOT the person who I do my research with. All of my research happens at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) with an advisor there. Or, maybe you do research with your university advisor, but you have an equally important external advisor. Okay, so now what do you do? You have to provide a CV for the PI, and the PI CANNOT be a NASA employee - but if the CV of your university PI doesn't show a close collaboration with your work, that could weaken your case. Fear not! There is a way to have a co-Advisor, and it's not that tricky - it's just hidden away! So, you can only have one PI and they must be at a university - HOWEVER, you can set a co-PI on your proposal! A co-PI can be anyone, including a NASA employee. They would then submit a CV, although theirs is limited to 1 page instead of 2 pages like for the FI and PI. You can also use your mentoring plan to address this! That's your chance to discuss why you'll be working with a co-Advisor. Maybe you're like me and no one at your instition worked on your research of interest, so you looked elsewhere. Or maybe you just want to have more collaboration; or maybe your advisor is overburdened, so even though you are their student, you have a co-advisor you rely on equally. Whatever the case, know that is it possible, but you just have to make sure to address it. You'll see the prime example in my statement!