01/7/15

Student Research Conferences at UM-Flint

Have you written a great paper for class? Conducted a cool research project? Worked with a faculty member as a research assistant? If so, please sign up to present at our upcoming student research conferences!

Why Present? Presenting at conferences not only allows you to interact with other students and faculty, but also allows you to showcase the work you’ve done. Presenting at conferences and getting published goes a LONG WAY in bolstering your resume and applying for graduate schools. Also, presenting your work at professional conferences give you a competitive edge and help you stand out from other students.

What Can I Present? In short: ANYTHING! Whether it’s a paper you wrote for class, a reading you’d like to do, a performance (music, skits, etc), an independent research project, or work you did as an assistant on a faculty’s project. All presentations are accepted!

Where Can I Present? UM-Flint is sponsoring two big conferences this year:

  • Meeting of Minds (MOM) is a collaborative conference for undergraduate students, co-sponsored by UM-Flint, UM-Dearborn, and Oakland University. This year’s MOM will take place at UM-Dearborn on Friday, May 9, 2015.
  • The UM-Flint Student Research Conference (SRC) is a campus-wide event showcasing research and creative activities from BOTH undergraduate and graduate students. Now in its 5th year, SRC will take place on Friday, March 27, 2015 at the Riverfront Residence Hall and Event Center.

Both conferences allow students to do oral presentations, poster presentations, performances, and demonstrations. Additionally, students who present are eligible to have the papers they present published in the journals respective to each conference.

For information about Meeting of Minds or to sign up, visit: www.umflint.edu/research/MOM. For information on the UM-Flint Student Research Conference, visit: www.umflint.edu/research/SRC.

We look forward to seeing your work!

08/4/13

Write Winning NIH Grant Proposals

“Write Winning NIH Grant Proposals”
A Workshop by David Morrison, Ph.D.

Wednesday, October 30, 2013
8:30 AM – 5:00 PM
Dow Auditorium, Towsley Center

Co-sponsored by the UMMS Office of Research and the MICHR Education and Mentoring Group, this widely acclaimed seminar addresses practical and conceptual aspects of the proposal writing process (with emphasis on NIH applications). The presenter, David Morrison, Ph.D., is one of the most sought after presenters of workshops on writing NIH grant proposals. Participants will learn to prepare a competitive grant proposal by:

  • incorporating knowledge of the peer review process in a persuasive research description
  • formulating a focused research plan that incorporates well-formulated hypotheses, rationales, specific objectives, and long-range research goals
  • developing and justifying a budget for the proposed research activities
  • using existing resources at the University of Michigan in research proposal development
  • avoiding many common grant writing mistakes.

This workshop is open to everyone interested in developing their NIH grant writing skills.  CME credit is available.

Registration Deadline: October 11, 2013
Since course materials must be pre-ordered, we are unable to accept late / walk-in registrations.

Fee:  $125 for UM Participants (payable by shortcode or credit card)
$150 for Non-UM Participants

All those registered as of October 12, 2013 will receive The Grant Application Writer’s Workbook – National Institutes of Health Version (a $75.00 value) as well as other course materials.

Register and view complete information (including the agenda) at:
http://writewinningnihgrants2013.eventbrite.com

Follow this event on Twitter with hashtag #MICHRWWG13. Tweet your questions to us before or during the event.

09/10/12

Undergraduate Student Research at the Nation’s Capitol!

From the desk of Robin Howard, Senior Director of Membership Services, Operations and Information Technology at the Council on Undergraduate Research:

Nothing more effectively demonstrates the value of undergraduate research than the words and stories of the student participants themselves. In the spring of 2013 the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) will host its 17th annual undergraduate poster session on Capitol Hill. This event will help members of Congress understand the importance of undergraduate research by talking directly with the students whom these programs impact.

CUR is calling for students to submit an abstract of their research that represents any of CUR’s disciplinary divisions (Arts and Humanities, Biology, Chemistry, Geosciences, Health Sciences, Mathematics/Computer Science, Physics/Astronomy, Psychology, and Social Sciences). In order to ensure proper review of applications, the above are the only disciplines that may apply. Should your research be inter-disciplinary, or in a subject not listed above, please select the division that most closely describes your research, if applicable.

Abstract submissions will only be accepted by using our on-line submission form. Prior to submitting the form, students should gather the contact information for all co-authors, advisors and sponsors (if applicable), prepare a short vitae/resume, and poster abstract. A document listing the information required for submission can be found by visiting: http://www.cur.org/conferences_and_events/student_events/posters_on_the_hill_information_for_submission/

For more information, and the link to submit an application, please visit: http://www.cur.org/conferences_and_events/student_events/posters_on_the_hill_call_for_abstracts/. Please note that CUR membership is required to submit an application. Either the student’s home institution must have an institutional membership, or a faculty mentor or undergraduate research coordinator appearing on the submission must have an individual membership. We will not review incomplete applications or applications that do not satisfy the membership requirement.

Please be sure that both portions (the electronic application and the electronic recommendation letter) are submitted by November 1, 2012. Please encourage your students to submit. This is a highly competitive program, which makes for a very exciting experience for the students and their faculty advisors alike.

For more information about the Posters on the Hill program, please visit http://www.cur.org/conferences_and_events/student_events/posters_on_the_hill/

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at [email protected]

Students, don’t miss out on the opportunity to share your research with elected officials on Capitol Hill!

09/10/12

Welcome Back Students!

This is always an exciting time of year for the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs staff, as we get to meet new students and welcome back those of you who are returning. And now that the semester is settling in, I would like to share information about several terrific student research opportunities available.

Why do research?

Many of our student researchers have directly attributed their academic achievement and career development to their participation in research. Particularly, some benefits of participating in research include:

  • The opportunity to stand out from students without research experience, especially when applying for jobs, graduate schools, professional schools, etc.
  • The chance to engage in “hands on” projects that often go beyond what is learned in the classroom
  • Building close relationships with faculty (especially helpful when students need letters of recommendation, references, etc.)
  • The opportunity to earn wages, class credit, or service hours.

How can you participate in research?

Work as a research assistant: Undergraduates, if you are interested in working on a faculty project, you are invited to join the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP). UROP offers opportunities for students to earn wages, use their work study, or earn service hours working directly with faculty researchers. For more information, visit www.umflint.edu/research/UROP under “Student Corner.”

Graduate students can conduct research through the Graduate Student Research Assistantship program, managed by the Office of Graduate Programs. Information for this program is available at: http://www.umflint.edu/graduateprograms/tuition-financial-aid/research-assistantships.page

Present your research: Mark your calendars for several conferences where students can showcase their work:

  •  The 21st annual Meeting of Minds Undergraduate Research Conference (MOM): A conference which provides students from UM-Flint, UM-Dearborn, and Oakland University an opportunity to share their research with through poster, oral, or performance-based presentations. This event is open to students from all majors. If you are interested in presenting your research, getting published in the annual journal, boosting your resume for jobs/grad school, and are interested in learning about other students’ research, Meeting of Minds is for you! The next MOM will take place on Friday, May 10, 2013, right here on campus! Registration will open in early January. For more information, visit www.umflint.edu/research/MOM.
  • The 3rd annual University of Michigan-Flint Student Research Conference (SRC): This campus-wide research conference showcases the efforts of UM-Flint students. Both undergraduate and graduate students of all majors will have the opportunity to present their work at this conference, as well as to get published in the conference proceedings. This year’s SRC will also take place on campus on Friday, April 5, 2013. Registration for this event will also open in early January. For more information, visit www.umflint.edu/research/SRC.

While these events aren’t taking place until next semester, we encourage you to start thinking about presenting now!

Develop your skills: Office of Research and Sponsored Programs will be hosting a variety of skill-building workshops throughout the year. To see our full lineup, please visit: http://www.umflint.edu/research/workshop_schedule.htm.

Stay connected: There will be many more developments in the upcoming months. Stay connected with the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs by joining us on Facebook (under UM-Flint Office of Research and Sponsored Programs), following us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/UMFlintResearch) or visiting our blog at: /research/.

As always, you can learn more about our programs and opportunities by visiting our website, www.umflint.edu/research, under “Student Resources.”

We hope you take advantage of the support services in place for you. We’re here to serve you. Have a great year!

04/16/12

2nd annual Student Research Conference a Success

We’re happy to announce that the 2nd annual Student Research Conference was a huge success! In total, close to 100 undergraduate and graduate students (double the amount of the first year) came together for a day of oral and poster presentations. It was truly a celebration of the many contributions students make to research.

There were many hands involved in making today so special. First, thanks to Mary Deibis for all of her hard work.

Special thanks to the following individuals and departments for making today’s event possible:

Dr. Ruth Person
Dr. Gerard Voland
Dr. Vahid Lofti
Dr. Terry Van Allen and the Office of Research staff
Dr. Mary Jo Sekelsky
Associate Provost Chris Waters
Brad Maki and the Office of Graduate Programs staff
Maureen Thum and Laura Staudacher of the Honors Program
The Riverfront Event Center Staff
Epoch Catering
Marilyn Christensen and the Printing Services staff
Melissa Storch and the Mediated Classroom Service staff
Jan Worth and Sandy Alberto of the Thompson Center for Learning & Teaching
Jennifer Hogan and the University Relations staff

Additional thanks to today’s volunteers:

Erin Kingsley
Nina Chaney
Sue Montenegro
Endia Santee
Patty Tracy
Dr. Amy Gresock
Kathy Bloink
Tracy Wacker
Sandy Alberto
Dr. Heather Roebuck
Dr. Denise Dedman
Dr. Monique Wilhelm
Jameel Amoudi
Andrea Yinger
The many departments who loaned out easels

Finally, thanks to all the students and faculty for all of your hard work and efforts.

Join us again next year!

01/27/11

Student Research Conference Registration Now Open

Registration is open for both the Meeting of Minds Undergraduate Research Conference and the UM-Flint Student Research Conference.

Meeting of Minds (MOM) is a collaborative event, co-sponsored by UM-Flint, UM-Dearborn, and Oakland University; with particular interest in undergraduate research and creative activity. Oppositely, the UM-Flint Student Research Conference (SRC) is a campus-only event showcasing research and creative activities from BOTH undergraduate and graduate students.

Both conferences provide students an opportunity to do oral presentations, poster presentations, performances, and demostrations. Additionally, students who present have the opportunity to have the papers they present published in the conference journal.

Oakland University is the site for this year’s MOM. The event will take place on Friday, May 13, 2011. The UM-Flint SRC will take place here at the University of Michigan-Flint on Friday, April 1, 2011. For more information, visit the following sites:

For Meeting of Minds: www.umflint.edu/research/MOM

For the UM-Flint Student Research Conference: www.umflint.edu/research/SRC

Sign up today!

12/20/10

Symposium Focuses on Nursing Research

From the desk of Mel Serow, University Relations:

Cultural competence in health care and care of underserved populations are two areas in nursing education receiving a lot of attention in the classroom. University of Michigan-Flint students in the Masters of Science in Nursing (MSN) program have focused their research this year on these two areas.

Their work was recently presented at the first MSN Research Symposium that attracted more than 50 guests, including students, faculty and staff.

“The response to the research posters presented by the 27 MSN was hugely successful,” said Connie Creech, director of Nursing Graduate Programs. “This will be an annual event to showcase student research skills, and their contributions to health care in the community.”

Special guests at the symposium were David and Francine Zick, who are sponsors of several student research projects via the Francine Zick Student Research Scholarship.
The UM-Flint annual fund assisted with sponsorship of the event.

Source

10/12/10

First UM-Flint Student Presents at SACNAS

waites1.jpg

From the desk of Mel Serow, University Relations

University of Michigan-Flint senior Cameron Waites recently returned from one of the largest scientific conferences for undergraduate and graduate students in the U.S. The 2010 SACNAS (Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science) National Conference was held in Anaheim, California.

Waites is the first UM-Flint student to ever present a poster at the conference, and this year, was the only representative from any University of Michigan campus. His presentation was based on research he did while at the NIH (National Institutes of Health) this past summer.

“While a scholar in the National Institutes of Health Undergraduate Scholarship Program, I worked in the lab of Helene Rosenberg, M.D., PhD. My research project was titled Developing a qPCR assay for Influenza A/FM/1/47-MA: Cloning of the Mouse-Adapted Influenza M1 Gene,” said Waites. “During this project, I learned many molecular and microbiology techniques, and completed the basis for future work in the lab that will allow us to assess the amount of influenza virus in various tissues.”

For Waites, participating in the conference was critical in making the most of his undergraduate education, and remaining an active participant in research will assist him to reach his future goals of becoming a physician-scientist.

While having the opportunity to participate in various programs, including the recent conference, Waites has developed additional knowledge and skills in the area of cultural competency.

“As I reflect on my cultural competency interests at UM-Flint, and the internship experience as a Michigan in Washington Program participant in Washington D.C., I recognize the need for increased participation and representation of Persons of Color in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields, and being able to gain further experience through personal relationships, networks, and conversations at SACNAS has further enriched my understanding of these issues.”

This isn’t the only time Cameron has represented UM-Flint as a first. In 2009, he was also the first UM-Flint to present at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR). Way to go, Cameron!

08/30/10

Michigan Linguistics Society

From Dr. Kazuko Hiramatsu, Associate Professor of English:

We will be hosting the 40th annual meeting of the Michigan Linguistics Society at UM-Flint on Saturday, Oct. 23. For more information, please visit our conference site.

Our keynote speaker will be Dr. Diane Lillo-Martin (University of Connecticut), who studies (among other things) how children acquire American Sign Language.

Source

08/17/10

Free External Funding Webinars: Grants Resource Center

On August 23, 24, and 25, the Office of Research will host a series of webinars with live feeds from the Grants Resource Center’s External Funding Conference in Washington, D.C.  There will be several sessions each day, listed below.  Please give us a call to let us know you’d like to attend –   810-762-3147 or [email protected].  These sessions are FREE of charge!

The sessions included:

Monday, August 23rd
9:15  am  –  10:15 am     Education Policy Overview
10:30 am  –  11:45 am    Science Policy and Funding
2:30 pm  –  3:30 pm       NSF Faculty Rotator Perspective
3:45 pm  –  4:45 pm       NIH Peer Review and Application Process

Tuesday, August 24th
8:15 am  –  9:15 am        Support for Nursing Programs
9:30 am – 10:30 am        Workforce Development Initiative
10:45 am  –  11:45 am    NIH  and NSF Social and Behavioral Sciences
1:30 pm  –  2:30 pm       Department of Energy – Office of Science:  Past and Future
2:45 pm  –  3:45 pm       National Endowment for the Arts:  Grants and Goals

Wednesday, August 25th
8:00 am  –  9:00 am        What’s New with the Department of Education’s TRIO:  member led Q & A