Undergraduate Research Award
Every year, the Teaching Academy of the University of Arkansas provides an award to as many as three undergraduate research projects that demonstrate excellence and reflect the commitment of the University of Arkansas to quality undergraduate education. Although most submissions are Honors theses, any undergraduate student and research mentor can submit work for award consideration. The student must have primary responsibility for the research project. The award recipients and their research mentors will each receive $1000. The work of award recipients will also be also be eligible for publication in the undergraduate research journal Inquiry, if the manuscript meets Inquiry submission guidelines. Otherwise, changes in length and format may be required.
The deadline for submission is May 1, 2009.
Guidelines for manuscript preparation
· Manuscripts must be no more than 40 pages in length, including references and figures. While thesis work in some disciplines often exceeds this page length, students and their mentors must make decisions about what best represents the work prior to submission.
· Manuscripts must use Microsoft Word with12 point Times New Roman font, and no less than 1 inch margins on all sides.
Submissions must include the following:
- Two copies of the actual research paper
- An electronic version of the paper (please use Microsoft Word or PDF format of a document using the above-described font) to be e-mailed to the editor at bshadde@uark.edu
- A completed information form including contact information for the student and mentor. This form should be included with the print manuscript and also e-mailed to the editor bshadde@uark.edu
- A letter from the research mentor explaining why this work is meritorious and deserving of award consideration. University of Arkansas students engage in scholarships in a wide range of disciplines. The Mentor Letter provides the review committee with some perspective on the work's contribution in the specific discipline represented. In this letter, the mentor should address the following points:
- The specific nature of the student's involvement in the research project (and the nature of involvement of any others contributing to the work)
- The importance of the research in terms of its contribution to the discipline
- The uniqueness of the work, if applicable
- The originality of the work (i.e., is it a topic of project that the student selected independently or is it work that fits into existing research of the thesis mentor or other faculty)
- The reason(s) why this work should receive a Teaching Academy Award
- Please do not submit other letters of support
The deadline for submission of all materials is May 1, 2009.
Since we have chosen to extend the deadline this year, several locations are provided for drop-off of print materials. These include the Wally Cordes Teaching and Faculty Support Center at HAPF-703 and the Speech and Hearing Clinic (410 Arkansas Avenue). Since the deadline extends past commencement, authors should contact each of these offices prior to drop-off.
· Cordes Teaching and Faculty Support Center 575-3222
· Speech and Hearing Clinic 575-4509
Research submissions will be reviewed by Teaching Academy members and notified as soon as possible.
If you plan to submit your work for award consideration, it would be helpful if you e-mailed Dr. Barbara B. Shadden (bshadde@uark.edu) indicating your intent.