Eligibility for UW-Whitewater URP Research Grants
The deadline for Spring Grant Proposals are May 4th, 2012 (for projects beginning in July 2012 into the 2012-2013 academic year). Applicants should first read the information below, and the link to submit an application can be found a the bottom of this page.
Have a grant already?
Applicants must:
- Be of sophomore status or greater as of Fall 2012.
- Have a UW-W cumulative GPA of 2.75 or higher at the time of application. (Exemptions to the minimum GPA requirement may be granted upon URP approval and mentor support. The mentor's letter of support must address the rationale for the exemption request.)
- Have the project endorsed by a faculty supervisor (here, faculty members are tenure-track, tenured faculty or academic staff members holding at least a 50% appointment). Exceptions may be granted on a case-by-case basis for faculty and academic staff with appointments less than 50% with three years or more of University of Wisconsin-Whitewater service.
- Be enrolled full-time in an undergraduate program during completion of project.
Guidelines For Grant Use
- Student investigator receives no salary/wages from the project. Books, software, small equipment, and other materials purchased with grant funds belong to the University. Funds must be expended following regular University guidelines and within University's fiscal year.
- Funds may be used for dissemination of project results. See FAQ page for more information.
- Use of human subjects or animals in the research must receive approval by the appropriate University committee. See FAQ page for more information.
- Projects which run beyond or span academic years require special justification.
Expectations
- All students whose projects are funded (including those with multiple authors) are expected to submit an abstract to and present their work at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) or the University of Wisconsin Symposium on Research and Creative Activities. Students may be held financially responsible for costs incurred as a result of a cancellation of a conference presentation.
- All students whose projects are funded are expected to present their results at the annual UW-Whitewater Undergraduate Research Day Program.
- Funded students will be asked to fill out a brief web survey.
- Failure to satisfy these expectations, without satisfactory explanation, will result in ineligibility for undergraduate research funding for the student and mentor for one year.
Review Criteria
- Project description is clearly written by the student in her/his own words, well designed and cost-effective.
- Student shows a strong interest in the project, and it fits into the student's academic and /or career plans.
- Project is realistic for the student's background, the time frame, and the amount of funding.
- Faculty supervisor supports the project and has an appropriate background for supervising the project. Faculty may supervise up to three projects per year.
- Project is likely to result in a paper, creative performance, visual art object, or academic project that can be presented to a professional/peer audience and/or published in a scholarly publication.
Sample/Model Proposal: Download an example of a successful proposal.
Proposal format
The student applicant will be responsible for the complete proposal package which will include the following:
1. The UW-Whitewater Undergraduate Research Grant Cover Page
2. A proposal up to 1000 words (approximately three pages in length, double spaced with 12 pt font). The proposal will include the following sections:
- A brief introduction including a statement of goals and objectives for the project. A clear research question appropriate for the discipline must be specified.
- An outline of the method or design for carrying out the project (should be the largest section of the proposal).
- A schedule for completing the project.
- A statement of anticipated significance of results (i.e. briefly describe possible outcomes of the project and why they are likely to be of interest).
3. A complete itemized budget form with an accompanying budget justification on a separate page. All anticipated supplies should be listed with their estimated costs. All travel costs need to comply with University travel reimbursement requirements. (Note that the budget should not exceed the needs of the project, normally up to a maximum of $500/grant or $1000/grant for undergraduate honors thesis research (or its equivalent thereof. See FAQ page for more information). Limited additional awards of up to $250 are available for projects that require research abroad. Special attention should be paid to the budget of larger requests).
4. A letter of endorsement from the faculty supervisor (maximum one page), briefly evaluating the scholarly merit of the student research project.
5. A current AR of the student applicant.
6. A current curriculum vitae of the faculty supervisor (the short format recommended by some granting agencies is acceptable).
7. A summary of outcomes of Undergraduate Research Awards sponsored by the same mentor in the preceding two years. These data are for program assessment purposes and will help us to maintain and increase funding for the program. Mentors, please fill in all cells for which you have information in the excel file you can download here. Please change the name of the file to your (the mentor's) last name before submitting it.
Proposal submission
Proposals need to be submitted through our online submission process. Please click on the following link to submit your application. The Undergraduate Research Committee (faculty/staff representatives from each college) will review applications and make recommendations to the Program Director. Project funding is for July, 2012 into the 2012-2013 academic year. All purchases must be made and/or reimbursed by April 15, 2013.
Deadline for Fall Grant Proposals: September 26, 2011; Spring grant Proposals: May 4th, 2012. Proposals should be submitted by 4 PM of the due date. For more information, see our FAQ page here.
