|
Call
for Proposals
Undergraduate
Research Awards
for Spring and/or Summer
2009
The Division of Undergraduate Academic
Programs (DUAP) will provide $750-$1,000 stipends (based upon quality and
merit) to a selected number of undergraduate students and up to $300 for
operating cost (non-salary) to their supporting NC State University faculty for
undergraduate research projects for Spring and/or Summer 2009. Last year, 128 students
received this prestigious research grant award. The deadline for applications
is midnight, October 28, 2008. Only electronic
submissions through the Fellowship advising web portal (http://www.ncsu.edu/fao) will be
considered. For those selected to
participate, a brief but mandatory information session describing expectations
and reporting mechanisms will be held in November. Students who are awarded
stipends are expected to participate in a future NC State Undergraduate
Research Symposium, held each spring semester and in the summer, see (http://www.ncsu.edu/ugrs/). NC State students may also present at the
State of NC Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium in November each
year or publish in the NC State Undergraduate Research Journal.
Eligibility
All
NC State undergraduate students enrolled in at least 6 hours are eligible for
this funding; there is no GPA requirement, but students must have the
commitment (and recommendation) of a tenured or tenure-track faculty sponsor
for their research, or the Department Head’s approval. A letter of recommendation from the mentor
must be submitted online by the mentor. Because
the objective of providing these stipends is to seed interest and involvement
in research, priority for receiving this award is given to students who have
not been previously funded by the Office of Undergraduate Research. Students who are awarded a summer stipend but
complete requirements for graduation in the spring lose their eligibility to
retain the award. If a student has
already received an award from the Office of Undergraduate Research and desires
a summer internship, information may be found on our web site (http://www.ncsu.edu/undergrad-research/)
under Student Opportunities. Students
may also schedule an appointment with our office to discuss other options for
student research.
Application
To
apply for the research award grants, students must first register as Advisees on the Office of Fellowship
Advising Web Gizmo (FANG) Portal at (http://www.ncsu.edu/fao). All proposals must be submitted through this
web portal to be reviewed. Three forms
to be completed will be found within the site for each college award. The
first form is information on the student and the mentor. On the application
form, students must describe the proposed research project along with its
importance and implications for advancing disciplinary knowledge. Students
should develop a research plan that includes the question being addressed;
hypothesis, problem, or engineering goals; description in detail of method or
procedures; and a statement of the importance and implications for advancing
disciplinary knowledge. Students should show a link between their research and
their curricular interests, although the research does not have to be in the
student's major. On the last form, students must develop a budget of projected
expenses associated with their research. These expenses should not include any
salary funds. This form is used by the
Office of Financial Aid to determine impact on any University financial aid
support of the student. Students must
identify a faculty sponsor for the project proposal to submit a recommendation
and who has agreed to serve as the official mentor of the project and to
attend, with the student, the mandatory meeting of all grant participants.
STEPS TO APPLY:
1.
Register as “Advisee” on the Office of Fellowship Advising Gizmo (FANG) at http://www.ncsu.edu/fao
2.
Find
the site for your college award by doing a Text
Search under the Program Directory for Undergraduate Research Proposal or “URP”
3.
Create
your workspace for this proposal at the bottom of any of the tabs for the
college award
4.
Find
the proposal forms to download under “Resources”: Information Document, Proposal Document, and
Budget Document
5.
List
anyone that you would like to review your proposal under “Advisors”. This gives them
access to your workspace.
6.
List
your mentor for the recommendation and send the mentor their login information
under “References”. Notify your mentor to accept an email from
“FANG – Do Not Reply”. This will provide
the login and password needed to submit the recommendation for you.
7.
Complete
the documents and upload them within the “Portfolio”
section for Completed Information and Final Proposal and Final Budget by the deadline of
Tuesday, October 28, 2008.
Criteria for Selection
Criteria
used for selection of students include
- Details of the
experimental goals, design, methods and expected results
- Evidence of how
its results will be used
- Appreciation for
the value of research in the chosen discipline
- Connections
between the project and candidate's curricular interest
- Recommendation
by the research mentor
Payment
For
spring awards, payments will be made in one installment at the end of January. For summer awards, payments will be made in
late April. If the award is for the
spring and summer, the award will be split into two payments, one in late
January and the remainder in late April. Payments will be distributed through the
Financial Aid Office and into student accounts. Faculty operating cost supplements will be
deposited directly into their departmental accounts and must be accessed through
their department. Faculty supplements
will be made in January for students requesting awards for the spring and
spring/summer. Faculty will receive
supplements in late April for summer-only research students.
Additional Requirements and Understandings
- Only tenured or tenure-track faculty are
eligible for the faculty supplement.
- The student must complete the research
project proposal found through their College Proposal link on the NC State
Fellowship Advising Web Site (http://www.ncsu.edu/fao). Proposals must be uploaded into the
student’s workspace to be reviewed.
- Part of the intent of this award is that
students get to spend quality research time with a faculty mentor, which
precludes a faculty member from taking on a large number of students. If a team of students are working on the
same project, only $300 will be awarded to the faculty member as operating
costs for the team.
- Students who are enrolled in at least
six hours of undergraduate study at NC State may be eligible for the award
even if they are off-campus for the semester (e.g., enrolled in an
international exchange program)—provided they have the consent and
participation of a tenured or tenure-track faculty member at NC State and
provided they meet all other conditions of the award.
- Students as well as faculty will
complete a brief report at the end of the semester for which they accepted
the research award.
- A student may earn a maximum of $1000 in
this award period (spring and summer 2009). The combined spring and summer
award is designed for students whose research requires more time than a
single semester would permit; the award would be a maximum of $1000 for
the combined semesters.
Reports
At
the end of the project, the student and faculty mentor will each complete a
brief, separate, confidential evaluation of each other’s work as well as an
evaluation form.
|