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Undergraduate Summer Scholars (USS)
Program Overview

USS 2013 Program Overview
Program of Individual Faculty Mentorship for Miami University Sophomores and Juniors

With its primary goals on student-centered learning through mentored research, the USS program aligns with President Hodge’s call for “active, engaged educational experiences for our undergraduates through the fusion of scholarship and teaching”. The program encourages students to develop their capacity to construct knowledge by reflecting on their experience and by crafting their ability to articulate the meaning of their discoveries. USS program heightens the intellectual level of the learning environment at Miami University by enabling Miami undergraduates to do research or other creative activities in the summer under the supervision of an individual faculty mentor. Either a student or faculty member may initiate an application.

Undergraduate Summer Scholars USS 2013 Program Oveview
Only Application Deadine November 30, 2012

The USS program enables Miami undergraduate students to conduct research or other creative scholarly activities in close collaboration with a faculty mentor. Students are responsible for seeking a faculty member to mentor the project, or a faculty member can suggest a project to a student. Individual student/faculty pairs submit a jointly written application to faculty member’s department chair or program director.

Read the full version of the USS guidelines carefully and contact Martha Weber if you have questions about student eligiblity and program requirements.
The USS program is open to Miami students completing their sophomore or junior years (at least 60 credit hours). Faculty mentors must be full-time tenured or tenure-eligible faculty. Students must verify plans to spend at least one semester as an undergraduate at Miami after participation in the USS program. Each student receives: a $2,600 fellowship award, a $400 project expense, and a tuition only waiver for 6 credit hours of independent study credit to conduct a 9-week mentored summer research project between May 13 and end of summer term in 2013. Faculty will receive $600 for professional or project expenses.

USS Program Course Designation and Tuition Only Waiver
The USS program requires summer enrollment for 6 hours of extended independent study credit under course number 340.U. For departments that permit students to enroll in senior research capstone independent study credit in conjunction with the USS project, the USS student must register for a minimum of 3 hours under 340.U and combine that with the appropriate number of hours under the capstone independent study for a combined total of 6 hours.

In each instance, the USS program covers cost of tuition only for the required 6 credit hours in which the student must enroll while the student pays for related general fees of approximately $50.00 per credit hour and the student pays for any tuition and fees for independent study or course credits exceeding the required 6 hours. For summer 2013, the USS tuition waiver only applies to courses on Miami's Oxford, Hamilton, or Middletown campuses. Study abroad coursework can not be included the USS tuition only waiver. Miami University policy prohibits students from receiving a tuition waiver from more than one source during the same term. If you are selected for the USS program, you will be required to decline all other tuition waivers from other university sources during that term. Miami University Scholarship Policy from the Office of Student Financial Aid website: "Students cannot receive a combination of aid, including Miami scholarships, which exceed their cost of attendance. If the total amount of financial aid exceeds the cost of attendance, the amount of the Miami scholarship(s) may be lowered so that the total aid no longer exceeds the cost of attendance."
                                                                                                                                                 
Limits on Employment
USS students may accept employment at Miami or elsewhere during the selected 9 weeks of their research project provided the student and faculty mentor agree on a plan to ensure the said employment will not interfere with the student’s commitment to the research project.

Limits on Enrollment in Additional Coursework
During the selected 9 weeks required to be dedicated to the research project, the USS program will allow Miami students to take additional coursework, provided that the
1) student and faculty mentor agree on a plan to ensure that the coursework will not interfere with the student’s commitment to the research project
2) student contacts the USS program director in OARS to seek written approval before registering for additional coursework.
and
3) individual student understands s/he will be responsible for all costs associated with academic courses taken outside of the USS program.

Financial Aid Considerations
The USS tuition waiver amount will affect the student financial aid eligibility. The number of credit hours for which a student enrolls in the summer and all financial assistance that students are eligible to receive must be taken into consideration when calculating need-based financial aid. As soon as the Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSF) is notified that the USS student has received the tuition scholarship and the fellowship award, the OSF is required to recalculate the student’s eligibility for aid.  Miami is required to report the amounts of USS fellowship amount and the tuition scholarship (described above) to the Internal Revenue Service on Form 1098T.  Students are responsible for contacting Miami’s Office of Student Financial Aid to review the affect the USS program participation will have on their financial aid eligibility.

Important Summer 2013 Participation Dates

• May 13 through August 10, 2013. Period of required participation. All USS projects must be conducted during this time period.

USS 2013 Program Application Deadline November 30, 2012
Submission open to all eligible students.
Student/faculty mentor USS applications due by 5:00 p.m. in mentor's department/ or program office.	Only Student Application Submission Deadline November 30, 2012 (Friday)
Department application packets due by 5:00 p.m. in the Office for the Advancement of Research and Scholarship (OARS) 102 Roudebush Hall	December 7, 2012 (Friday)
OARS allocates USS positions to departments and programs	January 18, 2013 (Friday)
Departments/ programs have 5 weeks to identify which applicants will be offered USS awards, notify the selected students and mentors and notify non-selected students. On February 15, departments and programs will notify OARS which students have been selected. OARS will send USS award letters to students on March 1, 2013.	February 15, 2013 (Friday)

Request printed copies and direct questions not answered in the guideline materials to:
Mrs. Martha E. Weber, weberme@MiamiOH.edu
USS Program Director
Office for the Advancement of Research and Scholarship (OARS)
Miami University
102 Roudebush Hall
Oxford, OH 45056
Tel: 513-529-3600, FAX 513-529-3762

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