Undergraduate Research Initiative

Undergraduate Research Initiative

1. Overview

At Carnegie Mellon, undergraduates are building mobile robots, examining ground-breaking chemical compounds, creating documentary films for public television, investigating cultural trends, and developing new digital communications technology. Through our innovative undergraduate research program students at all levels and in all disciplines are involved in the research process.

The National Science Foundation recently commended Carnegie Mellon for its undergraduate research model through a "Recognition Award for the Integration of Research and Education." This award recognized that, through engagement in the research process, our students:

establish mentoring relationships with faculty members
increase their self confidence
learn about the process of conducting research and unstructured problem solving
acquire skills working in groups
gain a more focused sense of their interests and career goals

Undergraduate research experiences bring students into the heart of the University's intellectual community, allowing them to discover the often messy process of creating new knowledge. In all fields, independent exploration encourages students to take an active role in their education and become life-long learners.

To prospective employers, this means our students are better prepared to enter the job market where, now more than ever, they will be required to make independent decisions, work in teams, and solve problems with minimal supervision. Finally, our own research confirms that experience conducting a large, independent project with a faculty mentor also fosters a sense of empowerment and generates enthusiasm for graduate school, research-oriented careers and work in academia.

Founded in 1989, Carnegie Mellon's Undergraduate Research Initiative quickly became a national model for its:

inclusion of students from all fields in the research process
involvement of first and second year students in research
emphasis on group and inter-disciplinary team projects
support for student-initiated projects
focus on the entire research process, from writing grant proposals to presenting at national conferences
inclusion of non-science and engineering students in science and engineering research

The Undergraduate Research Initiative offers several grant and fellowship programs, ethics training, advising services, seminars, and an annual undergraduate research symposium. These programs (described further on page three) provide an excellent opportunity for partnerships through direct support of students' projects and participation in our endowment campaign.

2. Rationale

The Undergraduate Research Initiative builds on the strengths of Carnegie Mellon's departments and colleges by offering programs that complement and support those already in place. For example, the Initiative recognizes all students involved in research including those enrolled in departmental Independent Research courses and college Senior Honors Programs. The hallmark of our programs is inclusion rather than exclusion.

Similarly, the Initiative encourages the participation of students traditionally not associated with research. Unlike many programs, the Undergraduate Research Initiative actively seeks first and second year students for whom such early research experiences can have an enormous impact on retention and career decisions. While undergraduates must be in good academic standing to participate, our programs are not limited to the "best and brightest" students. Where most programs treat research as a "capstone" experience, the Initiative involves students from all fields and levels and encourages student teams, cross-disciplinary and interdisciplinary projects.

Finally, the Initiative remains committed to process rather than product; the process of actually doing a research project is far more important than a final product. While we require a final report and encourage students to complete their work, we realize that the real benefits of conducting research lie in learning to formulate a hypothesis, to develop a research plan, to present findings, and to overcome unexpected set backs while continuing to move forward.

3. The Program

All undergraduate students conducting research with a faculty advisor are eligible to participate in the Undergraduate Research Initiative. The term `research' is defined broadly to mean "Research, scholarly, or artistic activities that lead to the production of new knowledge; to increased problem solving capabilities, including design and analysis; to original critical or historical theory and interpretation; or to the production of art or artistic performance." Students from all fields and at all levels are encouraged to participate in the research process.

The Initiative offers several grant and fellowship programs, advising services, ethics training and an annual undergraduate research symposium. Each is described below.

Small Undergraduate Research Grant [SURG] Program: SURG grants are awarded competitively to students conducting independent research and creative projects. Undergraduates must have a faculty advisor and submit a brief proposal describing the objective and significance of the project. Grants are generally limited to $500 a student per semester and are used to purchase materials and supplies, rent time on laboratory equipment, or even pay experiment subjects. Students are informed of their sponsor and these grants may be named and/or endowed.

SURG Fellowships: These fellowships provide full stipend support for students conducting research at Carnegie Mellon during the summer months with a faculty advisor. At least eight $3,000 fellowships are awarded each summer providing intensive, full-time research experiences. Students participate in summer programming with over 150 other undergraduates conducting research on campus.

Presentation Awards: A Presentation Award is available to any undergraduate whose work has been accepted at an academic conference. Students may apply for up to 75%—to a maximum of $250—of the total cost of attending the conference. Approximately sixteen awards are made each year.

Undergraduate Research Symposium: This symposium provides an opportunity for all students conducting independent research projects to present their findings. At the 1998 "Meeting of the Minds" 315 students presented posters, gave talks, sat on panel discussions, exhibited art, showed videos, displayed electronic media projects, and competed in several research competitions.

Advising and Information Services: The program director advises students on all aspects of conducting research from finding a faculty mentor to applying for credit. The Initiative an annual Research Directory and maintains an electronic bulletin board on the campus computer network listing up-to-date information on programs, research conferences and special research opportunities.

Research Directory: Published annually by the Initiative, the Research Directory contains a complete listing of Carnegie Mellon faculty and their areas of research expertise, research interests and current projects. The Directory, which also lists the University's research centers and research institutes, is available throughout campus and may be searched on the world wide web (www.cmu.edu/adm/uri/).

Ethics in Research Program: Through the Ethics in Research Program, students have the opportunity to study discipline-specific case studies and explore issues in their own work. Students attend a series of seminars and participate in on-line discussions.

Undergraduate Research Seminar Series: This series provides students with timely information and discussion opportunities on topics such as "Preparing for a Presentation" and "Intellectual Property Rights."

4. Support for Student Projects

Research experiences are an integral part of undergraduate education at Carnegie Mellon. The University has invested heavily in the Undergraduate Research Initiative's infrastructure and has launched an endowment campaign to ensure long term stability for the program. The Initiative has also forged many partnerships with corporations, foundations, and individuals who recognize the impact that these research experiences will have on our future leaders in business, government, the arts and education.

In recent years the Initiative has responded to increasing student demand for research opportunities through the generosity of corporate and foundation donors including Merck, Inc., Allied Signal, GM Foundation, Andersen Consulting, Motorola, Intel, the National Science Foundation, Howard Hughes Medical Initiative, Howard and Nell E. Miller Foundation, GE Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, ARCO, Lubrizol, Raymond Wean Foundation, United Technologies, TRW, Inc., Lilly Foundation, Eden Hall Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Carnegie Bosch Institute, Information Networking Institute of Carnegie Mellon University, and gifts from faculty, staff and alumni.

Contributors to the endowment campaign include: the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, the Donald E. Stitzenberg (S'63) Undergraduate Research Fund, the William H. and Frances S. Ryan Undergraduate Research Fund, the Natale A. Christiano (E'39) Undergraduate Research Fund, the Procter & Gamble Technical Undergraduate Research Endowment, the Lathers Local #33 of Western Pennsylvania Undergraduate Research Fund, the Jill Van Wart Hood Undergraduate Research Fund, and our alumni, faculty, staff and friends.

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