Sources of funding for research are often specific to particular kinds of research. Additionally, different sources may be specific to a particular discipline, field of study, time-of-year, etc. While College students can find funds to support their research, some undergraduates decide to pursue unfunded research on a voluntary basis. Many faculty members expect to need help with their research over the summer (and occasionally during term-time) and might advertise paid Research Assistant positions through their department/research center's listserv or via other on-campus job search platforms. If your research supports the larger project of a faculty-member, they might be able to provide you with a small stipend from their own funds. Furthermore, faculty members, tutors, and peers may have interacted with many other students conducting research. Make sure you speak with your own network, especially those faculty who work in the discipline, because they may be able to identify funding sources that you may not have yet considered.
Search the CCRF Opportunities Database for a expanding list of research and research-funding opportunities:
- CCRF Research Opportunities Database (in the "Type" search function, select "Research Funding")
A selection of UChicago funding opportunities specifically supporting undergraduate research activities:
- African Studies Research Grants (Open-discipline)
- College Summer Research Fellows Fund (Open-discipline)
- College Research Fellows Program (Open-discipline; faculty must apply for this award)
- Dean's Fund for Undergraduate Research (Open-discipline; including support to present research at national and international conferences)
- Dunn Prize for Research in Philosophy
- Earl R. Franklin Research Fellowship in Psychology or Comparative Human Development
- Janel Mueller Undergraduate Thesis Prize in English and American Literature
- Liew Family Research Fellows Grant (Open-discipline, although some are set aside for Computer Science)
- International Experience Grants (Open-discipline; funding for mentored research)
- Nicholson Undergraduate Research Grant (BA thesis research related to the British Isles)
- Nicholson Undergraduate Travel Grant (BA thesis research related to the British Isles)
- Pausanias Summer Research Fellowship (Classics)
- PRISM Research Grants (Humanities, focus on career preparation)
- Ruth Murray Essay Prize in Women's Studies, Feminist Criticism, and Gender Studies
- Stevanovich Institute for the Formation of Knowledge (SIFK) Undergraduate Research Award (Open-discipline)
- Summer International Travel Grants (Int'l Undergraduate Research) (Open-discipline)
- *Metcalf Internship Program and the Metcalf Global Fellowship program offers a *limited* amount of funds for research internships
A selection of nationally competitive opportunities specifically supporting undergraduate research activities and/or postgradudate fellowships that recognize undergraduate research activities:
- Amgen Scholars Program (STEM)
- Astronaut Foundation Scholarship (all STEM)
- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Junior Fellowship (Internationa affairs, policy, foreign releations, economics; postgraduate)
- Churchill Scholarship (STEM; one-year master's at Cambridge)
- Department of Defense Science, Math and Research for Transformation Scholarship for Service Program (SMART) (STEM)
- Fulbright US Student Program (Open-discipline; international only; postgraduate)
- DAAD German Studies Fellowships (Funding for short-term research in Germany)
- DAAD Research Internships in Science and Engineering (RISE) (STEM)
- DAAD Scholarship and Fellowship Program (Open-discipline; postgraduate research or funded masters degree in Germany)
- Gates-Cambridge Scholarship (Open-discpline; postgraduate degree at Cambridge)
- Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship (STEM)
- NOAA Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholarship (STEM)
- National Institutes of Health Undergraduate Scholarship
- National Institutes of Health Post-Baccalaureate Intramural Research Training Award
- National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (STEM and some social sciences; funding for PhD)
- ThinkSwiss Research Scholarship (STEM)
- Additional nationally competitive scholarships and fellowships can be found here: Fellowships Opportunity Database
A selection of nationally competitive opportunities specifically supporting undergraduate research presentation activities: