Proposing a New SAMSI Year-long Program
SAMSI welcomes new ideas for research programs from the statistical, mathematical and scientific communities, both national and international. Such ideas may be for full academic-year programs or shorter summer programs (2 to 4 weeks). Please see the past and current research programs for an idea as to the scope of SAMSI programs. Please note, though, that SAMSI does not conduct isolated workshops.
The programming process begins with a pre-proposal, which is often quite short and should be sent to the SAMSI directors ([email protected]). At the end of this web page is a brief discussion of the type of information that is particularly helpful in a pre-proposal.
If the pre-proposal would be a good fit with SAMSI’s overall mission and would generate a high level of interest in SAMSI’s constituent communities, the directors in conjunction with the originators of the pre-proposal would work to identify several program leaders, nationally and internationally recognized experts in their particular fields. Once program leaders are selected, they, working with the SAMSI directors and members of SAMSI’s National Advisory Council (NAC) put together a program outline, discussing the importance of the program topic for scientific advancement, potential major themes for research, potential participants, and some ideas for particular workshops that SAMSI would host. In some cases, SAMSI may host a planning workshop to explore more deeply the scientific goals, research themes and possible participants for a potential program. Once the program outline is complete, it is presented to the NAC for approval during its fall meeting two years in advance of the academic year when the program would take place.
If the NAC approves the proposal outline, the directors and the program leaders then select a scientific committee to assist in developing the complete, formal program proposal. That proposal is then presented to the NAC for final approval during the spring, eighteen months in advance of the program’s commencement.
Considerations in Program Selection:
- Impact on the statistical and mathematical sciences and their interface
- Timeliness
- Qualifications and commitment of program leaders
- Impact on cross-disciplinary research - especially the span of the scientific problems covered and likelihood of significant technology transfer
- Breadth of development of human resources, including the extent of diversity
- Effects on education
Helpful Pre-Proposal Content:
Scientific Description: This should outline the basic idea of the program, emphasizing impacts on statistics, mathematics, and cross-disciplinary sciences. Programs need not involve all three, but it is desirable that they do so.
It is not expected that specific foci of the program be already determined - indeed, this is typically the goal of the program development stage of the process - but suggestions for foci are welcome. These might be particular problems that are of interest, or broad themes that might be addressed during the course of the program.
If it is planned to incorporate testbed examples or data sets into the program, some indication as to their nature would be helpful. Discussion of the relationship of these examples or data sets to the broader themes of the program would also be beneficial.
Program Outcome: Provide at least some indication as to the hoped-for outcomes of the program.
Program Leadership: Our programs are lead by scholars from outside SAMSI’s local area and its partner universities. It is helpful if some potential program leaders are suggested in the pre-proposal.
Program Participants: Please provide with names of key potential participants, so that we can gauge the breadth of interest of the program. Programs must have a broad, national appeal to SAMSI’s constituent communities. If you expect involvement in the program of industry, government labs or agencies, or other organizations, please indicate possible organizational participants.
Potential Leveraging: We encourage efforts to obtain additional funding for SAMSI programs. For instance, obtaining additional funding for workshops is often feasible, and can greatly enlarge the possible participation at workshops. Please indicate any possibilities of obtaining such funding. SAMSI will be happy to work with you in this regard. Specific workshops for any SAMSI program may be co-organized with other institutions and may be hosted off campus.