Undergraduate Research in the Social Sciences Institute
Next Offering: February 8-10, 2013 -- Stetson University, DeLand, Florida
Application Deadline: January 4, 2013
Link to Application - Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis and may fill prior to application deadline!
The Institute will assist teams of 3-5 faculty and administrators in developing transformative opportunities for undergraduate research in the social sciences.
Team Activities:
- Learn about successful models of undergraduate research developed by and for scholars in the social sciences;
- Address challenges to student engagement in undergraduate research
- Learn about the value of undergraduate research in the social sciences, in terms of student learning, retention and post baccalaureate outcomes
- Compile best practices for mentoring, administering, and funding undergraduate research in the social sciences
- Learn about assessment methodologies and tools to measure the impact of undergraduate research in the social sciences
Building on the information shared at the institute and working in close collaboration with a team facilitator, institute teams will leave with an action plan to bring back to their campus to strengthen and grow undergraduate research in the social sciences on their respective campuses. Although not required, teams will be encouraged to establish interdisciplinary action plans both within and beyond the social sciences to best leverage resources on their campus.
Institute sessions:
- Mentoring undergraduate research in the social sciences
- Models of undergraduate research in the social sciences
- Integrating undergraduate research into the curricula
- Models of undergraduate research in the social sciences: community based research and using secondary databases
- Ethical issues for students conducting human participant research
- Internal and External Funding for undergraduate research in the social sciences
- Developing a Social Science (or discipline specific) Research Center—examples and variations on an interdisciplinary theme
- Building undergraduate research into promotion and tenure
- Promoting undergraduate research at your institution
- Assessment of undergraduate research
Goals:
- Providing teams with models and best practices of undergraduate research in the social sciences – faculty development strategies, curricular models, funding resources, assessment methods, etc.
- Discussing strategies to prepare students for undergraduate research in the social sciences, especially with regard to statistical training and ethical standards
- Highlighting distinctive and successful approaches to undergraduate research, such as community-based research, use of secondary data, and establishing a social science research center
- Sharing the challenges and barriers to establishing a successful undergraduate research program in the social sciences and suggested ways to overcome them
- Identifying ways to incorporate the outcomes of undergraduate research in the tenure and promotion process
- Discussing ways to promote undergraduate research both on and off campus
- Providing possible funding sources and infrastructure models to build a supportive academic culture and systems for maintaining undergraduate research in the social sciences
- Sharing assessment results and methods to demonstrate the impact of undergraduate research in the social sciences on students, faculty and the institution.
Teams typically consist of at least one academic administrator, one or more department chairs, and several interested faculty members. Questions may be addressed to the CUR National Office (
cur@cur.org or 202-783-4810x204). Enrollment is limited so apply early.
A $50.00 application fee is due at the time of application. Should you be accepted to attend the Institute, your application fee will be applied to your tuition fees. In the event that CUR does not accept your application, the $50.00 application fee will be refunded. Should you withdraw your application or elect not to participate in the Institute, the $50.00 application fee will be forfeited. An application fee must be paid for each individual on the team. In the event that team members are changed, the application fee may be transferred. Should a team member drop out, their application fee will be forfeited.
Upon notification of acceptance, CUR will invoice your institution for the amount of $675 per accepted participant (CUR Institutional Members) or $925 (non-CUR Institutional Members). If you are not sure whether your school is an institutional member please refer to the list of institutional members by clicking here or contact
CUR's Membership Coordinator. A $50.00 credit will appear on your invoice for any application fees received. The registration fee includes all sessions, materials, and meals (Friday evening through Sunday noon).
To guarantee that a place is held, payment for the institute must be received in the National Office by this date, unless prior arrangements are made with the National Office. Participants that have not paid may be dropped from registration, unless payment arrangements have been made with the National Office. In the event that a participant is dropped from registration, the application fee will not be refunded.
Should your team need to cancel or any individual member of the team cancel,
the National Office must receive written notice of the cancellation thirty calendar days prior to the start of the Institute. In the event of a cancellation application fees will not be refunded. Cancellations received before the cancellation date will not be held responsible for registration fees, however the application fee will not be refunded. Participants canceling after this date will be responsible for the full registration fee. Institutions may not substitute one participant for another without prior approval of the National Office.
CUR always suggests that their registrants purchase low-cost travel insurance when booking their air reservations. Not only will this insurance cover your airfare in the event of cancellation but will also cover the registration cost for the meeting you were to attend. Ask your travel agent about it.