At USU, mentoring of undergraduate research is explicitly recognized as potential evidence of efficacy or excellence in University Policy 4004: Tenured and Term Appointments – Evaluation, Promotion, and Retention. Specifically, 405.2.2 (1) lists “evidence of mentoring inside and outside the classroom, including work with graduate or undergraduate researchers.”
Much of your mentoring activities will be documented through student employment, course enrollment (such as 4900 and independent study courses), and in outcomes like student publications and presentations. The Office of Research can also supply documentation for any participation in our programs, including but not limited to mentoring or reviewing student grants, symposia, fellowships, and internships.
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Mentor Awards
USU rewards excellence in undergraduate research mentoring through the endowed Peak Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year awards selected by each college. The University-wide Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year is selected from among the college winners.
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National Organizations
National awards for undergraduate research mentoring are also made by some professional societies and by the Council on Undergraduate Research, and its divisions:
- Arts and Humanities (endowed by our own Dr. Joyce Kinkead)
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Math and Computer Science
- Geology
- Physics and Astronomy
- Psychology
USU is an institutional member of CUR, which allows our students to participate in their events and apply for various scholarships and opportunities. Individuals can purchase membership in CUR is only $103 per year and connects you to a wealth of resources for mentoring in your discipline. USU encourages faculty who wish to run for divisional leadership roles to do so – limited support (with the expectation of departmental or college matching) is available to faculty members or teams wishing to participate in CUR activities, such as conferences, institutes, annual business meetings, or workshops.
Research Advancement
Undergraduate researchers can make important contributions to your creative or scholarly work. This is true even in disciplines where the traditional lab- or field-assistantship model does not provide a blueprint for training novice researchers under the guidance of more experienced student and faculty researchers.
Co-publishing, presenting, exhibiting, or performing with students means additional items for your CV and demonstrates a commitment to collaborative models, which are rapidly becoming the gold-standard in numerous fields of research, from business, to health-sciences, to the arts.
Major granting institutions, both governmental and private, value undergraduate research mentoring as part of their commitment to developing the next generation of researchers. Examples include
- NIH Research Enhancement Awards (R-15): stated goals include “exposing students to research”
- NSF Career Awards: undergraduate research can be important evidence for “an integrated path that will lead to a successful career as an outstanding researcher and educator”
- NEH Humanities Connections Planning Grants – specifically focus on developing research based, interdisciplinary curricula for undergraduates
The Division of Research Development within the Office of Research can help you identify further opportunities to leverage your UR mentoring activity in the competitive grantwriting arena.
Mentoring undergraduate researchers as part of a team can mean giving your graduate students additional support and the career-building opportunity to become mentors themselves. Undergraduates may take a little time to train, but they are often willing to volunteer their time during the initial learning phase, and further along can be compensated either with credit or with wages (remember, you can post UR assistant positions as open to Federal Work Study eligible students, which really leverages your student-employee budget).