University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF)

Michigan State University hosts the annual University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF) each spring that provides students with the opportunity to showcase their research, scholarship and creative activity in an academic setting. Last year nearly 550 students presented at the forum. UURAF 2014 will take place on April 4 at the MSU Union.

Registration Information

Student registration opens on January 13 and closes on February 16 at 11:59 PM. On the registration form, students must provide their contact information and include the names of any additional group members and their research mentor. Students will also be required to submit the title of their program, the type of presentation they would like to give (oral, poster, or performance), category of their research, and a presentation abstract.

Abstracts

We encourage all students to work with their research mentor when writing an abstract for UURAF. Since the abstracts are published in the program book and on the UURAF website, it is important that students understand what information is acceptable to share publicly. We urge mentors to discuss information sharing, copyright laws, and intellectual property with their students in order to protect the rights of individuals performing research and publishing data.

Judging & Awards

Each presentation category is assigned a faculty judge who is familiar with the respective field. Judges are recruited by the associate deans of individual colleges. Faculty can also volunteer to be moderators. The most important way faculty can get involved is by attending the event and supporting their undergraduate researchers. Additionally, we are seeking graduate students to provide further constructive feedback on student presentations. This is a great professional development opportunity for graduate students. Contact ugrsrch@msu.edu for more information.

Monetary prizes will be awarded to students with outstanding presentations. One first-place award ($100) will be given in each poster and oral presentation category. First-place award recipients are eligible to submit their work for consideration for the UURAF Grand Prize, a $500 award. All winners will receive an award certificate at the UURAF Awards Ceremony at 4:00 PM on April 4.

To read the full newsletter, view the PDF attached below

Download Spring 2014 Newsletter.pdf