ACS Award Sponsored by Research Corporation for Science Advancement: Guide

The ACS Award sponsored by Research Corporation for Science Advancement recognizes early-career faculty in chemistry who have shown exceptional promise in research. The American Chemical Society administers the award, and the Research Corporation for Science Advancement (RCSA) funds it. The award provides a cash prize and a certificate, intended to support the recipient’s ongoing research efforts at a critical stage in their career.

Award Purpose and Focus

The award targets tenure-track assistant professors who are within the first few years of their independent academic careers. The goal is to identify and support scientists who are already producing innovative work and who show strong potential for future leadership in their field. This is a forward-looking prize meant to accelerate the research of someone who has already demonstrated they can run a successful lab.

Recipients are typically selected for the novelty and significance of their research proposals, as well as their record of publications and early grant funding. The award committee looks for candidates whose work pushes the boundaries of fundamental chemistry.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible, a nominee must be a tenure-track assistant professor in a chemistry department or a closely related field at a college or university in the United States. The nominee must have held their faculty position for no more than a few years at the time of nomination. Self-nominations are not accepted; the nomination must come from a colleague or department chair. The nominee does not need to be a member of the American Chemical Society, though membership is common.

Application and Nomination Process

The nomination process is handled through the American Chemical Society’s awards system. Each year, the ACS opens a nomination window, typically in the fall, with a deadline early in the following year. The nominator must submit a package that includes a nomination letter, the nominee’s curriculum vitae, and a summary of the nominee’s research accomplishments and plans.

Supporting letters from other faculty members or collaborators are often included to strengthen the nomination. The selection committee, composed of senior chemists, reviews all complete nominations and makes a recommendation to the ACS Board of Directors.

Key Dates and Deadlines

The ACS publishes the exact deadline for each award cycle on its website. Nominations usually close in January or February, and the award is presented at the ACS Spring National Meeting. Prospective nominators should check the ACS awards page for the current cycle’s timeline.

Selection Criteria

The selection committee evaluates nominees based on several factors. The primary criterion is the quality and originality of the nominee’s research. The committee looks for work that has already had an impact, as measured by publications in peer-reviewed journals, invited talks, and early grants.

Another important factor is the nominee’s promise as a future leader in chemistry. This is assessed through the research proposal included in the nomination package. The proposal should outline a clear, ambitious, and feasible plan for the next several years. The committee also considers the nominee’s contributions to teaching and mentoring, though research excellence is the dominant factor.

Worked Example of a Strong Proposal

A strong proposal might describe a new synthetic method for creating complex organic molecules that are difficult to access with existing techniques. The nominee would explain why the method is novel, how it could be applied to problems in materials science or medicine, and what specific experiments they plan to run in the next two years. The proposal would include preliminary data showing the method works on a simple test case, along with a timeline for scaling it up.

Relationship to Other Awards

The ACS Award sponsored by Research Corporation for Science Advancement is one of several early-career awards in chemistry. It is similar in spirit to the Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards and the Sloan Research Fellowships, but it is specifically tied to the ACS and RCSA. The award is distinct from the ACS Award for Encouraging Women into Careers in the Chemical Sciences, which focuses on gender equity, and from the Garvan–Olin Medal, which recognizes distinguished service over a longer career American Chemical Society. RCSA has a long history of supporting early-career scientists through programs like the Cottrell Scholars, and this award extends that mission into the ACS awards portfolio Research Corporation for Science Advancement.

Advice for Nominators

Faculty members who wish to nominate a colleague should start preparing the nomination package well before the deadline. The nomination letter should make a clear case for why the nominee stands out among their peers. It is helpful to include specific examples of the nominee’s research impact, such as publications in high-impact journals or invitations to speak at major conferences.

The research proposal is the most important part of the package. It should be written in plain language that a chemist from a different subfield can understand. The proposal should identify a significant problem in chemistry and explain how the nominee plans to solve it. Preliminary data is valuable but not required. The committee wants to see evidence that the nominee has thought carefully about the next steps in their research program.

Supporting letters should come from senior scientists who can speak to the nominee’s abilities and potential. These letters should not simply repeat the nomination letter. Each letter should add a new perspective, whether it is about the nominee’s technical skills, their mentoring of students, or their contributions to the department.

Key Takeaways

• The award is for early-career tenure-track chemistry faculty in the United States, with a focus on research promise.
• Nominations are submitted through the ACS system and require a research proposal, CV, and supporting letters.
• Selection is based on research originality, impact, and the nominee’s potential for future leadership.
• The award provides a cash prize and certificate, presented at the ACS Spring National Meeting.
• It is one of several early-career awards but is unique in its partnership between ACS and RCSA.