Undergraduate Program

Independent Study

Associates Program

The Undergraduate Associates Program is administered by the Honors & Scholars Program at Miami University.

The Undergraduate Associates Program gives Miami students an opportunity to explore careers in academia by working closely with a faculty member. Typically, participants in the program work for a semester or a year assisting a faculty member with many of the tasks typically done in academic life (e.g. teaching, grading, attending governance meetings, engaging in research, etc.), but faculty members may also propose other creative ways of fulfilling Undergraduate Associates.

Eligibility:

In order to participate in the UA Program, students must be either sophomores, juniors, or seniors and have a cumulative grade point average of 3.2 or higher. Because this is a University Senate mandate, there are no exceptions to the G.P.A. requirement. You do not need to be a member of the University Honors Program to apply. You must also APPLY to the program and have your application approved prior to beginning the associateship.

Application:

Applications to the Undergraduate Associates Program are accepted during the first three weeks of each semester. Completed applications should be returned to the Honors & Scholars Program Office in 96 Bishop Hall.

General Guidelines:

In discharging their UA duties, students should not have sole responsibility for grading any assignments or instructing a specific class without supervision of the instructor.
A minimum of 30 hours of work per semester is expected of any UA.
The faculty sponsor and the UA are expected to meet at least once per month.
Students may not serve as UAs for courses in which they are currently enrolled.
Students may not receive credit for an Undergraduate Associateship for doing work for which they are being paid.

Receiving Credit:

All students wishing to receive credit for an Undergraduate Associateship must turn in a final reflection paper to the Honors & Scholars Program Office upon completion of the UA.

Along with this reflection paper, the faculty member should also provide a commentary on the student’s performance.

Among the issues to be discussed in the reflection paper should be:

What work was done during the UA, and in what ways did it differ from the original plan?
What did the student learn from the experience?
How did the experience change the student’s way of thinking?

Students may receive one credit hour for Undergraduate Associate participation through independent study hours in the appropriate department. The final grade will be determined by the instructor on the basis of the student’s work and the quality of the student’s final reflection. University Honors students may receive credit for an Honors Non-Course or category B experience upon completion of the associateship.