Research awards are driving a surge in projects at Queen’s.
The Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA), Undergraduate Student Summer Research Fellowship (USSRF), Vice-Principal Research Undergraduate Prizes, and Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP) are improving undergraduate research opportunities at Queen’s.
This summer, Queen’s ed approximately 167 undergraduate students in multiple research opportunities, according to a statement from the University sent to The Journal. Among these students, 75 received USRA from the Tri-Agency—who also funded an additional eight Indigenous and 12 Black scholars.
USRA is a research award mostly funded by the Tri-Agency, composed of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). Another portion of USRA is covered by the research supervisors with an additional top-up from the Vice-Principal Research (VPR) office. USRA recipients typically receive $10,803.52 from May 1 to Aug. 31 plus mandatory employer payroll deductions.
The University may recommend an unlimited number of applications every year from self-identified Black and Indigenous student researchers for NSERC funded USRAs. Further details, including eligibility criteria, can be viewed on the VPR’s USRA website.
Through the Undergraduate Student Summer Research Fellowship (USSRF) program, Queen’s funded an additional 75 students, the University told The Journal. Thirty-nine positions were given to students in the Faculty of Arts and Science (FAS).
Unlike the USRA, USSRF is funded internally by the VPR office, with $7,120 allocated to each student, alongside some financial from supervisors. Each position is valued at approximately $10,192.00 over the four months of summer, according to the USSRF website.
The full list of USRA and USSRF abstracts was published in the Inquiry Journal in partnership with Queen’s University Library.
Running for the first time last fall, the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP) tasks student groups with developing research proposals for astronauts to conduct at the International Space Station (ISS). One experiment was chosen by a of judges, which included Dr. Arthur McDonald, the 2015 Nobel-Prize laureate in physics.
The experiment, called Impact of Lectins on Escherichia coli Biofilm Formation in Microgravity, is scheduled for launch to the ISS on Oct. 30 at 12:50 a.m. EST. The University paid $27,000 USD to participate in the SSEP last year.
“At the heart of our academic mission at Queen’s is providing meaningful experiences for students to apply their curiosity and ambitions to transform society,” Klodiana Kolomitro said. Kolomitro is a special advisor under the vice-principal research portfolio and adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences.
“It takes commitment, mentorship, and investment, but the experience is incredibly rewarding and highlights the important role our students play in discovery and research,” she said.
The Inquiry@Queen’s Conference on March 6 to 7 of next year will showcase some of the research projects, including the Vice-Principal Research Undergraduate Prizes, which was established this year.
Applications for USRA and USSRF will open this December.
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