URCO

Undergraduate Research & Creative Opportunties (URCO)

Utah State University encourages undergraduates to explore their scholarly, creative, and research interests through URCO, a grant program that financially supports research—broadly defined—of undergraduates.

 

Orientation Days: Round 1
September 24, 2007 - 4-5 PM, Old Main 66
September 25, 2007 - 4-5 PM, Old Main 66

 

Orientation Days: Round 2
January 28, 2008 - 4-5 PM, Old Main 66
January 29, 2008 - 4-5 PM, Old Main 66

 

WHAT do we mean by research?

Research is broadly defined to encompass creating a sculpture, composing a piece of music, doing archival scholarly work, and working at the laboratory bench.

 

WHO may apply?

Any properly registered undergraduate student ingood academic standing may apply. Faculty may identify promising students, but the student is responsible for the application. The application must designate a faculty advisor.

 

WHAT does URCO support?

Research or creative projects which are not routine requirements for a course or degree program are eligible for support on a competitive basis. What is the Process? A faculty panel screens the proposals and selects the most meritorious. The review panel has these options:

 

• Vote yes to fund
• Request immediate revision and fund
• Recommend revisions and resubmission in next round
• Reject

 

URCO funds may be used to pay the costs of equipment, supplies, technical support or travel to do research. The funds may not be used to provide a stipend or other form of compensation to the student or advisor. Financial support for travel to a professional conference to report on the results should be requested through ASUSU Academic Opportunity Fund. Click HERE to apply.

 

HOW much are the awards?

The URCO portion of the award is limited to a maximum of $500; however, the student's sponsoring academic department must provide matching support; that means that a student could receive a maximum total of $1000 to support research. The departmental or college matching support may be in funds or "in kind" support. The budget specifies what amounts are requested.

 

WHAT do you submit?

Submit the following items ("1" through "6").

 

• Cover Page: Also be sure to fill out the URCO application either online or PDF fillable-see links below.
• Proposal: URCO applications should begin with an abstract. An abstract provides the reader with a quick overview of the proposal and helps them understand the point immediately. Describe the project, provide a rationale for conducting the work, and justify the proposed expenditures. Although a lengthy literature review is not required, previous scholarly work may be cited. Maximum length of proposal: 5 pages.
• Letter of approval from faculty advisor: indicating the faculty member (1) endorses the project, (2) serves as its advisor, and (3) has helped secure matching support for the project.
• Budget page: (1) State the total request. (2) State the amount requested from URCO funds (50% of total). (3) State the matching amount that your sponsoring department will provide (50% of total). (4) List the precise costs anticipated for each category of expenditure, indicating which costs will be paid by URCO funds and which will be paid by the sponsoring department. A brief workshop, "Managing Your Budget," is mandatory for URCO recipients.
  NOTE: URCO funds should not be used for research presentation. Funding for research presentation may be obtained through the ASUSU academic opportunity fund. URCO also does not include the cost of poster production.
• a. Documentation of matching support from department: Verify and detail the department's commitment of matching support. Matching support may be in the form of actual funds dispersed to the student through a University requisition; or, within-department support. Documentation of matching support must be signed by the person who authorizes such expenditures.
  b. Project deadline
• Project the venue for the student's public presentation of work: Possible venues include, but are not limited to: National Conference on Undergraduate Research; Undergraduate Research Day at the State Capitol; Student Showcase
• Insert pagenumber

 

WHERE are proposals sent?

Vice President for Research Office, Old Main 162, UMC 1450, or electronically to Dr. Kinkead at joyce.kinkead@usu.edu.

 

WHEN are proposals due?
Noon, October 15, Round I
Noon, February 15, Round II

 

Evaluation Criteria

Some of the criteria used to judge the applications include:

 

• evidence of research or creativity in a project design
• the study poses a researchable question and posits a hypothesis
• the promise that the project will be a significant learning experience for the student
• matching funds committed and clearly stated on cover page and budget page
• clear budget request
• application meets specifications and deadlines explained on previous page
• project timeline

 

Notification

Notification of awards should be received within two weeks of the proposal deadline.

 

Reporting

The final report should be 1-2 pages summarizing what was done and the results. Deliver final reports to the Vice President for Research Office (summarizing how the project was completed and delineating expenditures, including all receipts). Any unused URCO funds must be returned to URCO. URCO recipients will receive more detailed instructions on these reports. A link to samples is available below.

 

The deadline for the spring grants is September 15, and Fall grants April 15. Failure to close out the URCO grant officialy can result in holds being placed on records.

 

Academic credit

Academic credit may be awarded for work done under an URCO grant. In many departments it can be earned through registration for independent study or undergraduate research. Alternatively, credit may be earned through Honors 3900H by qualified students. As a general guideline, approximately 30 hours of work on a project would earn 1 credit hour. It is strongly recommended that students and advisors agree in writing on specific expectations for the awarding of academic credit and grading before registration for credit is completed.

 

Fund administration

Funds must be administered in accordance with general University procedures. Detailed instructions will be provided upon notification of award.

 

How to submit a successful proposal

First, work with your faculty mentor on a preliminary draft. Take advantage of sample proposals posted on the undergraduate research site. (Keep in mind that proposals can look quite different, depending on the discipline.) Attend one of the orientation programs scheduled a few weeks before the deadline. Submit a draft to Joyce Kinkead, Associate Vice President for Research, for review. Attend an orientation session, “How to Write an URCO Proposal," to assist you with drafting and editing the proposal.

 

Advice to Applicants:

The review panel is composed of faculty, some of whom may be outside your specific discipline. For example, scientists review scientific proposals; social scientists review proposals focusing on social issues, and so on. As a result of that, please explain the basic features of your project in language that any educated person could understand. Consider using side headings to mark the various sections of the proposal. Include a time line and visuals in the proposal if these might help your explication. The Review Panel will be looking for some evidence of "depth of interest" reflected in your proposal and/or the letter of support. How long have you been working in this area? What preparation, in course work and/or field experience have you had? This kind of preparedness issue is particularly relevant to creative projects. To what extent does the project reflect your own interests and career goals? Or, are you just carrying out someone else's research?

 

Always start with a rationale; why is this work important to you, your department, and your field. However, do be careful that in listing all the potential beneficiaries of this project you don't lose sight of its primary aim. Proposals should be focused. In a research proposal there should be a brief literature review that supports the rationale. For scientific proposals, reviewers expect to see a hypothesis. On the other hand, artists might present some of their work in a portfolio or sketch the proposed project. Demonstrate that you understand ethical issues surrounding the project.

 

Include an itemized budget with one column showing how URCO funds will be allocated and a second column showing how matching funds will be allocated. Make sure items in the budget are also indicated in the proposal. Supporting documentation must show clearly where matching funds will come from. Pay attention to feasibility issues. Persuade the panel that you have adequate dollar and faculty support, proper facilities, and that you can allocate sufficient time to complete this project. Make sure you discuss dissemination of this work; will it be presented at Student Showcase? At a conference? Performed or exhibited?

 

Finally, proofread and have others help you proofread. A Model of a Successful Proposal is available below.

 

Proposal Model Examples:

Example 1 (html)
Example 2 (word)
Example 3 (word)
Example 4 (word)
Example 5 (word)

Sample Report (Part 1) (word)
Sample Report (Part 2) (word)
Sample Report (Part 3) (word)

 

Application Forms

Cover Page (.pdf)
Cover Page (word)
Cover Page (excel)

 

URCO Recipients

Spring 2004
Fall 2004
Spring 2005
Fall 2005
Spring 2006
Fall 2006
Spring 2007
Fall 2007

 

Back to top