Eligibility and Application Details

Awards

• $1,000 awards are given in three categories: Upper Division Thesis, Upper Division Non-Thesis and Lower Division. The lower division award is for students with fewer than 90 college-level credits.
• $500 honorable mention awards are also given.
• Population Health Award:  Optional recognition awards of $250 each will be available for innovative, interdisciplinary or well-written research projects relevant to population health. This will require writing a 250 word essay describing how your research aligns with the theme of population health. Research projects will be evaluated on: alignment with the pillars of population health, innovativeness of the research hypothesis, and the strength of the writing or creativity of the project. This is a separate additional award, and will not affect your chances of winning a Library Research Award grand prize or honorable mention.
• You can apply online. Applications are due by 11:59 on May 1, 2023

Eligibility

• All undergraduates who were enrolled from Fall 2022 to Spring 2023 and any of the three University of Washington campuses are eligible.
• Projects completed during any of the following quarters are eligible: Spring 2022, Summer 2022, Fall 2022, Winter 2023, Spring 2023.
• Projects must have been completed for UW course credit, for the Undergraduate Research Program (URP), or the Undergraduate Research Symposium.
• A project may be in any format or medium, including but not limited to written papers, posters, art, websites, or musical compositions.
• We accept projects in any language, but the reflective essay must be in English.
• Individual and group projects are eligible.  Each student will be judged individually for group projects.

Evaluation Criteria

Submissions are judged on three components: reflective essay (30 points), project (20 points), and bibliography (10 points).

Submissions will be judged on how well student researchers demonstrate:

• Unusual depth or broadness in the use of library resources and collections, including, but not limited to, printed resources, databases, primary resources, and materials in all media.
• Extraordinary ability to identify, locate, select, evaluate, and synthesize library resources and to use them in the creation of a project in any medium that shows originality and/or has the potential to lead to original research in the future.
• Demonstration of significant personal knowledge in the methods of research and inquiry.

Please review the evaluation rubric carefully. It contains a detailed description of how points are awarded. See Submission Guidelines for additional guidance.

2023 Application Information

• Projects completed during any of the following quarters are eligible: Spring 2022, Summer 2022, Fall 2022, Winter 2023, Spring 2023.
• The submission deadline is May 1, 2023. The application form closes at 11:59 p.m on this day. Allow adequate time to complete the form.
• All files required to be considered for the award MUST be submitted by 11:59 pm. (This includes the faculty support form)
• Incomplete applications will not be accepted.
• 2023 Library Research Award for Undergraduates Application

Application procedures:

• Your complete award submission includes 4 parts plus an optional Population Health Award essay, detailed in the grid below.
• Submissions should be in .pdf format, except where noted.
• The Application Form will collect all parts of the application except the faculty support, which can be submitted through a different form.
• You will not be able to save your responses and return later
• For group projects: Each member of a group must submit their files individually to be considered for the award competition. It is acceptable to use the same faculty letter if appropriate.

Financial Aid - Note

Please note:  The award may affect your financial aid.  Please consult your financial aid advisor.

• OSFA Phone: 206-543-6101
• Web: Student Financial Aid