On April 28, 2026, the White House fired all 22 members of the National Science Board — the independent governing body that oversees the National Science Foundation — via email. NSF funds billions of dollars in university research each year. The agency has already awarded only about one-quarter of its typical new grants this fiscal year. For students choosing a research university, applying to STEM graduate programs, or planning careers in science and engineering, the current situation is directly relevant.

The email arrived on a Friday. It went to each of the 22 sitting members of the National Science Board. The message was brief: they had been terminated, effective immediately.1

The National Science Foundation funds a significant share of the basic science, math, and engineering research conducted at U.S. colleges and universities. For most undergraduates, it operates quietly in the background — powering the labs where professors work, funding graduate student stipends, and paying for the equipment that makes research possible. Its governing board is supposed to provide independent oversight of how that money gets used and where it goes.

That board no longer exists.

What NSF Actually Does for Universities

NSF distributes roughly $9 billion per year to support research across biology, chemistry, physics, computer science, social sciences, and engineering at institutions across the country.1 At research universities, a significant portion of faculty time and graduate student funding flows through NSF grants.

Undergraduate students benefit in less visible ways: research assistant positions, honors thesis funding, REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) programs, and the general intellectual environment created by active faculty research — all are supported, directly or indirectly, by this pipeline of federal dollars.

The Slowdown Is Already Here

The board firing is the latest move in a year-long reduction in NSF grant activity. By late April 2026, NSF had awarded only about one-quarter of its typical number of new grants compared to the same period in prior years.2 Thousands of previously approved grants had been rescinded. Some NSF program officers paused peer review panels while waiting for spending authority that was slow to distribute.

~25% — Share of normal NSF grants awarded through April 2026Nature, April 2026

The agency is now operating without a Senate-confirmed director, without a Senate-confirmed deputy director, and without a governing board — simultaneously.2

Two research areas have been hit hardest. Funding for the biological sciences directorate is tracking roughly 25 percent below fiscal year 2025 levels. Funding for the social, behavioral, and economic sciences directorate is running approximately 30 percent below 2025.2

What This Means When Choosing a School

If you are comparing universities and undergraduate research opportunities matter to you — whether because you're considering graduate school, hoping to work in a faculty lab, or evaluating a school's research reputation — the current funding environment is worth factoring in.

Research universities fund a significant portion of their graduate student stipends and undergraduate research positions through external grants. When grant funding contracts, those opportunities contract with it. Schools with large private endowments or strong industry research partnerships are more insulated from federal funding volatility than institutions that depend primarily on government grants.

If you've been accepted to a PhD program with research funding attached, verify whether that funding is departmental (more stable) or tied to a specific federal grant that's still pending. Ask directly: "Is this funding confirmed, or is it contingent on a grant renewal?" Getting a clear answer now matters more than it did two years ago.

This is not a reason to avoid research universities. It is a reason to ask better questions when you compare your options. The return on investment by major looks different when research opportunities are limited, particularly for students in biology, social sciences, and environmental fields.

What Graduate School Applicants Should Know

Graduate students and prospective PhD applicants are in a more directly affected position. Programs that historically offered fully funded positions may be offering fewer of them this cycle, because the external grants that support those positions haven't materialized at normal rates.

When evaluating graduate school offers, ask two questions before accepting: "Is this funding from a department fellowship pool, or is it tied to a specific external grant?" and "What happens to my stipend if that grant is not renewed?" Departmental fellowship funding is more predictable. Grant-contingent offers carry more risk in the current environment.

If you're already in a graduate program and your stipend is tied to an NSF grant, contact your university's graduate funding office to confirm your award is secure through the current academic year. Most institutions have contingency plans, but not all students know to ask.

The Broader Trend

The board firing follows an earlier administration proposal to cut more than half of NSF's budget — a reduction that Congress rejected for fiscal year 2026. A new round of proposed cuts for fiscal year 2027 is now under consideration.1

Basic science research has historically been a long-term national investment with slow, compounding returns. The U.S. position in fields like semiconductor design, pharmaceutical discovery, and climate technology is built on decades of consistent federal research spending, most of it channeled through universities. Disruptions to that system do not produce immediate headlines. They show up years later, in the graduate students who couldn't get funded, the labs that closed quietly, and the researchers who accepted positions at institutions in other countries.

Understanding this context matters for the decisions you make now — whether that's choosing which college to attend, deciding how much debt makes sense for a graduate degree, or thinking through which majors have the most durable career paths.

What to Do Now

  • Choosing between research universities: Ask each school what percentage of their research funding comes from federal sources versus endowment and industry partnerships. Schools with diversified funding are more stable.
  • Considering a STEM PhD: Ask graduate programs directly about the stability of funding offers. Fully departmental fellowships are preferable to grant-contingent offers in the current climate.
  • Currently in a graduate program: Confirm with your advisor and graduate school office that your funding is protected through the end of your academic year.
  • Planning a STEM career: The disruptions are real, but they are also driving more universities toward industry-partnered research programs — which often come with placement advantages of their own. Stay current on the landscape through your college planning timeline.

Footnotes

  1. Nadworny, E., & Hsu, A. (2026, April 28). Scientists see Trump's firing of the National Science Board as an attack on research. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2026/04/28/nx-s1-5801465/national-science-board-trump-firing ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  2. Cho, A. (2026, April). Delays have kept new NSF grants to a trickle — that could be about to change. Nature. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-01287-0 ↩ ↩2 ↩3