To date, NENU has been awarded a total of 77 projects by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC). Total direct funding reached 50.56 million RMB, representing a 19.08% increase over the previous year. The approved projects include one Major Program, two sub-projects under Major Programs, one Young Scientists Fund (Category B) project, one Key Project under a Major Research Plan, one Joint Funds project (The Joint Fund for Regional Innovation and Development), 51 General Programs, 19 Young Scientists Fund (Category C) projects, and one Research Fund for International Scientists project.
In 2025, NENU achieved a landmark breakthrough in the field of NSFC Major Programs. The project titled “Long-Lifetime Inorganic Non-Metallic Thermal Control Materials for Medium and High Earth Orbit”, led by Academician Liu Yichun, was successfully funded by the NSFC. This marks the first time that our university has served as the leading institution for an NSFC Major Program, representing a historic leap in the university’s scientific research development.
In addition, Professor Gong Lei and Professor Zhou Yifa from the School of Life Sciences received funding for sub-projects under Major Programs; Associate Professor Zhao Xiaoli from the School of Physics was awarded a Young Scientists Fund (Category B) project; Professor Zhu Guangshan from the School of Chemistry received support for a Key Project under a Major Research Plan; and Professor Bi Xihe, also from the School of Chemistry, was awarded a Joint Fund (The Joint Fund for Regional Innovation and Development) project.
In recent years, the total number of NSFC applications nationwide has continued to rise, reaching record highs and intensifying competition. In response, NENU has attached great importance to NSFC applications and taken proactive measures by establishing a regularized mobilization mechanism, expanding application channels, and ensuring that proposal organization and submission efforts run throughout the entire year.
In 2025, NENU organized 391 NSFC applications, the highest number in its history. Of these, 361 applications were submitted during the centralized application period, achieving a funding success rate of 19.29%, significantly higher than the national average of 12.29%. The additional 30 applications were submitted during non-centralized periods, representing a 15.4% increase over the previous year.
Moving forward, NENU will rigorously adhere to “Regulations on the National Natural Science Fund”, align its efforts with the forward-looking goals of the 15th Five-Year Plan, and focus on the core objectives of the “Double First-Class” initiative. On the one hand, researchers will be encouraged to address major national strategic needs and disciplinary frontiers through forward-looking and pioneering research. On the other hand, NENU will further refine a full-cycle support system, providing end-to-end services covering mobilization, topic optimization, application recommendation, and feedback mechanisms, thereby effectively improving the quality of project submissions.
(From News Center, translated by Gao Ziqi, revised by Chen Yanxu)
