News

• UConn IDEA Workshops Added for Fall 2013

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The Office of Undergraduate Research will be holding two additional fall workshops giving students the opportunity to learn about the new UConn IDEA Grant program. UConn IDEA (Imagine/Develop/Engage/Apply) Grants are open to students at all campuses in all majors. Funding of up to $4000 is available to support a self-designed artistic product, community service initiative, entrepreneurial venture, innovation, traditional research project, or other creative endeavor.

The additional workshops will be held on Monday, September 30 from 12:15-1:15pm in ROWE 320, Monday, November 4 from 4:00pm-5:00pm in Laurel 110, and Thursday, November 14 from 12:30-1:30pm in ROWE 320.

Applications for the Fall round of the IDEA Grant program are due by 4:00pm on October 15, 2013. Students awarded a grant in the Fall round will plan and develop the project in Spring 2014 and complete the project work in summer 2014. A new cycle of the IDEA program will begin in Spring 2014 with applications due on March 17, 2014.

• Share Your Research Knowledge – Become a Peer Research Ambassador!

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Seeking Peer Research Ambassadors

The Office of Undergraduate Research is looking for students who have engaged in undergraduate research at UConn to serve as Peer Research Ambassadors. Peer Research Ambassadors attend OUR workshops and help represent OUR at events like open houses and career fairs. It is extremely valuable for students looking to get involved in research to hear directly from other students about their experiences.  Peer Ambassadors will also act as an informal advisory board, sharing feedback with OUR administrators on how to improve outreach efforts and programming. Consider sharing your wisdom!

If you would be interested in serving as a Peer Ambassador, please complete the brief application at http://ugradresearch.uconn.edu/peer-research-ambassador-application/ at your earliest convenience. If you have additional questions about this opportunity, please contact Caroline McGuire, Interim Director of OUR, at caroline.mcguire@uconn.edu.

• Applications Open – Spring 2014 Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship Program

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The Department of Energy’s Office of Science /Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists (WDTS) is now accepting applications for its 2014 Spring Term Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship (SULI) program.

The SULI program encourages undergraduate students to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers by providing research experiences at Department of Energy (DOE) laboratories, where selected students participate as interns appointed at participating host labs. They perform research, under the guidance of laboratory staff scientists or engineers, on projects supporting the DOE mission.

All application materials, including recommendations, must be submitted no later than 5:00pm on Tuesday, October 1, 2013.

Please visit http://science.energy.gov/wdts/suli/ for additional information on the SULI program as well as eligibility requirements, host lab participation, and access to the online application system. Inquiries/questions should be directed to: http://science.energy.gov/wdts/suli/contact/.

The SULI program is sponsored and managed by the DOE Office of Science’s, Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists (WDTS) in collaboration with the DOE laboratories. The Department of Energy’s Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.

Kinesiology Student Selected as Undergraduate Research Fellow

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Congratulations to Luke Belval, a senior Kinesiology student, who has been recognized as a 2013 Undergraduate Research Excellence Fellow by the American Physiological Society. The selection is a tremendous achievement as Luke is one of only six students nationwide to be honored with this award. Luke was one of 64 students who received a UConn SURF award to fund undergraduate research. Check out the UConn Today article at http://today.uconn.edu/blog/2013/08/kinesiology-undergraduate-receives-national-research-award/.

U21 Undergraduate Research Conference in Amsterdam

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During a week in July, some of the world’s best undergraduate researchers had an opportunity to get to know each other, learn more about research, and explore one of the world’s great cities.

54 undergraduates from 21 universities around the world divided their time  between exploration of Amsterdam on bicycles and sharing details of their research projects with each other and 14 accompanying faculty and staff members. Junior, Julianne Norton, and May 2013 graduate, Stefanie Walker, were selected to represent UConn as research presenters. Read more …

UConn McNair Scholars Undergraduate Research Program

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Ronald E. McNAir
Ronald E. McNair (1950-1986) was a NASA astronaut and PhD in Physics that perished in the Challenger Shuttle Explosion.

The University of Connecticut’s Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program prepares talented, highly motivated UConn undergraduate students for doctoral studies in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) disciplines.

Federal TRIO Programs are educational outreach programs designed to motivate and support students from disadvantaged backgrounds.  As part of UConn’s TRIO programs, the McNair Scholars program is open to low-income, first-generation students, or those from populations underrepresented in STEM graduate fields.

McNair Scholars are paired with faculty mentors for academic enrichment, research, and internships. Students also participate in workshops, seminars, and conferences designed to help them secure admission to doctoral programs and obtain financial resources for graduate study.

The McNair Selection Committee will review applications to determine eligibility as mandated by federal TRIO guidelines.  Eligible candidates will be evaluated using the following criteria:

  • Need for the program
  • Academic preparedness
  • Demonstrated commitment to pursue post-baccalaureate study

Students who wish to apply for admission to the UConn McNair Scholars Program must meet eligibility requirements, have a minimum of 45 credit hours earned by the program start date and submit a completed application package. The Application package includes the following: Eligiblity form, Application form, Statement of Purpose, UConn transcript (unofficial), and two letters of recommendation. The application deadline is Friday, September 13, 2013 at 4:00pm. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

For further information, please contact Dr. Renée Gilberti, McNair Scholars Program Coordinator, at 860.486.5146 or via email to renee.gilberti@uconn.edu.

New Storrs Summer STEM Research Seminar Series for Undergraduates

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The Office of Undergraduate Research and the McNair Scholars Program have joined forces to organize four lunchtime STEM research seminars in June and July. We are grateful to our four speakers for participating in this new summer series.

All seminars are scheduled on Wednesdays, from 12 – 1 PM, in Rowe CUE 320.

This is a brown bag style seminar series. Light refreshments will be served.

June 12
Homer Genuino
5th year PhD student
Chemistry, CLAS  / The Suib Research Group
Nanomaterials and Technologies for Lab-Scale Environmental Applications 

June 19
Professor Barrett Wells
Physics, CLAS / Condensed Matter Physics
The Lowdown on High Temperature Superconductivity  

June 26
Associate Professor Nicholas Leadbeater
Chemistry, CLAS / The Leadbeater Group
It’s Easy Being Green: Clean, Fast, Easy Approaches to Preparative Chemistry    

July 24
Dr. Sara Patterson
Post-doc fellow
Reconstructive Sciences, UCHC / Center for Regenerative Medicine & Skeletal Development
Modeling Human Genetic Cartilage Disorders Using Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

We intend the seminars to interest and benefit undergraduate students working at the Storrs campus as interns in TIP (Technology Incubator Program) companies or doing undergraduate STEM research with support from the SURF (Summer Undergraduate Research Fund) Program or McNair Scholars Program.

The seminars are open to all undergraduates working or studying on-campus this summer.

 

Margaret Lamb, PhD                                 Renée Gilberti, PhD
Director                                                        Program Coordinator
Office of Undergraduate Research        McNair Scholars Program

 

Spring 2013 UConn IDEA Awards

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The Office of Undergraduate Research announces the recipients of UConn IDEA Grants in the inaugural competition conducted in Spring 2013. This is first round of the new award program, which provides funding of up to $4,000 for entrepreneurial ventures, community service, traditional research, or other creative endeavors. Proposals for the UConn IDEA Grants represented a variety of disciplines, ranging from fine arts to physics. Congratulations to the eleven undergraduates who have been offered UConn IDEA Grants!

Read about the eleven UConn IDEA Grant projects here.

Thank you to the faculty members who have agreed to supervise the UConn IDEA Grant students in their projects. Thank you as well to the faculty members and program directors who served as the initial UConn IDEA Grant Proposal Review Committee!

Office of Undergraduate Research
June 7, 2013

Call for Undergraduate Research Highlights – CUR Quarterly (Fall 2013)

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Are You an Undergraduate Researcher Whose Work Was Recently Published?

The Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) is looking for submissions for the “Undergraduate Research Highlights” feature of the Fall 2013 issue of the CUR Quarterly. “Highlights” consist of brief descriptions of recent (within the last 6 months) peer reviewed research or publications in scholarly journals. Publications must be in print and include one or more undergraduate co-authors. Let’s share the details of the great scholarly work by UConn undergraduates! Deadline for submission: June 14, 2013.

To be considered for publication as an “Undergraduate Research Highlight”, submissions must conform to a specific format and include the following:

  • Title of the article and full journal citation (inclusive pages);
  • A brief description (3-5 lines) of the research and its significance;
  • Title and department/program affiliation of the faculty member;
  • A brief description of the student co-author including year of study in which the student undertook the work, the opportunity through which the work was undertaken (independent study project, summer project, REU program, senior thesis project, etc.), and the current status of the student (graduate school, employed, still enrolled, etc.);
  • The source of funding for the work.

All submissions must be sent via the electronic submission form available at the following link: http://cur.networkats.com/members_online/submissions/substart.asp?action=welcome&cid=121.

Students with questions regarding the eligibility of their highlight should contact Highlights Editor Nicole Bennet via email at bennettns@appstate.edu. General questions regarding the submissions process should be directed to the CUR National Office at cur@cur.org or 202-783-4810.