NSF Broader Impacts Updates (2025)
The National Science Foundation employs two criteria in the merit review of proposals: the intellectual merit and the broader impacts of the proposed activity. This workshop provides an overview of NSF’s broader impacts criterion as it stands today, including what we know of recent updates to NSF's priorities in this area. The session is intended for researchers who are familiar with broader impacts and wish to remain informed about the latest developments. OVPR staff will provide practical guidance, an opportunity for questions, and share existing resources to help participants address broader impacts in their proposals.
Developing Your Research Impact Identity (2025)
Whether consciously or not, every researcher is continuously defining and refining their research impact identity. A research impact identity is the unique footprint or legacy generated by a researcher's cumulative work, across academic and public arenas.
In this session, we will explore how to think critically about your research identity and the broader impacts you seek to make in society, not only for your next project but throughout your career.
This session will benefit new or seasoned PIs who want to articulate their research impact identities for the NSF Broader Impacts criterion, or for other funders with similar requirements.
Research Impact Partnerships and Resource Fair (2025)
If you are working on a research impact plan, such as NSF broader impacts, and are seeking new resources and partners, join us for a panel discussion and tabling fair. We will begin with a panel of UT staff experts who will share their tips for collaborating effectively with external partners. We will then hold a tabling fair featuring the on-campus units who can support plan development, or who can connect you to undergraduate students, K-12 systems, local communities, and industry partners to maximize your research impact.
Evaluating Research Impact Activity (2025)
You’ve now addressed your project’s Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts criteria. How will you prove to the funding agency that your plan will work? That your research will, indeed, meet Broader Impacts objectives? This session will guide you through some techniques to develop an effective project evaluation plan with a step-by-step approach (logic model) that helps you meet your proposal’s project evaluation requirements.
This session will benefit PIs who are developing their NSF Broader Impacts plans or who want to develop best practices on assessing impact in their research for their own benefit or to satisfy the societal impact requirements of their funders.
Research Impact Writing Retreat (2025)
Join us for a half-day workshop to develop and write your research impact plan. Applicable to principal investigators working on a broader impacts or similar plan, this workshop will provide resources and prompts to facilitate your writing. We will also reserve time for peer feedback so that you can receive advice and make immediate improvements. Although not required, prior attendance at previous research impact workshops will help attendees make the most use of their time. By the end of the workshop, attendees should walk away with a solid draft of their research impact plan.