[USA] Undergraduate Research Scholarship Program – Virginia Space Grant Consortium

Undergraduate Scholarship Awards
Awards are one-year, non-renewable scholarships limited to a $3,000 student stipend during the 2009–2010 academic year and a $3,500 stipend during summer 2009 or 2010 (must be specified in application). Students may request an additional $1,000 reesearch allocation for materials and travel to support research activities conducted during the academic year and/or a $1,000 research allocation during the summer. The maximum award per year cannot exceed $8,500.

Eligibility:
The scholarship program is open to undergraduate students enrolled in a program of full-time study at one of the five Virginia Space Grant universities. Students must be U.S. citizens and be a rising junior at time of the award (Fall 2009). Eligibility is not limited to science and engineering majors. Any undergraduate major that includes coursework related to an understanding of or interest in aerospace is eligible. Successful scholarship reecipients are expected to have grade point averages of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. Since an important purrpose of this program is to increase the participation of underrepresented minorities, females, and persons with disabilities in aerospace-related careers, the VSGC especially encourages applications from these students.

Research Activity:
The scholarship program requires students to participate in an active, identified research activity that has STEM or aerospace applications. The research must be supervised by a faculty mentor and may be conducted on the home campus or at an industrial or government facility. The research activity should be continuous and may be conducted anytime during the academic year, summer (defined as a minimum of 10 weeks) or both. The VSGC maintains a list of potential research opportunities offered by NASA centers and aerospace contractors.

Awardee Requirements:
Awardees are required to participate in the VSGC’s(http://www.vsgc.odu.edu/src/index.shtml) Annual Student Research Conference to be held in March or April 2010. Participation includes attendance and active involvement throughout entire conference, an oral or poster presentation on current research progress, and submission of a research brief for inclusion in the conference proceedings. Additionally, awardees must provide a photo and biographical information upon selection; inform the Consortium of changes of address; and respond to academic and employment follow-up surveys for Space Grant Aerospace Undergraduate Research Scholars. Students may also be asked to share research experiences in public forums, classroom presentations and professional meetings. Presentations that encourage interest in aerospace careers and research to high school students are of particular interest to the Consortium.

Resume, Letters of Recommendation and Faculty Advisor’s Vita:
Applicants will submit a short resume of education, significant accomplishments (e.g. honors or scholarships) and any other relevant information. Applicants will also provide the names and contact information for two references of which one must be the student’s faculty advisor. VSGC will contact both references via email to request a letter of recommendation on behalf of the applicant. References will be provided with a link to submit the recommendation. The faculty advisor must submit a short vita (no longer than two pages) that includes name, current position, title, department, university address, phone number, research to date, and principal publications. For the application to be complete, the faculty advisor must submit both a letter of reference and a vita. The VSGC suggests that applicants contact the references listed and inform them that they will receive an email requesting this information on their behalf.

Transcript:
Unofficial transcript with grades through Fall 2008 is required and can be submitted as a PDF in the online application. Applicants must submit one transcript from each institiution of higher education attended, whether as an undergraduate or graduate student. If the applicant is selected to receive the award, official transcripts will be required at time of acceptance. If the applicant does not have a PDF conversion tool, links to free on-line PDF converters are provided in the application.

Contact:
Virginia Space Grant Consortium
600 Butler Farm Road Suite 2253
Hampton, Virginia 23666
vsgc@odu.edu
Phone: 757/766-5210
Fax: 757/766-5205

Category: Undergraduate, United State

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