How to Apply

Research Proposals from Students

Establish a relationship with a professor who is genuinely interested in mentoring you through a rigorous research experience of your or their choosing.

Review the UROP proposal structure and scoring rubric to understand the important sections of the proposal you will submit.

Peruse proposals deemed excellent which were approved by the SOAR program at VCSU.

Develop a timeline by envisioning your total effort at 120 hours, and how that work might be distributed over the period of time you anticipate.

Establish a budget that includes your time, your hourly pay, and materials and project costs.

Author an abstract that encompasses your work, some prefer to do this last, others earlier in the proposal writing process.

Be formal in your use of citations and references.

Ask your faculty mentor to edit your proposal, then submit your proposal using the Student Proposal Form.

Verify with your mentor that they completed and submitted the UROP Mentor Form.

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Equipment Proposals from Faculty

Shop the idea of adding new laboratory gear to your department that has the feature of enhancing undergraduate research impact. Singular high cost items are preferred over multiple small cost items.

Determine costs, and potential vendors who can offer non-tax purchases. Go bigger by finding a financial match.

Ideally, a student UROP proposal will be received in parallel to an equipment proposal.

Complete the Equipment proposal form on this website.