From our Editor, David Advent:

For this month's newsletter, we're recapping our 2023 Undergraduate Research Symposium, which happened Thursday, April 6th. This is our annual showcase for all FSU undergraduate researchers to present the work they have done throughout their career at FSU. We are so proud of our nearly 600 presenters who did an amazing job presenting their research!

We also announce our faculty, post-doc, and graduate student Undergraduate Research Mentor Award winners; congratulations to all our winners, and be sure to read more about their amazing achievements on our website!

We then end with a few CRE updates, including our approaching deadline of May 1st for our UROP application and the final UROP info session, which will be held on April 25th over Zoom and in HSF 3008 at 2:00pm.

In addition, we also announce the opening of our UROP Research Mentor Portal! If you're a faculty, post-doc, graduate student, campus partner, or community partner, and want undergraduate research help on a project you are currently working on, we invite you to submit your project to the Portal. We will also be hosting UROP Research Mentor Info Sessions for potential UROP Research Mentors to learn more about the program, how UROP students could help on their project, and more. We encourage you to attend these sessions!

Thanks for reading--as always, if you have any questions or would like to know more, please email us at [email protected]. Go forth, and research!
2023 URS
The Undergraduate Research Symposium (URS), one of the largest university-based symposia in the country and FSU's only all-campus interdisciplinary undergraduate research showcase, was held on April 6! Nearly 600 undergraduate students from all majors presented their work to the wider community. This was one of our largest URS events held to date, and our new location in the FSU Student Union facilitated interaction as students presented their posters.

"From topics such as interfaith couples in Nazi Germany, the representation of women in Bollywood films, the ups and downs of U.S.-Japan relations in the 20th and 21st-centuries, and the optical detection of magnetic resonance," the URS showcases the diverse range of disciplines in which students are actively participating in undergraduate research. "This year’s program was unique, not only as the first to take place in the new Student Union, with all posters displayed at once, but also as an example of the cycle of mentorship that takes place at FSU. Four of this year’s projects were guided by research mentors who themselves participated in research when they were undergraduate students at the university." We were so inspired by the level of mentorship present at the URS and recognize how important that mentorship involvement can be for our undergraduate researchers.

Congratulations to all our presenters at the URS! We're so proud of the amazing work you have and will continue to complete at FSU.
During the URS, we also held our Nourishing Creativity hour, which featured four undergraduate students presenting their dynamic and engaging creative projects (from left to right):

Noah Fielder, Building a Guitar

Fiona Begley, Peoplewatching: An Exercise In Empathy

Lee Beaudrot, The Recesses of the Earth

Jennifer Lamont, Sapphism in Song: English Art Songs by LGBTQ+ Women Composers from 1900 to the Present

Congratulations to our Nourishing Creativity presenters!
Finally, we have many event synopses as well as photos from the event now published. Check out the links below:

Click here to read the article FSU Communications wrote about the URS

We have posted all our photos from the event, which you can view here.

Finally, the Symposium Program, which includes presenters' poster time slots, bios, and project abstracts, is still live; if you want to read more about the students' projects, access the Program here.

Thanks to all who attended our 2023 URS! Special thanks to our volunteers; we really appreciate your support to help make this event an amazing experience!
UROP RESEARCH MENTOR AWARDS
The CRE would like to congratulate our Undergraduate Research Mentor Award winners!

The 2023 Faculty Undergraduate Research Mentor Award was presented to Dr. Patricia Born for mentoring UROP student Sydney Gross in research on "Affordable Care Act Insurance Marketplaces in Rural Areas."

The 2023 Post-Doctoral Undergraduate Research Mentor Award was presented to Dr. Asha Mathew for mentoring UROP student Laila Hayes on "Improving the binding affinity of the integrase binding domain in host proteins for HIV-1 virion incorporation."

The 2023 Graduate Student Undergraduate Research Mentor Award for 2023 was presented to Chelsea Shore for mentoring Daniel Campos, Elisabeth Anthropova, and Michael Gipson on multiple projects.

Read more about each award winner on our website here.

We at the CRE are all so thankful and appreciative of each of your dedication to undergraduate research engagement at FSU!
CRE APPLICATIONS
DEADLINE APPROACHING TO APPLY TO UROP!
Apply to the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP)! UROP is designed to support first- and second-year and recent transfer students participating in research. You do not need previous research experience. To be eligible for UROP, you must be a current 1st year student, starting your second year at FSU in Fall 2023. We are only concerned about how much time you have been at FSU, not about your classification (Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, Senior). You are also eligible to apply if you are a current high school senior.

Applications to UROP are due May 1, 2023. Apply here!

If you are a new transfer student meaning you transferred to FSU in Spring 2023 or are transferring in Summer 2023 or Fall 2023, you are eligible to apply. Apply here by July 1st.

Remember to click “Mark as Complete” to officially submit your application for review!

To learn more about UROP, attend our FINAL UROP Info Session (this is a hybrid event, over Zoom and in HSF 3008)!


UROP Components:
  • Conduct research 5 -10 hours per week assisting a faculty member, graduate student, campus partner, or startup company
  • Meet bi-weekly with a UROP Leader and fellow UROP students
  • Receive personalized guidance about research and campus resources
  • Present at the 24th annual Undergraduate Research Symposium

Learn more about UROP: https://cre.fsu.edu/undergradresearch/urop.
UROP RESEARCH MENTOR PROJECT PORTAL NOW OPEN!
THE UROP PROJECT PORTAL IS NOW OPEN!
 THE UROP PROJECT DEADLINE WILL BE AUGUST 21, 2023.

The Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) is an initiative by the Center for Undergraduate Research and Academic Engagement to engage high-achieving undergraduates in the academic culture of research and offer help to Research Mentors. Open to all departments, the program is three-fold:

  1. Students participate in a UROP colloquium class that introduces them to the practice of research, provides guest faculty speakers, and offers continuous support and training.
  2. Students work as research assistants to Research Mentors (Faculty, Postdocs, Graduate Students, and Campus Partners)  
  3. Students present their Research Mentors’ projects and their contribution to it at the annual undergraduate research symposium

UROP Research Mentors will work with student research assistants for an academic year. UROP is currently recruiting Research Mentors to submit projects for which they would like undergraduate research assistants. There is no obligation to take a UROP student if you submit a project; you select the UROP student with whom you would like to work.

Attend a Virtual UROP Research Mentor Info Session

These sessions will provide an opportunity to learn more about becoming a UROP Research Mentor; we discuss the Research Mentor Handbook, best practices on working with UROP students, and more. Click on the dates below to register for the zoom meetings

CRE END OF YEAR CELEBRATION
END OF THE YEAR BOWLING CELEBRATION
Last Friday, April 14th, the CRE hosted a end of year celebration at the Bowling Alleys in the new Student Union! Our UROP Leaders and UROP Leader in Training, FGLSAMP students, and iGEM students joined us to celebrate the hard work they have completed in our programs throughout the year. With food, refreshments, and a celebration cake, this was a great way for our students to relax, build community, and have fun.
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Engaging students in research, innovation, and scholarship is the hallmark of a great research university. Through this engagement, students become better thinkers, innovators, and problem solvers, cultivating a depth of understanding needed to make a positive difference in the world.