Presentation Opportunities

On April 2, 2009, UCF and The Office of Undergraduate Research will sponsor the sixth annual Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence in the Student Union Pegasus Ballroom.

As part of the mission to be one of the nation’s leading metropolitan research universities, UCF will showcase approximately 150 undergraduate research projects at this event. The purpose of this showcase is to provide undergraduate students an opportunity to display and present their research topics, methodology, and findings to academic and public audiences; to afford undergraduate student presenters a forum to sharpen their visual and oral presentation skills; and to demonstrate to the university community the diversity of undergraduate research at UCF.

Undergraduate presenters at this showcase will be representative of numerous research programs and disciplines, such as Student-Mentor Academic Research Teams (SMART), the National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU), the Research and Mentoring Program (RAMP), the McNair Scholars program, Honors in the Major (HIM), students supported by the Office of Research, students working independently with faculty on research projects, and any undergraduate UCF student who meets the Undergraduate Research Showcase criteria. All presenters will receive certificates of merit and participation, and scholarships are awarded to students whose projects are judged exemplary by faculty review panels.

For additional information, please visit the OUR Showcase website:
http://www.showcase.ucf.edu/

The National Conference on Undergraduate Research is an annual conference that hosts students of all fields and disciplines, from biomedical, engineering, and social science research to the humanities and performing arts.  This conference acts as a preeminent opportunity for undergraduate students to showcase their research to a national audience, network with peers and faculty who are conducting research in similar areas, learn about the nature of research that is different than their own, and to acquire information about graduate school and employment opportunities.  Students who submit abstracts to NCUR can present their research orally or in a poster-format.

For more information, please visit the NCUR website at www.ncur.or

Nothing more effectively demonstrates the value of undergraduate research than the words and stories of the student participants themselves.  Each spring, the Council of Undergraduate Research (CUR) hosts “Posters on the Hill,” which invites students to present their research at a poster session on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.  This event helps members of Congress understand the importance of undergraduate research by talking directly with the student whom these programs impact. 

For more information about the Posters on the Hill program, please visit http://www.cur.org/postersession.html  

While the above conferences serve as preeminent opportunities for undergraduates to present their research, students also have access to a variety of conferences that are both interdisciplinary and discipline-specific.  The easiest way for students to find conference opportunities is by speaking with their faculty mentors.  Additionally, students can find listings of relevant conference opportunities by searching the internet for “academic conferences.”