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Undergraduate Summer Scholars (USS)
Program Overview

USS 2010 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.

Now in its sixteenth year, the 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, but both the student and faculty member must sign the application.

Program Options

Both USS Summer Scholar options (A and B) described below require the student to enroll for a combined total of 12 credit hours and to complete a USS project under the supervision of an eligible Miami faculty mentor during the designated 9-week interval between May 10, and August 20, 2010. Both options (A and B) include a $2,600 student fellowship (distributed through the bursar's office) and a $400 student supply allotment as well as a $600 faculty mentor development allotment.

Option A - Standard USS Program Experience

Option A requires summer enrollment for 12 hours of extended independent study credit under course number 340.U (or combined 12 hours credit, based on course designations as agreed to by individual departments and the Registrar). Under Option A the USS program covers the cost of tuition for 12 credit hours in which the student enrolls under Course 340.U, while the student pays for related general fees of approximately $48 per credit hour.

Option B - USS Program plus International Experience

Option B encourages the synergistic combination of a departmentally approved international experience with a complimentary USS program research project. Students are required to enroll for a total of 12 credit hours (comprised of a minimum of 6-hours of independent study credit under course number 340.U and a complimentary number of hours under a Miami departmentally approved international course that demonstrates a synergy between the research project and the international course).

If student chooses Option B the USS award includes both:
• a tuition scholarship that covers only the instructional fees and tuition for the number of academic credit hours (a minimum of 6) for which the student must enroll under the USS course number 340U, while the student must pay the general fee, and
• a tuition scholarship only for credit hours associated with selected Miami international research-intensive course(s) or capstone course(s) that offer the student an in-depth student inquiry-based experience and that have been approved by the department/ program as part of the USS student Option B project. Students should verify with OARS whether the international course they plan to take is research-intensive. As established by the Associate Dean for Research and Scholarship, this USS program Option B policy specifically excludes the USS program from paying for tuition for seminars, lecture courses, or field courses.

Student Eligibility Application to the program is open to any Miami University student in good standing completing either her or his sophomore or junior year who agrees to abide by program requirements. A student must have a minimum of 60 credit hours to be eligible for a year 2010 USS award. Each student applying for a USS award must also verify that she or he will spend at least one additional semester at Miami University as an undergraduate student after participating in the year 2010 USS program.

Application Submission Deadlines

Two rounds of funding are available with deadlines for submission in the fall and spring.
Round 1 on December 4, 2009 and
Round 2 on February 26, 2010

Only students submitting an application through departments or programs with a mentor in any Fine Arts and Humanities, Social Sciences or School of Education Health and Society may apply in Round 2. All other eligible students must apply by the fall submission deadline of December 4, 2009. Approximately (100) one hundred awards will be available in Round 1 and approximately (15) fifteen awards will be allotted for Round 2.

Important Summer 2010 Participation Dates

• May 10 through August 20, 2010. Period of required participation in USS program is 9 weeks within this 15-week interval. All USS projects must be conducted during this time period. See the USS 2010 guidelines for detailed time tables.

USS Program Application Deadlines for Round 1 and Round 2
Submission open to all eligible students. See USS Guidelines Section II Eligibility for details.
Round 1 - Fall Time Table
Student/faculty mentor USS applications due by 5:00 p.m. in mentor's department/ or program office.	Student Submission Deadline December 4, 2009 (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 11, 2009 (Friday)
OARS allocates USS positions to departments and programs	January 29, 2010
Departments/ programs identify which applicants will be offered USS awards, notify them and notify non-selected students. OARS will send award letters on March 3, 2010.	February 19, 2010 (Friday)
Round 2 - Spring Submission
Submission limited to students submitting an application through departments or programs with a mentor in Fine Arts and Humanities, Social Sciences or School of Education Health and Society
Student/faculty mentor USS applications due by 5:00 p.m. in mentor's department/ or program office.	Student Submission Deadline February 26, 2010 (Friday)
Department application packets due by 5:00 p.m. in the Office for the Advancement of Research and Scholarship (OARS) 102 Roudebush Hall	March 5, 2010 (Friday)
OARS allocates USS positions to departments and programs	March 26, 2010 (Friday)
Departments/ programs identify which applicants will be offered USS awards, notify them and notify non-selected students. OARS will send award letters on April 19, 2010.	April 16, 2010 (Friday)

Download pdf file version of USS 2010 Program Application form and program guidelines

Request Printed copies from and direct questions not answered in the guideline materials to:
Mrs. Martha E. Weber, weberme@muohio.edu
Undergraduate Research Coordinator
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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