Undergraduate Research the Focus of Annual Event

Undergraduate Research the Focus of Annual Event

The 20th annual University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF) will take place on Friday, April 13, at the MSU Union from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. with the first oral presentations beginning at 8:30 a.m. and the poster presentations starting at 9 a.m.

With more than 900 students from 14 different colleges expected to participate, this year’s forum is the largest in the event’s history. Many students from the College of Arts & Letters are presenting in these two categories:

  • Humanities and Performing Arts
  • Linguistics, Languages, and Speech

Co-sponsored by the Office of the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education and the Honors College, UURAF provides MSU undergraduate students with a unique educational opportunity to showcase their scholarship and creative activity with faculty, peers, and external audiences.

woman pointing to poster board with writing on it talking to woman in front of her
Student explaining her work

MSU undergraduates gain experience presenting their research and answering questions about their work. They also receive constructive feedback from judges.

Students choose how to present their work, either in the form of a poster or oral presentation.

Some of the research topics include low-cost water monitoring with a cellphone camera and a jeweler’s loupe, impact of human presence on bird diversity and abundance, comparative state redistricting plans, the Americanization of immigrant cuisine, and faces of Flint, among others.

Monetary prizes are awarded to recognize exemplary scholarly achievements, with one first-place award ($100) presented in each section. Those awards will be announced on Wednesday, April 18, at 3:30 p.m. in the MSU Union Ballroom.

smiling woman in white coat standing next to poster board with type on it
Professional Writing student Suzanna Smentowski standing next to her research

First-place award recipients are eligible to submit their work for the two grand-prize awards ($500 each), one to be awarded to the humanities, social sciences, and communication arts and sciences categories, and the other to the science and engineering categories.

All UURAF events are free and open to the public.

For more information on UURAF, including the full schedule of events and individual student presentation times, visit the 2018 Program Book.

Categories: Event / News / Research / Student