punch_it_chewie

Long time user, but given my professional ties, I opted for anonymity. So I once had this dilemma (NDSEG v NSF). In my case, the choice was easy because the money was almost exactly the same. However, had the NDSEG paid $0-10k more, I still would have taken the NSF. Here is why. The reputations/brand of fellowship programs, not unlike the universities you are applying to, have been built based on their history and performance. In terms of raw prestige, at least in science and engineering, nothing beats Hertz. If you turn down the NSF or the NDSEG for the Hertz, not a single professor will ask - "why did you turn down the NSF/NDSEG?" However, turning down the Hertz or the NSF for the NDSEG will get you stares from faculty. You have to remember that the Hertz and NSF were around when faculty were younglings and their perception of these programs has been shaped by that. This is not a great reason, but I did not want people to look at my CV and wonder - "hmmm .... everything looks good, but why didn't she get the NSF?" So I got the NDSEG when ASEE was running the show, but it sounds like the new sheriff has not done anything to boost the profile of this program other than offer a couple thousand more dollars. I suspect the reason ASEE lost their contract was because they could not boost the profile of the fellowship. To their credit, their approach had merit . By maximizing the number of fellowships offered, you can boost the chances the tomorrow's superstars were once NDSEG fellows. However, the NDSEG (200 fellows per year) was tiny compared to the NSF (1,500-2,000 fellows per year) and could not compete with Hertz. I mean look at the people on this list - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hertz_Foundation. This approach was simply never going to work unless DoD put more money into the program. The new sheriff has tried to turn this into a Hertz-type fellowship (although it sounds like there is some skimming of funds too) - fewer awardees and additional benefits relative to the NSF. A run-of-the-mill defense contractor is simply not equipped to develop a highly regarded fellowship. This a matter of both vision and resources. Well, mostly about vision. Contractors are excellent at two things - winning DoD contracts and managing relationships to avoid losing contracts. Sadly, neither talent correlates well with actual performance. A foundation/academic non-profit with some experience in this area would have been the right steward. Boosting the stipend/benefits is definitely a good move. But then to go ahead and have what looked like a disastrous roll out as they did last year just quashed any chance of a quick brand reboot. To circle back to my point about reputation - as a poster above notes, some high profile professors criticized the running of the program publicly. Do you think any of them will recommend their students choose NDSEG over Hertz/NSF? I think the DoD rightly has aspirations to compete with the Hertz and the NSF (and the Ford, Google, and other fellowships). But, as usual, it seems to think hiring a contractor and telling them what they want will fix the program. If you are thinking along reputation/brand name lines, the question you have to ask yourself is what you think the current steward of the program will be able to do for the program in 5-10 years - when people are looking at your CV. Given what a disaster the SMART program has turned into (completely different structure and contractor) and the recent management of the NDSEG, I am not terribly confident that it will rival the NSF in prestige anytime soon. I really think DoD should put more money behind the program if they are serious about competing with NSF/Hertz, but I suspect saying this to DoD is a great way to lose the bid for the contract. Any discussion of reputation and brand is fraught with biases. Mine are based on when I applied and what professors' impressions were. Things might have changed. Cliff Notes: 1. If you have any interest in academia/government, IMO Hertz >> NSF > IBM/Google/Ford > NDSEG >>>>>> SMART 2. If you have no interest in academia/government, just take whatever fellowship offers the most money. No one in industry cares very much about these signalling cues. 3. External funding is awesome. Do not obsess too much about one over the other. But if you are, hope this helped. 4. Good luck!!! ?