Dean's Fund for Undergraduate Research CONFERENCE

The Dean's Fund for Undergraduate Research CONFERENCE supports conference participation and travel if a student is attending to present a research poster or to give an oral presentation

The Dean's Fund for Undergraduate Research CONFERENCE supports current undergraduates in the College engaged in scholarly research mentored by a faculty and/or other research mentor(s). It specifically supports conference participation and travel if a student is attending to present a research poster or to give an oral presentation. 

Grant amounts of up to $1,500.

Please carefully review all eligibility and application instructions below before beginning your application process.  Any application that does not fully comply with the below requirements or that are not submitted before the conference experience, will not be considered. 

Eligibility for Dean's Fund for Undergraduate Research CONFERENCE Award

  • Current full-time undergraduate in the College with plan to enroll in the following quarter; must be in good-standing
  • Students who have a paper, poster, or scholarly creative work that has been accepted for presentation at a professional conference or those that are participating as a conference session facilitator/moderator.
    • You will need to submit proof of conference acceptance/participation in your application.
    • The Dean's Fund will not accept applications for conference travel if a student is only going to network, explore career or professional development opportunities.
  • Mentored by a UChicago faculty mentor and/or other affiliated research mentor(s)
  • You have not previously received a Dean’s Fund for Undergraduate Research CONFERENCE award. NOTE: Students may only receive Dean’s Grant funding for conference participatoion once during their College career.
  • You are not receiving funding from another University entity for the same conference
  • Agreement to complete a post-award survey and confirm fund use after awarded
  • Applying for up to $1500 in funding (funding generally ranges from $750-1500) for future or upcoming research conference experience. NOTE: The Dean’s Fund will not retroactively fund conference participaton or travel.
  • Application completion and submission at least threes weeks prior to the conference dates. 
NOTE: Applications for conference support are accepted on a rolling basis throughout the academic year but must be submitted at least three weeks before conference travel or participation. 

Application Process: 

Application Components for Research Conference Award

  • You will need to provide the name and contact details of at least one Faculty or Research Mentor.
  • Confirmation that you have received permission to present the research publically from your research PI, faculty or mentor.
  • Research Presentation/Project Title
  • Brief statement about the value of presenting your research (3-5 sentences)
  • Upload your Research Presentation Abstract (Posters or Oral presentations)
  • Upload proof of conference acceptance
  • Upload an Itemized Budget (1 page; 350 words max for narrative) detailing how you will spend the funds, including registration costs, estimates for airfare, hotel accommodation and ground transportation.
  • Unofficial Transcript (please upload a recent unofficial copy from the registrar; do not submit a screen shot of your myuchicago record)

Questions or concerns? Please contact CCRF at ccrf-research@uchicago.edu.

Awards

  • Awards will be paid out as a stipend. The awardee will be responsible for reporting the stipend amount as income when filing tax returns (Form 1040). 
  • Students who receive funding are required to complete a post-award survey. 

Award Expectations

  • All students who receive grants through the Dean's Fund for Undergraduate Research CONFERENCE will be expected to present their research (poster or oral presentations) at the annual University of Chicago Undergraduate Research Symposium held in May of each year.