Elevate Coaching & Consulting

Now accepting a limited number of clients for the 2026 NSF CAREER competition

Why hire Elevate Coaching & Consulting? I have over 20 years of experience as faculty member in higher education. I am a full professor and director of the Engineering Education Transformations Institute at University of Georgia, a former NSF program director, and the Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of Women & Minorities in Science in Engineering. While at NSF I managed a portfolio of 250 active engineering education grants, including the CAREER, Research in the Formation of Engineers (RFE), Research Initiation in Engineering Formation (RIEF), Revolutionizing Engineering Departments (RED) programs, and workshop grants. At NSF, I read hundreds of proposals and ran ∼25 review panels. I know what panels and program officers are looking for and can help you match their high expectations. I bring insider knowledge that can help your proposal stand out from the crowd.

My proposal coaching services range from a one-time review to multiple reviews through the development process. I specialize in helping clients with writing NSF CAREER proposals. I can help you:

  • Break down tasks in ways that feel manageable and make sense to you;

  • Prioritize your proposal development with accountability mechanisms and plenty of time to create a proposal you are really proud of;

  • Understand the difference between a CAREER development plan and a “regular” research proposal;

  • Develop your career vision statement and articulate how your 5-year CAREER project will lay the foundation to achieve your long-term vision;

  • Feel confident that your idea is a “CAREER idea” and articulate how it will transform the field;

  • Write a 1-page summary for program officer meeting(s) and the final proposal

  • Develop confidence interacting with NSF program officers, asking good questions, and translating their feedback into actionable writing tasks;

  • Understand the review process and tailor your proposal to panel expectations;

  • Articulate your unique qualifications;

  • Communicate contingency plans for your research and education plans;

  • Organize your proposal effectively;

  • Write strong intellectual merit and broader impacts sections;

  • Recruit a strong advisory board and evaluator (if applicable) and understand panel expectations for each;

  • Strategically develop your budget and budget justification;

  • Draft the department chair letter for your CAREER proposal;

  • Develop a graduate student and/or postdoc mentoring plan based on published mentoring frameworks

I am also interested in other avenues to help you with your career success. Please contact me if your specific need is not listed here.

What people are saying.

 

“Julie worked with me to develop my CAREER proposal. After working with them for many iterations over a period of eight months, I not only submitted a proposal that I was proud to complete, but I found my voice in the process. Julie and Shane demonstrated remarkable patience and profound insight to help unearth my vision for the work, which enabled me to craft a project that is not only meaningful to engineering education research and practice but also deeply satisfying to me.”

— James Huff, 2021 CAREER awardee.

“Julie provided invaluable feedback as I revised my CAREER proposal for a second submission. She helped me to decipher the first submission reviews and to strategize an approach to address the reviewer concerns without altering the focus or character of the work that is so deeply important to me. Her depth of expertise and breadth of experience were key to developing a stronger and responsive second submission.”

— Angela Minichiello, 2021 CAREER Awardee

“After receiving two CAREER proposal rejections, my confidence was low and I was frustrated. I was passionate about my research, but I had all but given up hope that it would be funded. Julie came alongside me and provided the feedback I needed to communicate more effectively and to also understand why my previous attempts were unsuccessful. Julie was very patient through our iterations and helped me to develop confidence that I could be successful in grant writing. In my successful CAREER submission, Julie was definitely the X-factor.”

— Kerrie Douglas, 2021 CAREER Awardee