The high quality of undergraduate research at Duquesne will be showcased at upcoming state and national educational gatherings, marking the first time that the University has sent student-researchers to either event.
Eight different projects carried out by undergraduate student-researchers in the schools of music, nursing, liberal arts and natural and environmental sciences will represent Duquesne at the Undergraduate Research at the Capitol-Pennsylvania (URC-PA) and at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR).
Scheduled at the state’s Capitol Complex in Harrisburg on Tuesday, March 11, the URC-PA is open to undergraduate students enrolled in Pennsylvania colleges and universities. Each participating institution is permitted to select two outstanding undergraduate research projects to represent it at the URC-PA.
Designed as a poster-presentation conference, the URC-PA provides student-researchers and their faculty mentors the opportunity to meet with and explain their projects to state legislators and their staffs and, in some cases, to provide lawmakers with insight on issues that affect the state’s citizens.
The NCUR will be held at the University of Kentucky in Lexington from Thursday, April 3, to Saturday, April 5. It is sponsored by the Council on Undergraduate Research, a national organization that promotes and support faculty-student collaboration on meaningful research at the undergraduate level in order to enrich every academic discipline, improve teaching and prepare students for careers and graduate studies.
According to Dr. Alan Seadler, associate provost for research and technology, an independent review committee at NCUR selects the student projects. Three students from the School of Music, one student from the Bayer School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, and three teams of two students each from the School of Nursing have been invited this year to NCUR.
The rigor of the NCUR review process, coupled with the organization’s preeminence attests to the strength of undergraduate research at Duquesne, Seadler said. “Our mission to serve both our undergraduate and graduate students with an outstanding education encourages the type of scholarship exemplified by these students,” Seadler added.