FY2026 Sea Grant Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship | NOAA OAR SG 2026 29505

Opportunity Information: Apply for NOAA OAR SG 2026 29505

The FY2026 Sea Grant Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship is a competitive, policy-focused fellowship run through the National Sea Grant College Program (NOAA). Sea Grant was created by Congress in 1966 and later amended (including updates in 2020 under Public Law 116-221) to strengthen federal-state partnerships that use university and research expertise to address real problems and opportunities in coastal communities. This particular opportunity supports the Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship, which places selected graduate students in high-level policy environments where they can work on ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes issues and see firsthand how national policy is shaped.

For FY2026, Sea Grant expects to fund not less than 35 fellows total, and roughly 17 of those placements are anticipated to be in the Legislative Branch. Each application package proposes a total budget of $95,600 (the notice points applicants to specific sections for the exact cost breakdown). Awards are made under a cooperative agreement funding instrument, and the activity category is aligned with education, environment, and natural resources. Projects and fellowship work must take place within the United States or U.S. territories, including their respective waterways, which is important for applicants who may be considering policy work connected to U.S. coastal and marine systems.

Eligibility is centered on graduate enrollment and interest in policy, not citizenship. Any student, regardless of citizenship status, may submit required application materials to an eligible Sea Grant program as long as three main conditions are met: the student must be enrolled in a graduate degree program at some point between the start of the 2024 fall term and February 19, 2025; the graduate degree must be awarded by an accredited institution of higher education located in the United States or a U.S. territory; and the student must have a clear interest in ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources, along with the national policy decisions that affect those resources. In practice, that means applicants can come from many disciplines (science, engineering, law, policy, economics, planning, public health, and more) as long as they can credibly connect their background and goals to marine and Great Lakes policy.

The application pathway is a little different from many federal opportunities because students do not apply directly to NOAA through Grants.gov as individuals. Instead, students submit their materials through the Sea Grant program in the state (or territory) where they are earning their degree. Applicants are strongly encouraged to contact their state or territorial Sea Grant program one to two months before the state deadline to get guidance, confirm timelines, and signal intent to apply. After submitting, applicants should also be prepared to interview if the Sea Grant program requests it, and they should leave enough time in their schedule for that step. If a student is earning a degree in a location without a Sea Grant program, a Sea Grant program will be assigned; in that case, the student receives a written referral statement from the National Sea Grant Knauss Fellowship Program Manager identifying the appropriate program, and that referral must be included with the submission to the state Sea Grant program.

From the federal submission perspective, the entities that can submit full proposals via Grants.gov are Sea Grant College Programs, Sea Grant Institutional Programs, and Sea Grant Coherent Area Programs, reflecting that the formal applicant to the NOFO is the Sea Grant program entity rather than the individual fellow candidate. The opportunity is listed as discretionary funding under NOAA, with Funding Opportunity Number NOAA OAR SG 2026 29505 and CFDA (Assistance Listing) 11.417. The original closing date shown is April 16, 2025, which is the key federal deadline reference, though applicants still need to pay close attention to their specific state Sea Grant program deadline because those often occur earlier to allow time for review, interviews, and nomination steps.

• The DOC NOAA - ERA Production in the education, environment, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY2026 Sea Grant Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 11.417.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-12-05.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-04-16. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $96,500.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for NOAA OAR SG 2026 29505

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: