Reference Writers

Requirements

Anyone can serve as a reference writer for a GRFP applicant if they are not a family member of the applicant. The most effective reference writers are individuals who can provide detailed and specific information about how the applicant demonstrates the NSF’s Merit Review Criteria and the applicant’s potential for success in their graduate education and beyond.

Reference letters must conform to the following requirements:

  • Limit the reference letter to two pages
  • Use institutional or professional letterhead, if available.
  • SIGN the letter, including your name, professional title, department, and institution
  • Follow the following formatting requirements:
    • Use a standard 8.5″ x 11″ page size
    • Use 11-point or higher Times New Roman font
    • Use 1-inch margins on all sides
    • Use normal (100%) single-line spacing
    • Upload a PDF file format only
      • File size cannot exceed 10 MB
      • File cannot be password-protected or encrypted
      • File cannot be empty

If you have been nominated to submit a reference letter for an applicant, NSF requests that you provide the following information in your letter:

  • Provide a specific (as opposed to generic) letter to give reviewers the best opportunity to evaluate the candidate.
  • Tell us how long you have known the applicant and in what capacity. If you are the candidate’s research supervisor, please comment on the originality of their research statement and what role, if any, you played in assisting the student with the application.
  • The reference letter should address the NSF Merit Review Criteria:
  • Intellectual Merit: The Intellectual Merit criterion encompasses the potential to advance knowledge; and
  • Broader Impacts: The Broader Impacts criterion encompasses the potential to benefit society and contribute to the achievement of specific, desired societal outcomes.
  • The reference letter should include comments on the following:
    • The applicant’s potential for contributing to a globally engaged United States science and engineering workforce;
    • Statements about the applicant’s academic potential and prior research experiences;
    • Statements about the applicant’s proposed research; and
    • Any other information to enable review panels to evaluate the application according to the NSF Merit Review Criteria.
  • Please refer to Section VI of the current GRF Program Solicitation for more information about the Merit Review Principles and Criteria and the Application Review and Selection Process.