The UEC provides awards for up to $500 to support direct costs related to student research projects, including materials, supplies and equipment, travel, photocopying, and mailing expenses. These awards are meant for independent research and are not meant for course-related research. The UEC (a faculty committee) evaluates each proposal and makes decisions based on the clarity and completeness of the written proposal, appropriateness of the proposed budget, and strength of the recommendation from the faculty advisor. When applicable, awarded funds are not released until IRB, IACUC, or foreign travel approval documentation is submitted to enrichment@pugetsound.edu (see below for details).

Deadlines

Applications will be considered throughout the year on a rolling basis, as long as they are submitted by April 15.

Application

Application for these funds should be made to the University Enrichment Committee using the online form. The online application form includes several components:

  1. Budget. You should consult with your faculty advisors in order to prepare a budget. The budget should include a list of all anticipated expenses, an explanation and justification for each expense, and the expected cost of each item. Be explicit on all items listed. For example, "mailing expenses" should include the number of pieces at a specific cost; "travel mileage" should include number of trips and destinations (check with the Office of Finance for mileage reimbursement rates); "equipment" should list specific items with cost including sales tax; and "materials" should include quantities and include sales tax.
  2. Project description (maximum 500 words).
    1. Describe the research question(s) that you will try to answer. Students in the natural sciences and mathematics who are testing a specific hypothesis should state it clearly.
    2. Explain the significance of this research and how your study contributes to the big picture of research in your field of study. Non-expert readers should be able to understand the explanation of the purpose and value of your research.
    3. State the main objectives of your proposed research.
    4. Briefly describe your methods, showing how they will be used to address your research question or hypothesis. Students in the natural sciences and mathematics should describe any instrumentation that will be used to answer the research question or test the hypothesis. Students in the arts, humanities, and social sciences should specify whether quantitative or qualitative (or both) methods will be used.
    5. If your proposed research is part of an ongoing project, clearly state how your work will contribute to the larger project.
    6. Due to space limitations, illustrations, schemes, tables, and figures should not be included in this project description.
  3. References. List at least two references used to prepare your project description. These can be references that are highly relevant to the research, or references directly cited in your project description. For each reference, provide both a complete bibliographic reference and a brief (1-2 sentence) description of how the information in that reference relates to your project. This section does not count towards the 500 word maximum allowed for the project description.
  4. Faculty recommendation. Your faculty research advisor must submit an online recommendation form for your application to be complete.

Responsibilities of Award Recipients

Use of human participants. If your research will involve human participation of any type (for example, participation in experiments, interviews, or survey completion), you must obtain approval from the IRB before carrying out your research. Research award funds will not be released until you provide (to enrichment@pugetsound.edu) proof that the IRB has approved your research protocol. The IRB approval process can take a month or longer, so plan accordingly. For more information, visit the IRB page.

Use of nonhuman vertebrate animals or cephalopods. If your research will involve nonhuman vertebrate animals or cephalopods, you must obtain approval from the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) before carrying out your research. Research award funds will not be released until you provide (to enrichment@pugetsound.edu) proof that the IACUC has approved your Student Project Animal Use Protocol. The IACUC approval process can take a month or longer, so plan accordingly. For more information, visit the IACUC page.

Research outside of the United States. If your research involves travel outside of the United States, contact the Director of International Programs at 253.879.2515 to make an appointment to attend a pre-departure orientation that must be completed prior to travel. The University of Puget Sound does not support travel to countries with high safety and health risks. For further details, please review the Travel Abroad Policy for High Risk Areas.

A completed Release, Waiver, and Indemnification Agreement must be submitted to enrichment@pugetsound.edu by any student planning to travel outside the United States to conduct research. This agreement must be completed and submitted prior to travel.

Budget revisions. Once an award is made, any deviation in expenditures from the approved budget must receive the approval of the University Enrichment Committee. Please send such requests to enrichment@pugetsound.edu.

Tax Implications of Awards. Awards may be considered taxable fellowships by the IRS. Awards will not be reported to the IRS on either Form 1099 or Form W-2. However, awards may be included as gross income for federal income tax purposes. You should seek advice from a tax professional that is specific to your own tax status and filing form.  For more information, visit the Office of Finance website.
 

Notice on Award Duration and Limits

Funded awards must be expended within a full calendar year from receipt of the award. Any balances remaining after this date will be reclaimed by the University Enrichment Committee.

Students who receive a UEC research award cannot apply for another award until all funds from the first award are fully expended. Students who receive a UEC research award may apply for a second award within the same academic year, but such applications will be considered only if there is available funding.

Apply Here

Faculty Recommendation Form