Students

Grants

The Office of High Impact Practices and Undergraduate Research (HIPUR) is committed to enhancing student engagement with high impact educational practices, particularly undergraduate research. One way we do this is through grant opportunities that directly and indirectly support USF's undergraduate Research Scholars. Please see our current grant opportunities below, which are being funded through the generosity of the Florida High Tech Corridor and USF Research & Innovation.

Undergraduate Studies: Summer AIR Grant

Program Summary
The HIPUR office is pleased to announce the Summer AIR grant. AIR stands for Arts and Interdisciplinary Research. The Summer AIR grants provide a unique opportunity for students to create and present their artistic and interdisciplinary research at the Summer Research that will be held July 27, 2023. 

Benefit to Undergraduate Student Researchers
The Summer AIR program is designed to support undergraduate research in the historically underfunded areas of the arts and inter-disciplinary research.

Available Funding 
Funds are available in variable amounts of $50 - $500. Funds may be used to offset the cost of printing a 4' x 3' poster, to travel to research sites, or purchasing materials for their research.

Funding Examples
There are certain things the grants will and will not cover. Following are some examples. This list is intended as a general guideline and is not all-inclusive.

The grants may be used for purchasing tangible items necessary for your research such as these:

  • Art supplies for a study comparing light reflecting qualities of various materials
  • Music supplies for a study examining historical changes in rhythm
  • Teaching materials for an interdisciplinary study examining the efficacy of pre-teaching ESL students from various cultures.
  • Testing supplies and transportation or mileage reimbursement for an interdisciplinary study examining the quality of drinking water in various communities in Florida.

The grants may NOT be used for purchasing items necessary for your research such as these:

  • Any type of food, even for that used as part of a legitimate research study
  • Salaries or stipends
  • Lodging expenses

Application Instructions
Apply here. The application period ends June 30, 2023 or when funds are exhausted.

MUMA College of Business:  MUMA College of Business Honors Program

Program Summary
The Business Honors Program (BHP) is one of the most prestigious programs in the Muma College of Business and was established to inspire passion and nurture exemplary potential in students.  Our program blends rigorous coursework and research activities with special residential, service, international, and applied learning opportunities found inside and outside the classroom.

Benefit to Undergraduate Student Researchers
Students are required to write an undergraduate thesis (work with a faculty member credentialed in the area of study) and present their work at the USF Undergraduate Research Conference held in the spring of each year.

Available Funding
Students in the junior and senior years can apply for funding to attend the annual USF Undergraduate Research Conference in the Spring to pay for their professional poster costs.

Application Instructions
Students must apply and meet eligibility requirements to be in the BHP.  Only after being accepted into the BHP, during their junior year would they be eligible for the reimbursement for research costs (i.e. poster costs).

College of Nursing: College of Nursing Biobehavioral Lab Training Program

Program Summary
Students participate as volunteers for 10 hours per week in the lab. During the first semester there are 4 weeks of training, then volunteers participate in ongoing research for 10 hours/week when they are available. Students learn procedures like DNA and RNA extraction, ELISA, Cell culture then assist with ongoing projects. If they choose to continue for a second semester, they receive 0-credit research hours for their volunteer efforts. The 3rd semester they become trainers and will be paid through the Corridor funding to train and mentor the next group of volunteers and work in leadership positions within the lab.

Benefit to Undergraduate Student Researchers
The biobehavioral training program not only teaches students with no laboratory experience the basics of biobehavioral research and laboratory techniques, but also gives them the opportunity to participate in real-world research ongoing in the College of Nursing. We provide leadership opportunities for those that show aptitude and responsibility. As students progress in skill and leadership within the lab, they begin to contribute more substantially to research projects and may develop their own area of interest to pursue.

Available Funding 
Students who complete the training and then volunteer in the lab are eligible to receive $15/hour in their 3rd semester to teach basic lab techniques to new volunteers and mentor students or lead initiatives in ongoing projects in the lab.

Application Instructions
Interested students should an email to Dr. Stephanie Prescott stating their research interests and experience as well as their major and year. New volunteers are accepted at the beginning of each semester.

College of the Arts: Interdisciplinary Summer Arts Research Scholarship 2023

Program Summary

The USF College of The Arts (CoTA) seeks applications from undergraduate students who wish to gain interdisciplinary research experiences over the summer May -July 2023.  Students will work collaboratively on an experimental research project,  Music and Visual Art Training on Creativity and Cognition in Children (8-12 years).  

The purpose of this project is to examine the effects of two creative arts interventions (visual art/painting and jazz piano training) on creativity, cognition, and neural processing in children.  

Benefit to Undergraduate Student Researchers
Students will work as an interdisciplinary team over the summer to complete a project that includes training opportunities in arts instruction, intervention design, research protocols, recruitment, standardized measures, data entry, statistical analysis, and manuscript preparation.

Available Funding 
$1,000 per student

Application Instructions
Complete the application form.

College of Education: Educational Research in the Classroom & Beyond: The College of Education Undergraduate Summer Research Academy

Program Summary
The purpose of this funding proposal is to pilot a model for expanding student participation in undergraduate research opportunities by developing and delivering a Summer Research Academy for undergraduate students across our three campuses, particularly targeting those who plan to pursue an advanced degree with the goal of creating a pipeline for more undergraduate students to engage in research.  The Academy will include 10 training sessions offered once a week for 2-hours beginning the week of May 15, 2023 and ending the week of July 17, 2023.  

Benefit to Undergraduate Student Researchers
Training components will address the Corridor’s three strategic pillars: 1) Serve the Underserved: Student participants will meet with school district and community partners to learn about specific problems of practice for high-need and vulnerable populations; 2) Cultivate Community-Driven Innovation: Discussions with school district and community partners will engage students in learning ways to support a bottom-up approach to research collaboration, and 3) Boundary-Breaking Collaboration: Students will meet and engage with faculty from across the College, providing opportunities for research collaborations beyond those related to specific undergraduate programs.

Available Funding 
Ten undergraduate students will receive formal training in research.  Students will apply for one of the 10 slots for this training and applications will be reviewed by a College committee, and selected participants will be notified.  

Application Instructions
Visit: bit.ly/USF_SRA_2023
Application deadline: Monday, April 17, 2023
For more information please contact:
Dr. Kathy Bradley-Klug: kbradley@usf.edu

College of Behavioral and Community Sciences: Undergraduate Research Scholarships and Summer Research Institute

Undergraduate Research Scholarships
The Undergraduate Research Scholarships are sponsored by The Moms Project and the Florida High Tech Corridor. The Moms Project was established to honor the moms of three CBCS faculty who shared a passion for mentoring undergraduate students in research.

  • The Alice Armstrong Scholarship is awarded to a student conducting research in the area of substance abuse and its impact on families.
  • The Ruth Boothroyd Scholarship is awarded to a student conducting research in nutrition and well-being.
  • The Ellen Nizzi Scholarship is awarded to a student conducting research on positive aging across the lifespan.
  • The Florida High Tech Corridor initiative scholarships are awarded to students conducting research on these and other related areas of behavioral and community sciences.

Students are eligible to apply for these Undergraduate Research Scholarships if they are (1) an undergraduate student pursuing a major or minor in CBCS; (2) conducting supervised research projects that can be completed in 1-3 semesters; and (3) collaborating with a CBCS faculty member and/or doctoral student who will serve as a research mentor for the undergraduate student. Scholarships of up to $1,000 are awarded to successful applicants. More info can be found on this page.

Summer Research Institute

The Summer Research Institute (SRI@FMHI) is an 11-week program designed for students interested in building their research skills within the context of substance use and co-occurring disorders to help them prepare for a senior thesis and/or graduate school. The SRI@FMHI consists of four components: an independent research project conducted with guidance from a distinguished faculty mentor; research seminars; professional development seminars; and skill-building workshops. Selected students are awarded a $4,400 research stipend and up to $1,000 in funding to support the research project and research related expenses. More information can be found on this page.

College of Arts & Sciences: Undergraduate Research Fellowship in Visualization, Virtualization and Simulation

Program Summary
The USF College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) is establishing a new transdisciplinary, pan-campus network of faculty researchers and scholars with expertise in all aspects of visualization, virtualization and simulation (CAS VVSN) including digital societies and culture, digital heritage, 3D virtualization science, digital museum collections & virtual museums, human dynamics, forensic analysis, prosthetics and orthopedics, climate and natural hazards simulation, geospatial imaging and molecular visualization and simulation. The CAS VVSN leverages several existing core facilities including Center for Digital Exploration (IDex) and Access3D as well as researchers and scholars across three schools within CAS (School of Humanities, School of Social Sciences and School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics) to develop research and scholarship across OneUSF. 

Benefit to Undergraduate Student Researchers
The CAS VVSN initiative strengthens USF in areas of strategic emphasis as degrees relating to VVS lead directly to high paying employment in AI, machine learning, data science, digital archiving, simulation and modeling, etc.

Available Funding 
The program will offer 12 undergraduate fellowships x $750 per stipend = $9,750 total. 

Application Instructions
The application is scheduled to launch Feb 1st. Faculty will identify undergraduates to nominate. Nominations will be evaluated through a review committee established within the CAS Office of Research & Scholarship.  Guidelines include the following:

  1. Research & scholarship is to be interdisciplinary across multiple schools and campuses.
  2. The program will involve rotations through multiple faculty clusters.
  3. Participation from underrepresented groups is a priority.

College of Engineering REU Matching Opportunity

The College of Engineering has awarded limited funds from the Florida High Tech Corridor Matching (FHTC) program to match the funding for 20 engineering REU students over the summer semester. The hourly rate for COE’s match is $11 per hour (matched amount: $4.4 per hour) for 10 hours per week for a maximum of 12 weeks of the summer semester (recommended appointment time: May 15th to August 4th).

All students participating in this opportunity must register for a course with 0 to 3 varying credits titled “Advanced Undergraduate Research Experiences” or a similarly titled course. Please ensure the student is registered for the course for Summer A or B, or C before approving their application. Only one REU student per faculty will be eligible for this limited opportunity.

The students should apply through the College's REU application Qualtrics: www.eng.usf.edu/REUApplication 

 

Tampa Conference Presentation Grant Program