NASA OSBP Mentor-Protégé Program home

Eligibility Requirements

This section describes who is eligible to participate as either a mentor or protégé in the NASA Mentor-Protégé Program (MPP).  As an important caveat, the NASA MPP is not a matchmaking program and an agreement under the program requires both a mentor and a protégé.  In other words, a protégé cannot participate without identifying a mentor and vice versa.  Mentors and protégés are responsible for identifying a counterpart for participation and NASA does not establish these partnerships.  All NASA MPP participants (i.e., mentors and protégés) must be eligible to receive Government contracts and must not be debarred, suspended, or otherwise ineligible or excluded from receiving federal contracts.

Mentor Eligibility

A mentor must be a NASA prime contractor with a current NASA contract that includes a small business subcontracting plan.  Prospective mentors must be approved by the NASA Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP) to participate as mentors, and the required mentor application may be submitted prior to or in conjunction with a proposed MPP agreement.  Refer to How to Apply.

Protégé Eligibility

Eligible protégés include:

1. Small businesses (including small businesses within any of the small business socioeconomic programs);
2. Historically black colleges or universities;
3. Minority-serving institutions;
4. Nonprofit organizations participating in the AbilityOne Program. 

Prospective protégés must be approved by the NASA OSBP to participate a protégé, and the required protégé application must be submitted in conjunction with a proposed MPP agreement, which includes identifying a mentor.  Refer to How to Apply.