The 2025 Undergraduate Research Collective application is now open! The application deadline is July 21st, 2025 at 11:59pm.
Overview
Students enroll in a two quarter seminar focused on research preparation and community-building, are matched with a faculty mentor to conduct research, and receive an $8,000 scholarship over the course of their two year participation. Refer to the timeline below for more details.
To apply for the Undergraduate Research Collective, students must:
- Be a first-year, second-year or first-year transfer student in the 2025-2026 academic year. This is not based on credit, but enrollment at UW. For example, if you are applying as you enter your second year enrolled at UW, but you have junior class standing based on your credits, you are still eligible for the program.
- Be registered full-time (at least 12 credits) during the two year award period (2025-2026 and 2026-2027 academic years), pursuing a bachelor’s degree at the UW Seattle campus.
- Have no prior faculty-mentored research experience outside of a course. If you have conducted research in a class, you are still eligible for the program.
If selected to be a scholar in the Undergraduate Research Collective, students must:
- Enroll in the one credit GEN ST seminar series (Schedule TBD) in both Winter 2026 and Spring 2026 quarters;
- Complete all coursework, attend each class, and engage in cohort activities/events;
- Meet with your assigned faculty mentor on a regular basis;
- Carry out research for 5-10 hours/week with your assigned faculty mentor during the second year of the program (Fall 2026-Spring 2027);
- Present your research project at the 2027 Undergraduate Research Symposium
Below are four questions to learn more about you and your interest in the program.
Since this is a program for early-career students, we do not expect you to have professional experience or a concrete idea of your long-term academic or career goals. Please reflect on each of these questions and answer authentically, in your own voice. We will focus on reviewing the content and depth of your response, rather than grammar or writing style.
1. During the first year, students in this program will enroll in a two-quarter seminar with their cohort focused on research preparation and community-building, meet their matched research mentor, and discuss an onboarding plan. During the second year, students will conduct 5-10 hours of research per week, attend monthly professional development workshops, and present their research at the Undergraduate Research Symposium. Throughout the program, there will be quarterly check-ins and advising support from the Office of Undergraduate Research.
What appeals to you about this program? What parts of this program are you most excited about and why? Please provide at least two examples (250-300 words).
2. Participating in research can support your learning and growth in a variety of ways! Examples may include working closely with a team on a shared goal, learning new research techniques, improving your communication skills, identifying a career path, contributing to real world impact, developing a meaningful relationship with a mentor, finding new passions, and many more.
In what ways do you see yourself learning and growing from a research experience? Please provide specific examples that allow us to learn more about you and why you want to explore research for the first time (250-300 words).
3. Describe a group of people or community that is meaningful to you. How did your engagement in that group or community shape your identity and/or aspirations? You are welcome to describe any group or community that resonates with you, whether that be a more personal group such as your family/friends/cultural community, or a formal group such as an organization/club (250-300 words).
4. Refer to the Research Mentors page to view descriptions of the available research opportunities. From the available research areas provided, what areas interest you the most and why? Please be specific when describing your research interests to help us find the best match for you. We do not expect you to know anything about the research area in advance (250-300 words).
Below is the tentative timeline for the review process.
Application Window: June 2nd – July 21st
Application Review Period: July 21st – August 29th
Award Notifications: Early September
Students in the program will receive an $8,000 scholarship.
20 students will be awarded during the 2025-2027 application cycle.
Award amounts will be $8,000, to be disbursed in the amount of $1,600 each quarter (Winter 2026, Spring 2026, Fall 2026, Winter 2027, Spring 2027).
We hope to increase the number of students awarded in future years.
Timeline
In the first year of the program, students will be matched with a faculty mentor, enroll in two quarters of a seminar focused on research preparation and community-building, and will discuss an onboarding plan with their mentor.
In the second year of the program, students will engage in 5-10 hours of research per week, attend monthly workshops, and present their research at the Undergraduate Research Symposium.
