NCSU Summer 2008 Undergraduate Research Grants:
Call for Applications
Proposal Overview
The
Office of Undergraduate Research, Division of Undergraduate Academic Programs,
is pleased to announce two Summer 2008 grant opportunities: (1)
Undergraduate Energy-Related Summer
Research Grants of $3,700 with $300 as operating dollars for the student’s
mentor; this award is funded by the Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate
Studies, and Progress Energy, Inc. (2) This second grant
opportunity, Undergraduate Summer
Research Grant, is open to undergraduates of any discipline and is not
restricted to energy-related research; the award stipend for summer 2008 is
$3,700 with $300 as operating dollars for the student’s mentor. Students who are currently supported by
Energy-Related Grants or a Research Awards Grant from the Office of
Undergraduate Research may apply for continuing support, but they must
demonstrate strong progress in the research already funded. New first-time applications are encouraged.
The deadline for applications is Monday (midnight), February
18, 2008. Only electronic submissions will be
considered. For those selected to
participate, a brief but mandatory information session describing expectations
and reporting mechanisms will be held in early March.
Students who are awarded grants are expected to
present their research at the NC State Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium
on July 31, 2008 and encouraged to participate in a future NC State
Undergraduate Research Symposium, held each spring semester (see http://www.ncsu.edu/ugrs/ ). NC State students may also present at the
State of NC Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium in November 2008 at
Appalachian State University, the April 2009 NC State Undergraduate Symposium,
or publish in the Undergraduate Research Journal of NC State University.
Eligibility
Only NC State undergraduate students may apply;
there is no GPA requirement, but students must be in good academic standing and
have the commitment (and signature) of a tenured or tenure-track faculty
sponsor for their research, or the Department Head’s approval. A letter of recommendation is required from
the mentor. The objective of providing
these stipends is to seed interest and involvement in energy-related research
as well as research in any discipline.
Individual students who have not received other NC State Research Awards
will receive priority consideration, but if few applications are received then
previous winners will be considered provided that they can demonstrate
excellent progress in the prior supported research. Students who expect to graduate in May 2008
are not eligible for this summer award. Awardees
are expected to participate in a 10-week summer program involving 40 hrs of
work per week. Students are not able to take summer school classes in addition
to this research. Students are
encouraged to look at the NC State Office of Undergraduate Research http://www.ncsu.edu/undergrad-research/
website for
other options for student research or schedule an appointment with our office
to discuss opportunities.
(1) Energy-Related Research is defined here as faculty
mentored scholarly research that can involve team efforts in addressing new or
improved energy innovations in fossil fuel use, plug-in hybrid transportation,
power transmission, energy distribution, wind and nuclear energy, combustion, photovoltaics, topics related to sustainability,
environmental impact, exploration for new sources, consumer-based conservation
and use, public marketing of new sources and uses, and development of public
education tools related to energy production, use, conservation, etc.
(2) General Disciplinary
Research is
defined as faculty mentored scholarly research that can involve individual or team
efforts in addressing important topics within or allied to the student’s and
mentor’s research discipline.
Application
On the application form, students must describe the research
project along with its importance and implications for advancing either energy-related
knowledge (the Energy Awards) or any disciplinary research (the general
disciplinary topic Undergraduate Summer Research Awards). Students should
develop a research plan that includes the question being addressed; hypothesis,
problem, or research goals; description in detail of method, procedures, or
design; and a statement of the importance and implications for advancing knowledge
in the selected discipline. Students should show a link between their research
and their curricular/career interests, although the research does not have to
be in the student's major. Students must develop a budget of projected expenses
associated with their research. The
budget will be submitted as a separate document at the time of the application. Students must identify a faculty sponsor for
the proposal 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.
Criteria for Selection
Criteria used for selection of students include
·
Details
of the experimental / creative project 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 and the awards review committee
Payment
For this Summer 2008 award, $3,700 in payment will be
made in one installment the end of May 2008.
In addition, $300 as operating support for the student will be provided
to the faculty mentor as a direct deposit to the mentor’s department. Faculty operating supplements will be provided
by late April 2008.
Additional Requirements and Understandings
1.
Tenured or tenure-track faculty
are eligible for the faculty operating cost supplement. Non-tenure track
faculty may receive the operating cost supplement with a supporting letter from
the department head.
2.
The student must complete the research project
proposal found through their College 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.
3.
Part of the intent of this award is that
students spend quality research time with a faculty mentor, which precludes a
faculty member from taking on a large number of students. Typically a
one-on-one student and faculty partnership is required with the expectation
that the student will conduct independent research that may contribute
significantly to a larger group or departmental research mission.
4.
Students as well as faculty will complete a
brief report at the end of the summer for which they accepted the research
award.
5.
A student may earn a maximum of $3,700 with
this summer 2008 award.
Application Submission
You will need to upload your completed application within http://www.ncsu.edu/fao for consideration of the award grant. To
submit your application, you must register as an Advisee User and complete the student profile. Once
registered, enter the Program Directory and do a Text Search for the NC State Summer 2008 Undergraduate
Research Grant. Create a new Workspace
within the Portfolio section and upload your application. Step-by-step
details will be on the NC State Summer 2008 Undergraduate Research Grant site.
Your mentor must enter the letter of recommendation through the FAO web portal
once his/her contact information has been entered as a “Recommender”.
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 online assessment form.
Application
deadline is midnight on Monday, February 18, 2008.
Additional information and proposal submission on the World Wide Web at: