Undergraduate Research Program Application

Application Guidelines

The application is the responsibility of and must be written by the student proposing the project, not the faculty member with whom the student will be collaborating. The proposal must include a clearly defined set of goals for the proposed research that are achievable during the summer months, well-defined research methodologies, and a convincing demonstration that some degree of intellectual collaboration exists between the student and faculty member in both the formulation and conduct of the project.

The proposal should be written so that it is understandable to those whose area of specialization is outside that in which the proposed research is to be conducted. It is important that the application criteria (see below) are clearly addressed. Grammatical lapses and spelling errors will negatively influence the committee’s impression of the proposal. In keeping with the objective of clarity, the process and methods by which the project is to be undertaken should also be clearly evident to the members of the advisory committee.

PART I: Cover Page, to include:

  1. Title of the Project
  2. Student Name and Class Year
  3. Campus Address (Box #) and Cell phone #
  4. Email Address
  5. Student BUID
  6. Name, Department, and Email Address of Faculty Mentor

The cover page is to be signed by the student and mentor.

PART II: Limit the following to three single-spaced word-processed pages, using 12 point font.

A: The outcomes or goals of the proposed research must be clearly stated.
The question being addressed or innovation that is being pursued should be able to be readily identified by the advisory committee. Merely gaining experience in a given field is an insufficient goal or outcome for a successful proposal.

Project description, including methods and anticipated outcomes.
It must be clear to the advisory committee how the research is to be conducted, and the feasibility of the proposed methodology must be evident. A recognition of time constraints is important in designing a project that can achieve meaningful results during the course of the summer. Regardless of what is proposed, a logical connection between process and outcome must be evident to the advisory committee.

Finally, the advisory committee will look for a concrete product that is anticipated to result from the research, such as a book or paper, poems, choreography or dance, or a set of experimental results along with their synthesis and explanation, a conference presentation proposal, or manuscript for publication in a scholarly journal.

B: Describe the research environment.
Contact and communication between student and mentor is expected to be both regular and substantive throughout the project. The frequency with which the student and mentor interact, and the general availability of the mentor will be important factors in selecting summer fellows. The advisory committee wishes to promote a high degree of intellectual engagement between student and mentor, and will look for evidence that such a relationship will exist.

The facilities should be appropriate for the kind of work to be done. Specify where the work is to be performed, indicating the dates or frequency of any use of off campus sites. Project proposals in which the student and faculty member are in different sites and/or are communicating, for example, only by e-mail, are strongly discouraged.

C: Faculty Endorsement. (To be written and signed by the faculty member, then submitted separately from the student’s proposal. Endorsement letters will be accepted electronically, as a pdf attachment.) The faculty member who intends to collaborate in the proposed project should submit, under separate cover, a confidential realistic description of his/her involvement in the formulation and implementation of the project, and a detailed description of the method of the collaboration with the student including the nature and frequency of their interaction over the period of the project. The faculty member should conclude with a brief description of

a) how the project relates to his/her scholarship,
b) how the student is particularly qualified to undertake the proposed work,
c) and how the faculty member perceives the project will benefit the student.

Note: If the proposed project involves human or animal subjects, it is the faculty advisor’s responsibility to obtain any required IRB or IACUC approvals.

Please submit proposals to Gretchen Fegley, Office of the Provost , gfegley@bucknell.edu. Applications will be accepted electronically, as a pdf attachment.  The deadline for submission is Friday, February 8, 2013. Applicants will be notified of the selection committee's decision by Thursday, March 7, 2013.

FURTHER INFORMATION: Contact Gretchen Fegley, Office of the Provost, x73655, gfegley@bucknell.edu.

OTHER RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES: Although the Bucknell Summer Research Program offers a limited number of stipends, it by no means is the only source of funding for summer research. Many departments and individual faculty members obtain funds to support undergraduate research students during the summer.

Proposals Due: Friday, February 8, 2013