The Educational Component of the National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The Educational Component of the National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program (commonly referred to as EDMAP) is a US Geological Survey (USGS) funding opportunity designed mainly as a workforce and training pipeline for geologic mapping. The core goal is to train the next generation of geologic mappers by supporting hands-on student projects that produce geologic map deliverables. In this program, "geologic maps" is defined broadly, meaning projects can focus on mapping and characterizing the solid Earth and its materials using field observations as well as geophysical data, borehole information, and remote sensing products. Beyond funding individual projects, the program is also meant to strengthen university Earth science programs by expanding their capacity to teach modern mapping techniques and integrated data analysis. The program has a long track record; by 2024 it had supported more than 1,501 students at more than 177 universities, and the announcement references an attachment listing projects funded in FY2025.

This opportunity is offered by the USGS under CFDA 15.810 and is issued as a discretionary cooperative agreement, which typically implies that the federal program may have substantial involvement during the period of performance compared to a standard grant. The funding activity category is Science and Technology and other Research and Development. The opportunity number is G26AS00012, and the application closing date listed is 2026-05-26. The notice anticipates about 15 awards, and it lists an award ceiling of 180,000, which aligns with the program structure that allows multiple student sub-projects under one proposal in some cases.

Eligibility is centered on US colleges and universities. Proposals may be submitted by a faculty member or adjunct faculty member affiliated with a geoscience department or a related academic program at an accredited US institution (public or private). A key restriction is that faculty (including adjuncts) who are also federal employees cannot submit proposals and cannot serve as a principal investigator (PI) or co-PI on an EDMAP project. The program also limits submissions at the individual level: only one proposal may be submitted per PI, although a single institution can submit multiple proposals if they are led by different PIs. A PI is allowed to submit one proposal that contains multiple sub-projects supporting multiple students, but each student supported as a "Primary Student Mapper" must have a distinct geologic map deliverable.

The program places clear requirements on prior award performance. PIs who have received EDMAP funding previously must be in good standing, meaning they must have met deliverable requirements on earlier awards or have an approved extension for any delays. In addition, a PI may not hold more than two active EDMAP projects at any one time. The announcement provides an example to clarify how this affects eligibility in a future cycle: to be eligible for EDMAP funding in FY2026, a PI must have no more than one active EDMAP project at the time the FY2026 funding decisions are made.

Student eligibility and support limits are also spelled out. EDMAP is intended for graduate students (masters and doctoral) and upper-level undergraduates (typically juniors and seniors) who already have appropriate training in geoscience or a related area before starting the funded work. Students are capped in how much EDMAP support they can receive over the course of their academic careers: a Primary Student Mapper can receive no more than 36 months of total EDMAP funding or no more than three EDMAP awards in total. This cap follows the student, not the institution or PI, meaning a student could be funded across multiple awards, even at different universities or under different degrees, but still cannot exceed 36 cumulative months.

Budget limits are structured per student per year and are intended to cover all project-related costs. For each graduate Primary Student Mapper, the request may not exceed 45,000 per 12-month period (described as 3,750 per month). For each undergraduate Primary Student Mapper, the request may not exceed 25,000 per 12-month period (2,083 per month). An individual EDMAP award may last up to 24 months, which effectively sets maximum totals of 90,000 per graduate student and 50,000 per undergraduate student if funded for the full two-year period. Importantly, those maximums are inclusive of all associated costs, including tuition, field expenses, laboratory analyses, and student stipend, so applicants need to build budgets that fit within those all-in caps rather than treating them as stipend-only limits.

For applicants looking for program guidance or context, the announcement points to the USGS EDMAP webpage and provides a contact email (EDMAP@usgs.gov).

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