Undergraduate Research Grant

Undergraduate Research Grant 

The ATU Center for Undergraduate Research (CUR) invites students to submit applications for funds to support faculty-mentored independent research. Funding for undergraduate research projects includes up to $2,000 in project support (including supplies and travel). In place of a stipend, students will receive a $250 award upon completion of the project. Students may submit an application at any point throughout the academic year. Grants will be awarded on the merit of the project and subject to approval by the CUR committee.  

Note: the CUR operates on the fiscal year calendar, therefore, grants are subject to the budget and available funds. If a student applies and there are no available funds, that student may submit the application at the beginning of the fiscal year (July 1st) for consideration. 

Following is a description of the support available and application process. Applications should be submitted to Dr. Jeanine Myers and the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs at any time during the academic year. Please e-mail jmyers32@atu.edu with any questions about the grants or the application process. 

Applications for Undergraduate Research Scholars (URS) in ALL academic disciplines will be considered for funding. Applications may focus on investigation of questions of interest to the faculty mentor. URS awards are subject to the following conditions. 

  1. URS applicants are required to have a faculty mentor with an appropriate project supported by the proposal. A mentoring plan will be required as a component of the proposal.

     
  2. URS will present their results in the Arkansas Tech University Senior Honors and Student Research Symposium (student presentations are preferred). This will serve as a forum for presentation and discussion of research and dissemination of results.

     
  3. A maximum of $2,000 is anticipated for the URS awards to cover the cost of materials and travel expenses. After the URS award is approved, budget transfers between different categories will not be allowed. Therefore, the proposal's budget should be prepared according to the needs in each category. All requisitions for items previously approved on the grant application must be done when the funds are dispersed.

     
  4. A final report overviewing the research project and its findings must be submitted to the Undergraduate Research Office by the end of the semester during which the project was completed. Final reports will be uploaded into the University Commons system hosted by the library for record.  
 *All travel must be in accordance with current ATU policies in effect during the grant period and approved by the department head, dean, and VP. These funds are not intended to pay for faculty travel, only the student. If travel arrangements should change after a budget has been approved, the recipient and mentor should submit a revised budget reflecting these changes.
 

Upon completion of the project, the student is required to submit a final report in order to receive the $250 award.

REVIEW PROCESS

An URS Award review committee consisting of ATU faculty and administrators will use the following criteria to evaluate faculty research proposals. 

  1. Quality of the student applicant as measured by GPA and potential/plans for graduate education and a research career.

  2. Scientific or academic merit of the proposed research.

  3. Appropriateness of the scope of the proposed activity in the grant period.

PROPOSAL OUTLINE

Section I.         Project Description (not exceeding six pages)

  1. Rationale for the Project

  2. Activities to be Completed

  3. Student Mentoring by Faculty Member (explain the mentoring plan, including a brief schedule)

  4. Written Outputs (agree to submit a final report and mention other plans to present, publish and submit a grant   proposal for external funding)

  5. URS statement on why he or she is deserving of the award and his or her interests and plans for graduate education and a research career

Section II.        Budget Justification

Section III.       Faculty resume not exceeding three pages.
                         Student resume not exceeding three pages.

For additional information, contact: jmyers32@atu.edu.

 

UnderGraduate Research Grant Committee

 

Dr. Jeanine Myers

Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs

Director, Center for Undergraduate Research

Professor of Mathematics

jmyers32@atu.edu

 

Dr. Jessica Young

Assistant Director, Center for

Undergraduate Research

Associate Professor of Physics

 

Surya Jyoti Banerjee, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences