UROP Academic Year Awards
The Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) enhances undergraduate education by providing financial support to students: 1) writing a senior thesis, 2) carrying out research or creative projects, or 3) presenting research at conferences. Students may design their projects independently or propose a project related to some aspect of a supervising faculty member’s research. In either case, a regular faculty member (that is, teaching-and-research faculty or special professional faculty) must endorse the proposal and supervise the project. UROP does not support internships, coursework or political activity.
Participation in the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program is an intense educational experience that exposes students to the entire process of research, including: writing a proposal, conducting research, analyzing data, completing a final written report, and, in some instances, presenting completed research at a conference. A satisfactory project must be consistent with the standards of good scholarship. It should give evidence of a sophisticated grasp of a problem as well as an effective approach to that problem. In the social sciences, the project could involve collecting and analyzing new data or information, or reanalyzing, reinterpreting, or applying new techniques or methodologies to already existing data or formulated theories.
Deadlines: UROP Academic Year proposals have rolling deadlines; that is, applications are reviewed as they are received. However, the final deadline for all academic year proposals is: March 9, 2013.
*Proposals should be submitted at least three weeks prior to beginning the project and/or travel, and applicants should make sure to budget time for obtaining Internal Review Board (IRB) approval and/or travel approvals. Failure to obtain these approvals when they are required may delay your proposal’s review and approval.
*Graduating seniors are eligible to apply for a UROP grant but must submit their proposals for Research & Materials Grants and Senior Thesis Grants before their final semester actually begins. For seniors graduating in May, that deadline is: January 14, 2013.
Eligibility
Sophomores, juniors and seniors pursuing an undergraduate degree in the College of Arts and Letters are eligible for participation in the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program. Students who are minors in a department of the College of Arts and Letters can apply if the faculty supervisor of the proposed project is a member of the College. Neither a specific grade-point average (so long as the student is not on academic probation) nor extensive experience in the chosen research field is required. Graduating seniors are eligible to apply for a UROP grant but must submit their proposals before their final semester actually begins. Although freshmen are ineligible for UROP grants, ISLA staff is happy to work with them on developing a proposal for their sophomore year.
With the exception of seniors who may apply for both a Conference Presentation Grant and a Senior Thesis Grant or a Conference Presentation Grant and a Research and Materials Grant during the same academic year, students are eligible to receive only one Academic Year Award per academic year.
*Glynn students are required to seek funding from the Glynn Honors Program before applying for an ISLA UROP grant.
Direct questions to:
UROP Undergraduate Assistant
Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts
101 O'Shaughnessy Hall
