Academic Year Research Grants

Students can apply for a research grant to offset the costs of conducting research during the fall, spring or summer. Funding can be applied toward supplies, recruiting research subjects or travel for archival work. Other activities may be approved. Students can apply for up to $500 per semester.  Candidates must be current or returning students in order to be eligible for a URC research grant. Graduating students must have all expenses submitted for reimbursement a month before their graduation date.

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  • Eligibility
    1. Any Arts & Sciences undergraduate student is eligible to participate.
    2. Each applicant will need to have an Arts and Sciences faculty member who is willing to supervise his/her project.
    3. Projects may range from an idea that the student would like to pursue on his/her own, to a joint student-faculty project in which either student or faculty member is the principal investigator, to a project that is part of the faculty member’s ongoing research program. Capstone projects for schools outside of A&S will not be funded.
    4. In all cases, however, the project must be one in which the student has significant involvement. The undergraduate research committee does not fund faculty research assistants.
    5. If the application is for funding to continue a project previously funded by the undergraduate research committee, no award will be made unless the applicant submits a progress report relating the previous work done to the currently proposed stage of the project.
  • Items That May Be Funded
    1. Special equipment, materials and supplies (limited to those items not normally provided by the student’s major department).
    2. Charges for services not normally supplied by Information Services and the University libraries (e.g., special computer costs, literature searches).
    3. Individually initiated travel to special collections, libraries, archives, research facilities, research sites and other special resources. Costs that may be covered include transportation, lodging and meals with receipts (no per-diem).
    4. Limited photocopying (e.g. surveys to be distributed, limited copies needed for distribution for coders). Photocopying will not be considered an alternative to note taking and must be specifically justified in the proposal.
    5. Grants will not be awarded to fund tuition at other educational institutions, domestic or abroad.
    6. Students conducting research may use funds to pay participants to take part in their research projects. 
  • Procedures
    1. Applications for an undergraduate research grant must be typed on the application form provided for that purpose.
    2. Applications must be accompanied by a letter of endorsement by a supervising faculty member.  The letter may be emailed to Robert Plymale in the Arts & Sciences Dean’s Office or the student may deliver the letter in a signed, sealed envelope to Robert Plymale in the Boatwright Admin Wing, room 011.
    3. A separate application is required for each project for which a grant is requested.
    4. Grants to support research will normally not exceed $500. Larger grants may be considered depending on the quality of the proposed research and the availability of funds. However, a compelling argument must be made in order to justify the need for a larger grant and the committee may not fund the full amount requested.
    5. An application may be submitted individually or jointly by two or more eligible students. Students working on the same project who submit separate proposals describing individual contributions may apply for up to $500 each. The budget should clearly indicate the total budget for the project and the amount requested by each student.
    6. If a research proposal involves use of animal or human subjects, final approval of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee or Institutional Review Board for Protection of Human Subjects must be obtained before an award will be made.
    7. Students must submit the application to Robert Plymale in the Arts & Sciences Dean’s Office. Deadlines are posted for each round of applications. A first round of applications is accepted prior to the start of a semester and, if funds are available, a second round of applications will be considered after the semester has started. A BannerWeb transcript must be included with each proposal.Proposals will not be reviewed if the transcript is not included.
    8. Applications are evaluated by the undergraduate research committee composed of the Associate Dean of Arts & Sciences and faculty members representing the broad areas of the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. The Associate Dean of Arts & Sciences will notify applicants in writing of the committee’s decision concerning their application.
    9. At the time a grant is made, an expiration date will be established consistent with the projected timetable contained in the application. Extensions beyond the original expiration date may be granted by the committee upon petition by the recipient. To receive consideration, such petitions must be endorsed by the supervising faculty member.
    10. Sometimes the committee will feel that a project appears worthy of funding, but will have specific questions regarding the design of the project or particular aspects of the application. In that case, the student will be asked to submit a new application, making special note of the committee’s questions or concerns.
    11. As a condition of receiving a grant, a student must agree to present his or her research findings at the Student Symposium held in April of each year. Although this is an obligation connected with the grant, it is also an opportunity for the student to receive due recognition.
  • Disbursement
    1. Research supply costs, up to $500.00, directly paid by the student, can be reimbursed by the A&S Dean’s Office. Or Research supply cost, up to $500.00, can be charged on the departmental P-Card.
    2. The student’s faculty mentor may request an advance on Chrome River, if research grant funds are needed to pay participants. The faculty mentor will be responsible for clearing the advance with Accounts Payable. Or participants payments cost, up to $500.00, can be charged on the departmental P-Card.
    3. The Accounts Payable Office will not issue reimbursement for any receipts that are over 60 days old.
    4. Funds will not be available for student use beyond the expiration date established at the time of the award. All funds remaining in the student’s account will revert to the University upon the expiration date. The expiration date may be extended upon petition to the undergraduate research committee.
  • Conditions
    1. An applicant may not be reimbursed for an expense before an application is approved.
    2. Whenever feasible, equipment, materials, and supplies are to be purchased through the University Purchasing Agent.
    3. Special equipment and materials, and unused supplies become the property of the University at the conclusion of the research project and should be included in the regular inventory of the department concerned. Photocopies become the property of the department concerned. Books become the property of the University library.
    4. A recipient of a grant who leaves the University or is dropped from a program must return all unexpended funds to the University.
    5. Any publication resulting from a project supported by a grant shall include an appropriate acknowledgement of assistance from the University of Richmond and a copy of the publication shall be forwarded to the committee.