CLA DEAN’S FRESHMEN RESEARCH and CREATIVE SCHOLARS PROGRAM

The 2016-2017 CLA Dean’s Freshman Research and Creative Scholars Program and to ask you to share this information with your faculty and encourage them to participate. This program helps recruit exceptional students to CLA across the social sciences, arts, and humanities by offering incoming students a scholarship to work with a faculty member in some aspect of the faculty member's ongoing scholarly or creative work. Students are matched to faculty in the fall and participate in research in the spring. Matches are made between faculty members and freshman participants based on the available faculty, the requirements of the research opportunity, and the majors and interests of the students.  We make every attempt to match students’ interests with available research opportunities.  Feedback from both students and faculty who participated in 2016 was overwhelmingly positive.  

Our goal for this year is to offer 150 awards of $2,000 to exceptional CLA freshmen. Faculty members can receive up to $250 for related expenses. Students are expected to devote up to 10 hours of effort each week during the spring and are required to submit a poster presentation, short report, performance piece, or similar at the end of the semester. Students have the option of registering for 1-2 credits in order to engage in work beyond 10 hours/week, or to complete a more substantial report. For more details please view the program description at http://ugp.cla.umn.edu/research.

Faculty interested in including a talented freshman in their scholarly work for spring semester should respond no later than Friday, September 30, by completing the 2016-2017 Faculty Questionnaire for the CLA Dean's Freshman Research and Creative Scholars Program with their proposal information (form requires University of Minnesota email sign-in). Faculty can have more than one freshman research student.

The Director of Administration, Scholarships, and Awards Barbara Schwab would be happy to answer any questions you may have about the program.  She can be reached at 612-625-7994 or schwa133@umn.edu.