awards

• Upcoming Application Deadlines for Summer Research Experiences

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Early December marks the time when you should be thinking about….Summer!  Many research programs have their application deadlines in January and February. If you wait until Spring Break to start looking, you will miss some of the most exciting opportunities.

Many summer programs use the acronym “REU” or Research Opportunity for Undergraduates.   REUs typically offer a summer stipend of $4000 to $5000, as well as housing for the summer! Other Summer positions can have a variety of different names–Fellowships, Internships, and Co-ops.  Don’t worry about what it’s called–just get the experience!

Department of Homeland Security – STEM Summer Internship Program
Deadline: January 6, 2014; http://www.orau.gov/dhseducation/internships/

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security sponsors a 10-week summer internship program for students majoring in homeland security related science, technology, engineering and mathematics (HS-STEM) disciplines. The program provides students with quality research experiences at federal research facilities located across the country and allows students the opportunity to establish connections with DHS professionals. Undergraduate students receive a $5,000 stipend plus travel expenses for a 10-week research experience.

Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships (SULI)
Deadline: 5:00pm, January 10, 2014; http://science.energy.gov/wdts/suli/

The Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship (SULI) program encourages undergraduate students to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers by providing research experiences at the Department of Energy (DOE) laboratories. Selected students participate as interns at one of 15 participating DOE laboratories.

Summer ORISE Fellowship Opportunities at the CDC
Deadline: January 17, 2014; http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/dls/orise.html

Appointments through the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) Fellowship Program. This is a paid research opportunity for biology and chemistry majors.

Amgen Scholars Program 
Deadline: February 3, 2014; http://www.amgenscholars.com/

The Amgen Scholars Program provides undergraduates with faculty-mentored summer research opportunities in science and engineering fields at 10 host universities in the United States.

Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies – Summer REU Program
Deadline: February 5, 2014; http://www.caryinstitute.org/students/reu-program

Cary Institute’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program provides the opportunity for 8-12 students each summer to conduct quality research in ecology. Selected students receive a $6000 stipend, a $600 food allowance and housing in an Institute dormitory.

Biomedical Engineering Summer Internship Program (BESIP)
Deadline: February 9, 2014; http://www.nibib.nih.gov/training-careers/undergraduate-graduate/biomedical-engineering-summer-internship-program-besip

The NIBIB sponsored Biomedical Engineering Summer Internship (BESIP) is for undergraduate biomedical engineering students who have completed their junior year of college. The internship will allow students to participate in cutting edge biomedical research projects under the mentorship of world-class scientists in NIH laboratories in Bethesda, MD. Stipend of approximately $6600 for 10 weeks. Applications open on Dec. 1, 2013.

Additional information on off-campus research opportunities is available here.

• Announcing New Research Internship Program at UConn Health Center

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The Office of Undergraduate Research is pleased to announce a new research internship program for UConn undergraduates – the Translational Research Internship Program. This summer research internship is designed to provide undergraduate students with greater insight into the physician-scientist career path (combined M.D./Ph.D). Students will conduct research under the direction of a faculty member at UCHC while gaining a better understanding of the clinical side of medicine by shadowing a physician/surgeon. The program will allow students to see firsthand the interplay of biomedical research and clinical medicine: how clinical medicine influences and inspires basic research and how basic research translates into therapies used in the clinic.

For information on eligibility, funding, and the online application, visit the Translational Research Internship webpage.

• Call for Proposals: Roper Award for Research Experience (RARE)

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The Roper Award for Research Experience (RARE) is a subcategory of the SHARE (Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts Research Experience) Award. SHARE and RARE are designed especially for students in the earlier stages of their college careers, to introduce them to research in their chosen fields and to develop the skills they will need for further research projects.

Many UConn students don’t realize that The Roper Center for Public Opinion Research is located on the Storrs campus. The Roper Center is one of the world’s leading archives of social science data, specializing in data from surveys of public opinion.

RARE is designed to encourage faculty and undergraduates to use the resources of the Roper Center in undergraduate research and creative projects. Students will spend 10 hours per week during the spring semester working on a project with a faculty member. Ideally, the RARE partnership will continue past the spring semester, allowing both the faculty mentor and student apprentice to continue the project, potentially leading to a more independent role for the student or a thesis project.

Funding: During the spring semester, student apprentices will receive a $1,500 stipend (paid out as an hourly wage) and faculty mentors will receive a $500 professional development stipend.

RARE Teams: RARE teams consist of a faculty mentor and a student apprentice who apply jointly for the program.  Faculty members are encouraged to recruit student apprentices to work with them on a potential RARE project, and students interested in the program may also approach faculty members to express their interest in a potential project.

Deadline: RARE Applications (both Faculty and Student applications) must be submitted by 4:00 pm on October 28, 2013. Additional program details and a link to the Faculty and Student applications are available online at http://ugradresearch.uconn.edu/rare/.

 

 

• Call for Proposals: Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts Research Experience (SHARE) Awards

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The Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts Research Experience (SHARE) Award is a research apprenticeship program designed especially for students in the earlier stages of their college careers. A SHARE project serves as an introduction to research in a chosen field and helps students develop the skills they will need for further research projects. SHARE awardees spend 10 hours per week during the Spring semester working on a faculty project.

SHARE provides faculty members with eager assistants for their projects, allowing faculty members to focus on their own research interests while introducing future researchers to the realities of research in their discipline. Examples of SHARE apprentice duties include, but are not limited to, performing library research, assisting with experiments, coding and/or analyzing data, and conducting and/or transcribing interviews.

Funding: During the spring semester, student apprentices will receive a $1,500 stipend (paid out as an hourly wage) and faculty mentors will receive a $500 professional development stipend.

SHARE Teams: SHARE teams consist of a faculty mentor and a student apprentice who apply jointly for the program.  Faculty members are encouraged to recruit student apprentices to work with them on a potential SHARE project, and students interested in the program may also approach faculty members to express their interest in a potential project.

Deadline: SHARE Applications (both the Faculty and Student applications) must be submitted by 4:00 pm on October 28, 2013. Additional program details and a link to the Faculty and Student Applications are available online at: http://ugradresearch.uconn.edu/share/.

 

 

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

2013 Summer Undergraduate Research Fund (SURF) Awards

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SURF is the biggest undergraduate research competition administered by the UConn Office of Undergraduate Research. I am delighted to announce that 70 UConn undergraduates have been offered SURF awards for this summer. Members of the faculty review committee commented on how strong the field of 91 applications was this year. SURF applications require research proposals of high quality.

Congratulations to the SURF awardees! Your academic achievements, creativity, and enterprise were ever so evident in your applications. Have fun with your research this summer!

Thank you to the faculty members who supported SURF applicants: mentors, letter writers, and faculty review committee members! SURF represents a collaborative effort between students and faculty. SURF would not exist without the support and participation of faculty members!

Thank you, too, to SURF supporters in the UConn community. Deans of UConn schools and colleges and the Provost’s Office helped to fund the SURF competition this year. Alumni, parents, and friends of UConn also helped fund SURF awards. Our community quilt of funding ensures that SURF supports a diverse array of UConn undergraduate research!

Once again, congratulations to those students offered 2013 SURF awards.

Margaret Lamb, Ph.D.
Director, Office of Undergraduate Research

 

 

 

UCONN IDEA Grants – A New Opportunity for UCONN Undergraduates

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The UConn IDEA Grant Program is a new competitive opportunity for undergraduates at the University of Connecticut. UConn students at all campuses and in all majors can apply for a UConn IDEA Grant of up to $4,000 to fund self-designed work on a topic, project, problem, artistic product or performance, or other entrepreneurial or creative idea of choice. The work should be personally meaningful, relevant, and engaging. The work does not need to be tied to a student’s major or minor, but it should be guided by a student’s academic goals and future plans. Students may apply individually or as part of a small group for this new undergraduate opportunity for creativity, innovation, original research, and service.

Read about UConn IDEA Grants in UConn Today and in the Hartford Business Journal!

In the pilot phase of the program, the Office of Undergraduate Research will make 10-15 awards in Spring 2013 and 20-25 awards in Fall 2013. (April 1st: Yippee! We’ve received 24 applications for UConn IDEA Grants! Can’t wait to read the proposals!) The initial UConn IDEA Grant projects will be planned in Summer 2013 with work done in Fall 2013. The second competition for UConn IDEA Grants will take place in Fall 2013. Those who are chosen for awards in Fall 2013 will plan their projects in Spring 2014 and then do their work in Summer 2014.

The UConn IDEA Grant Program has been designed to be flexible enough to support very diverse types of projects. During the pilot phase of the program (spring 2013 and fall 2013) we want program guidelines and best practices to be developed and refined through discussions with students, supervisors and mentors, advisors, and other members of the UConn community. We want UConn IDEA Grants to become a program that is valued by our whole UConn community for the creativity it encourages and the opportunities it provides undergraduates to produce great work. Your participation in making this new program a success will be most welcomed and appreciated.

Have a great idea and develop it as a UConn IDEA!

Margaret Lamb
Director, Office of Undergraduate Research
April 2013

February 2013 Application Deadlines!

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Intersession and early in the spring semester is the perfect time to make your plans for next summer. Many research programs and other relevant opportunities set deadlines in January and February. The people who run summer programs want to make sure that they have time to choose their candidates and then give everyone time to plan the practicalities.

So … now is the time to get your applications ready!

Many summer programs use the acronym “REU” or Research Opportunity for Undergraduates. These opportunities may provide a summer stipend of $4000 to $5000, and free room and board for the summer!

Other summer positions can have a variety of different names – “fellowship,” “internship,” “co-op,” or “associate.” Look at the full variety of titles and find the experience that will be super for you!

Feb. 1 deadline:

Feb. 5 deadline:

Feb. 8 deadline:

  • AP-Google Scholarship – $20,000 scholarship award, open to freshmen, sophomores, and juniors interested in digital journalism.
  • Environmental studies internship, US EPA,Office of Children’s Health Protection & Environmental Education, Washington, DC.

Feb. 9 deadline:

Feb. 11 deadline:

  • American Heart Association, Founders Affiliate Undergraduate Student Summer Fellowship Program, based in affiliate labs (including at UCHC) in NY, CT, and MA.
  • Tibor T. Polgar Fellowship Program, NY Department of Environmental Conservation. Research on the Hudson River.

Feb. 13 deadline:

Feb. 15 deadline:

Feb. 22 deadline:

Feb. 28 deadline:

SHARE Awards 2013

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The SHARE program supports undergraduate research projects in the social sciences, humanities, and arts. We are pleased to announce the 20 awardees for the Spring 2013 semester.  Congratulations!

Project Title: Beyond Nation States
Student Apprentice and Major: Matea Batarilo, Political Science
Faculty Mentor and Department: Prakash Kashwan, Political Science

Project Title: When the Courts Make History: the Impact of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Latin America’s Conflict Zones
Student Apprentice and Major: Kattie Bonilla, Political Science and Individualized Major: Latino Immigrant Women to the U.S.
Faculty Mentor and Department: Luis van Isschot, History and Human Rights

Project Title: Altering Health Incentives through Health Independent Systems
Student Apprentice and Major: Shavonda Brandon, Economics
Faculty Mentor and Department: Dennis Heffley, Economics

Project Title: Could a Union Save This Planet? Coding and Analyzing ‘Sustainable Development’: Perspectives of the IUCN Members
Student Apprentice and Major: Carl D’Oleo-Lundgren, Political Science and Individualized Major: International Relations
Faculty Mentor and Department: Prakash Kashwan, Political Science

Project Title: The New Normal: Goodness Judgments of Non-Standard Speech Variants
Student Apprentice and Major: Julia Drouin, Speech Language and Hearing Sciences
Faculty Mentor and Department: Emily Myers, Speech Language and Hearing Sciences

Project Title: A Study of Teachers’ Questioning Sequences in Reading Instruction
Student Apprentice and Major: Rebecca Duchesneau, Secondary Social Studies Education and History
Faculty Mentor and Department: Catherine Little, Education

Project Title: Teacher Questioning and Student Responses: Promoting Higher-Level Thinking
Student Apprentice and Major: Sarah Forte, English Education
Faculty Mentor and Department: Catherine Little, Education

Project Title: Discourse in Linguistically Diverse Mathematics Classrooms
Student Apprentice and Major: Chelsie Giegerich, Elementary Education; English Concentration
Faculty Mentor and Department: Mary Truxaw, Curriculum and Instruction

Project Title: Hunger Amidst Plenty: Social Mobilization on the Right to Food in India
Student Apprentice and Major: Syeda Haider, Political Science
Faculty Mentor and Department: Shareen Hertel, Political Science

Project Title: Latina/Latin American Transnational Narratives of War and Violence
Student Apprentice and Major: Krisela Karaja, Spanish and English
Faculty Mentor and Department: Guillermo Irizarry, Literatures, Cultures, Languages

Project Title: Contemporary Indian Art
Student Apprentice and Major: Julianne Norton, Psychology
Faculty Mentor and Department: Kathryn Myers, Anthropology

Project Title: Divorce and Well Being
Student Apprentice and Major: Hagar Odoom, Human Development and Family Studies and Political Science
Faculty Mentor and Department: Edna Brown, Human Development and Family Studies

Project Title: Gullah Voices: Watch Night
Student Apprentice and Major: Cristobal Ortega, Journalism and Fine Arts: Concentration in Photography
Faculty Mentor and Department: Mary Junda, Music

Project Title: Caribbean Documentation Project
Student Apprentice and Major: Chelsea Pajardo, History and Psychology
Faculty Mentor and Department: Fiona Vernal, History

Project Title: Gullah Voices: Traditions and Transformations
Student Apprentice and Major: Emily Palumbo, Music and Marketing
Faculty Mentor and Department: Robert Stephens, African American Studies

Project Title: Provision of Emotional Support to Increase Pumping Duration in High Risk Mothers
Student Apprentice and Major: Rebecca Paquette, Nursing
Faculty Mentor and Department: Jacqueline McGrath, Nursing

Project Title: Shared Parenting and its Influence on Post-divorce Fathering
Student Apprentice and Major: Shannon Perkins, Human Development and Family Studies
Faculty Mentor and Department: Kari Adamsons, Human Development and Family Studies

Project Title: The Role of Social Setting in the School Adjustment of Youth Attending Ethnic-Racially Diverse Schools: A Multi-Method, Multi-Dimensional Longitudinal Investigation
Student Apprentice and Major: Andrea Salazar, Human Development and Family Studies
Faculty Mentor and Department: Annamaria Csizmadia, Human Development and Family Studies

Project Title: Perceptual Processing in Individuals with Dyslexia
Student Apprentice and Major: Katlyn Salvador, Communication Disorders and Psychology
Faculty Mentor and Department: Rachel Theodore, Speech Language and Hearing Sciences

Project Title: When the Courts Make History: the Impact of the Inter American Court of Human Rights in Latin America’s Conflict Zones
Student Apprentice and Major: Jack Zachary, Political Science and Human Rights
Faculty Mentor and Department: Luis van Isschot, History and Human Rights

Fall Semester Funding Deadlines

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Happy Fall, Everyone !
There are two major funding programs at OUR that have deadlines in the Fall Semester, but provide funding in the spring semester.

SHARE (Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts Research Experience) Awards support undergraduate research projects in the social sciences, humanities, and arts.

In this research apprenticeship, students spend 10 hours per week during the spring semester working on a faculty project. Student apprentices will receive a $1500 stipend during the spring semester. The deadline to apply for SHARE is November 1st.

More information about SHARE

The other major funding program for the fall is RARE, or Roper Award for Research Experience.  Many students don’t realize UConn is home to The Roper Center for Public Opinion Research. The Roper Center is one of the world’s leading archives of social science data, specializing in data from surveys of public opinion.  RARE is designed to encourage faculty and undergraduates to use the resources of the Roper Center in undergraduate research and creative projects. Data held by the Roper Center range from the 1930s, when survey research was in its infancy, to the present. Over 50 nations are represented in addition to US data.

Students receiving RARE award funding will spend 10 hours per week during the spring semester working on a project with a faculty member, and receive a $1500 stipend.  The deadline to apply for RARE is November 30th.

More information about RARE