Applying for a Summer Undergraduate Research Assistantship

The university annually awards approximately 150 grants to Colgate students to pursue summer research. Awards are made on the basis of a research proposal written by the student who is mentored by a faculty member. Interested students should contact faculty members before writing their proposals.

Application and forms may be downloaded below.

Note: Mac users, please use Firefox as your browser!

Students conducting research are paid a stipend ($850 biweekly), and may choose to live either on or off campus. University housing for summer research students is available for up to 10 weeks between May 27 and August 9, 2013. University housing needs outside those dates must be negotiated on a case-by-case basis with Residential Life. The cost for on-campus housing will be $70 per student/per week. Completed housing applications are due to Residential Life by Tuesday, April 30, at 5 p.m. Contracts and payment will be due by Friday, May 10 to secure your room assignment. The Office of Residential Life has information available about summer housing for Colgate students.

Important Deadlines

Applications due in division offices: Tuesday, March 5, 3 p.m.

Funding decisions made: Early April

University housing application deadline: Tuesday, April 30, 5 p.m.

Summer housing contracts due: Friday, May 10, 5 p.m.

Select the desired division and submit your completed four-part application (cover sheet, research proposal, student unofficial transcript, faculty statement of support) to the appropriate division office. The files are PDFs.

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1. Cover Sheet

Deadline: Tuesday, March 5, 3 p.m.

The cover sheet begins as a web form which you fill out, save as a Microsoft Word file, print and attach to the front of your proposal. Note: You cannot save a partially completed web form. If information is missing, the Word document will not be generated, and your web form will be incomplete. (Incomplete applications will not be considered for funding.)

Determine the following before going to the web form:

• Proposed start and end date of your research. Beginning on a Monday and ending on a Friday is desirable.
• Whether you have been funded for summer research before, ask your faculty mentor for the source of the funding (e.g. Arts and Humanities Division, National Science Foundation, Keck Geology Consortium, etc.).

Link to cover sheet (web form)

Note: Mac users, please use Firefox as your browser!

2. Research Proposal

Please consult with your faculty mentor when preparing your proposal. Attach your research proposal. Proposals that do not include each of the following points will not be funded. Your proposal (not including figures, tables, and bibliography) should not exceed five pages, double-spaced, in 12 point font.

Your research proposal should:

• Be written for a non-specialist.
• Clearly identify the question(s) to be addressed by your research project, and describe its (their) significance.
• Specifically and concretely describe the sources, experimental plan, approaches, or methodology you will use, and how your sources/methodology/approaches/experiment(s) will address the research question(s) listed in the first section.
• Describe any alternative approaches or experimental plans, if applicable.
• Where applicable, include appropriate references for the proposed research, using the appropriate format for a journal in your field of research.
• Include a timeline of anticipated tasks (that is, what you plan to do and when you plan to do it).

3. Student Transcript

Please attach a current copy of your unofficial transcript obtained from the Office of the Registrar (you must present your Colgate ID to receive a copy).

4. Faculty Statement

Your faculty mentor should send a letter of support by the deadline of Tuesday, March 5, addressing the following points, to the appropriate division office.

• The significance of the proposed work.
• The quality of work that may be expected from the student.
• The plan for consultation and supervision, given the student’s needs and ability to work independently.

All summer research students will be required to submit the following by Friday, August 30.

1. A brief abstract describing your research accomplishments to Renée Chapin, coordinator for the Center for Learning, Teaching, and Research.

In addition, you may be called upon by your faculty mentor or sponsoring department or program to give a public presentation of your results.

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

Students whose research involves people, whether as participants in experiments or as respondents to interviews or questionnaires, are required to report their research to the Institutional Review Board (IRB). In addition, some research proposals must be reviewed and approved by the IRB in advance of conducting the research.

Talk to your faculty mentor, read the IRB guidelines and procedures, or consult with the chair of Colgate's IRB at IRB_Chair@psych.colgate.edu.