Integrated University Program (IUP): Enabling Technologies and Innovation (ETI) & Monitoring, Technology and Verification (MTV) | DE FOA 0001875

Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0001875

The Integrated University Program (IUP) Funding Opportunity Announcement DE-FOA-0001875 is a U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA) initiative run through the Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Research and Development (DNN R&D). Its core purpose is to strengthen U.S. and global nuclear security by funding university-led research and workforce development that improve the technical ability to detect, identify, and characterize three major threat areas: foreign nuclear weapons programs, the illicit diversion or movement of special nuclear material, and nuclear detonations anywhere in the world. In practical terms, this program is designed to push forward the science and engineering that underpins nonproliferation and monitoring capabilities, while also building a pipeline of students and faculty with sustained expertise in nuclear security.

A defining feature of this opportunity is how it structures collaboration between universities and the federal nuclear security enterprise. The FOA emphasizes that universities are often best positioned to tackle difficult foundational problems, explore new concepts, and develop early-stage methods and technologies. Once those ideas are demonstrated at the university level, DOE/NNSA National Laboratories and/or National Security Sites/Complexes can take over the mission-specific development work needed to mature the capability, validate it in operationally relevant environments, and either transition it into government use or move it toward commercialization through private industry. The program is intentionally set up to make that handoff more transparent and effective, rather than leaving academic research disconnected from real-world deployment pathways.

Funding is awarded through cooperative agreements, which typically means DOE/NNSA expects active involvement in shaping, monitoring, or coordinating the work rather than simply issuing a grant and stepping back. The FOA plans to make two separate awards, each running for five years, and each award goes to a consortium of accredited Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs). These consortia are expected to include DOE/NNSA National Laboratories and/or National Security Sites/Complexes as consortium members, not just informal partners. Within each consortium, member universities are supposed to have clear, specific roles and to receive defined portions of the overall funding, reflecting a deliberately organized network rather than a loose affiliation.

The program is not only a research funding vehicle; it is also a workforce and curriculum-building effort. Consortia are expected to administer funds that support student and faculty research as well as fellowships and scholarships connected to DNN R&D priorities. The long-term objective is to build and sustain national expertise in nuclear nonproliferation detection and related technical areas. A key expectation is that research outputs should be integrated back into university curricula so that advances in methods and technology translate into updated courses, training opportunities, and hands-on experience for students. In other words, the FOA is pushing for a tight loop where research informs education, and education produces a workforce capable of advancing the mission over time.

Another major theme is reducing friction between institutions while still protecting sensitive assets. The FOA highlights the need for students, faculty, and researchers to move across academic and government facilities without being unnecessarily constrained by organizational or bureaucratic barriers, while still maintaining proper protection of critical information and materials. Consortia are encouraged to set up reciprocal arrangements among the lead university and other member universities, and to formalize working relationships with the relevant DOE/NNSA laboratories and sites. This reflects an emphasis on practical collaboration: shared access, coordinated projects, and smoother pathways for researchers to participate in lab-connected work that is essential in the nuclear security domain.

From an administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary federal funding opportunity in the energy activity category (CFDA 81.113). Eligible applicants include public/state-controlled and private institutions of higher education, with additional eligibility details referenced in the FOA. The announcement was created May 23, 2018, with an application deadline of September 4, 2018 at 11:59 PM Eastern. The expected number of awards is two, and the award ceiling is listed as $25,000,000, indicating large, multi-institution efforts with enough scale to support sustained research portfolios, student support mechanisms, and coordinated engagement with DOE/NNSA facilities over a five-year period.

Overall, the IUP: Enabling Technologies and Innovation (ETI) and Monitoring, Technology and Verification (MTV) opportunity is best understood as a long-horizon consortium program aimed at both advancing nonproliferation-related detection and monitoring technologies and deliberately growing the academic-to-national-lab pipeline. It funds not just projects, but an ecosystem: multi-year research agendas, student and faculty development, curriculum integration, and structured partnerships with the national laboratories and security sites that ultimately field or transition the capabilities the research enables.

• The Department of Energy, NNSA in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Integrated University Program (IUP): Enabling Technologies and Innovation (ETI) & Monitoring, Technology and Verification (MTV)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.113.
• This funding opportunity was created on May 23, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 04, 2018 Application deadline is September 4, 2018, 1159PM Eastern Standard Time.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $25,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

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