Species of PECASE awards
The Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) is the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages of their independent research careers.
It’s kind of a funny thing though. A bunch of very different federal agencies nominate people, and the process doesn’t seem to be documented anywhere public. Plus, they’re given out intermittently, rather than annually (although the nominations themselves seem to be annual).
Moreover, according to this post, the award itself varies in dollar value depending on what agency you get it from (down to $0, in some cases). Here’s the summary:
NSF: PECASE gets no extra money.
DOE: PECASE gets no extra money.
DOD: PECASE does indeed involve getting extra money. How much?
NIH: PECASE means an extra year of funding on the grant it was given for (e.g., if it was a 4-year, $200k direct award, you get a fifth year and another $200k direct).
There are other agencies that nominate for the award, including NASA, the VA, and the Dept. of Education. Do you have details on the others?
For DOD, PECASE gives you $1 million over the course of 5 years.
Sources:
1. Presentation from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) says $200k/year for 5 years: https://www.rfcuny.org/rfwebsite/media/wv3cuz4j/onr-joan-cleveland.pdf
2. An officer in the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) told me it’s $1 million
Caveat:
1. One website says “The value of each award averages $1 million over five years”, and the usage of the word “average” suggests the amount might differ from person to person, which seems to slightly and somewhat contradict the ONR presentation above ($200k/year x 5 years for everybody). https://www.army.mil/article/224444/president_army_recognize_12_early_career_scientists_engineers_with_highest_honor
NASA PECASE gives $200k; the exact funding structure may vary between various organizations of NASA.
Source: “The specific form of the award will be determined by the nominating organization, but should be equivalent to a $200K grant; e.g. a grant of $50K/year for 4 years.” https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/pecase_nasa_policy_tagged.pdf
Also, what is your source for the NIH PECASE info?
Me.
LOL