The Provost's Undergraduate Research Scholarship Program (PURS)
The Provost's Undergraduate Research Scholarship Program (PURS) provides talented UH juniors and seniors with the opportunity to participate in a research project under the direction of a UH faculty mentor. The deadline for the PURS Spring 2013 program is Friday, November 16, 2012 at 5 p.m.
Overview:
The Provost's Undergraduate Research Scholarship Program (PURS) provides talented UH juniors and seniors with the opportunity to enrich their undergraduate experience by participating in a research project under the direction of a UH faculty mentor. Scholarship recipients will receive a $1,000 scholarship to conduct one semester of research and engage in other scholarly activities with faculty members. This scholarship is open to students of all disciplines, including those with research proposals in the social sciences, humanities, business, engineering, technology, education, architecture, hotel and restaurant management, natural sciences, and any other academic fields offered at the University of Houston.
Who Is Eligible?
Any junior or senior who has either successfully completed at least 12 hours in residence at UH with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 OR who has completed fewer than 12 hours in residence at UH but has a 3.5 cumulative GPA on all college-level course work taken at UH or elsewhere is eligible to apply. Current sophomores who will be a juniors in spring 2013 are eligible to apply for the scholarship. Applicants must have earned at least 60 credits by the beginning of the mentorship period and must enroll in and maintain a minimum of 12 hours in the semester of the award unless they are undergraduate students graduating that semester. Students who have participated in the PURS program at UH in a prior semester are ineligible to reapply. Graduate students and post-baccalaureate students NOT pursuing a second bachelor's degree are not eligible for PURS.
PURS recipients' names, faculty mentors' names, research descriptions, and possibly photos will be included in the annual Undergraduate Research Day booklet and in other online and print promotional materials, such as the office's website, brochure, and Facebook page.
Specifics:
| Application Deadline | Friday, November 16 by 5 p.m. (CST) |
|---|---|
| Program Dates | Spring 2013 Semester |
| Disciplines | All |
| Eligibility | Juniors and seniors (determined by graduation date, not total hours) |
| Minimum GPA | 3.0 (at time of application) or 3.5 if total hours from UH is under 12 hours |
| Scholarship | $1000 payable at beginning of spring semester |
| Faculty Sponsors | All full-time UH faculty (this precludes adjunct faculty) |
| Requirements |
|
How to secure a research opportunity for the PURS program:
Applications:
The online application will include:
- A statement of research objectives and goals not to exceed 500 words,
- Three short answer questions about your academic and research experience,
- A letter of recommendation from the faculty sponsor including a description of how the proposed research relates to their on-going research.
An email version of the faculty letter should be submitted to
Office of Undergraduate Research no later than November 16. The letter
should be emailed to Karen Weber.
The statement of research should:
- Be composed in consultation with the faculty sponsor
- Be written in your own words—not in your faculty sponsor's words
- Be written in first person
- Discuss the relative importance of the proposed research within its discipline
- State the specific tasks to be accomplished during the semester program
- Define the scope and goals of the proposed research
- Be checked for any spelling or syntax errors before being submitted
Competitive applications generally include:
- Demonstration of strong student academic record
- Research proposals that are clear, thorough, within the 500-word limit, free of errors in spelling, grammar, and syntax, and in the student's own words
- Research proposals with clear, realistic goals that help the student focus and indicate that the project will lead to a substantive research experience for the student
- Descriptive and informative faculty letter of recommendation (1-2 pages in length), especially addressing the prospects for results in the project time frame, the value of the research project, and the ability of the student to undertake it
Please be aware this is a competitive program with finite funding, and the Office of Undergraduate Research receives many more strong proposals than they are able to fund. The staff of the Office of Undergraduate Research is unable to share specific information about the assessment of individual applications after the decisions have been made.
Students may not enroll in a course, such as a thesis course or an independent study, and receive a PURS scholarship at the same time and for the same research project.
How to Apply:
- Students who wish to apply for this program must first identify a UH faculty mentor, and then complete the online PURS application.
- The UH faculty member must submit a letter of recommendation that describes the student's qualifications; identifies the area of research, creative or scholarly activities in which the mentor will engage the student; and describes the faculty member's role as mentor to the student.
- The faculty letter of recommendation should be emailed to Karen Weber.
Please contact Karen Weber, the Program Director, or Stuart Long, the Associate Dean of Undergraduate Research, if you have any questions or if you require additional information.
