The Marcus Undergraduate Research Fellowship

Students from a broad range of backgrounds and experiences are encouraged to apply. These fellowships aim to enrich student learning rather than to reward past performance.

Deadline for submission: April 7, 11:59 p.m.

Award amount: $4,000 ($3,000 to student, $1,000 to faculty mentor)

Timeline: Awardees are typically notified by the end of the spring semester. The Marcus Fellowship begins in the following fall and extends through spring of the following year.

Student Eligibility

• Students must be declared undergraduate majors in the College of Liberal & Creative Arts. LCA minors can apply if their project is housed in the LCA and their mentor is an LCA faculty. Priority will be given to LCA majors.
• Student must be enrolled during both the fall and spring semesters of the awarded academic year.
• Students must not be studying abroad in 2023-24.

Faculty Eligibility

• The faculty mentor must be a tenured or tenure-track full-time faculty member in the College of Liberal & Creative Arts.
• The faculty mentor must commit to mentorship of the student fellow across a range of research or creative activities relevant to their discipline including project development and presentation of results.
• The faculty mentor must commit to meeting weekly or biweekly with the student.

Project Requirements and Expectations

Receiving Units

• Projects may be in conjunction with or independent of existing, scheduled coursework
• If independent, then the project may lead to course credits (e.g., 699 units)
• If in conjunction with a course then the project must involve significant activity beyond the course requirements

All recipients of the Marcus Fellowship are expected to participate in the following activities:

• An orientation event and periodic meetings among the Marcus Fellows, faculty mentors, and program coordinator.
• An opening reception at the beginning of the Fall 23 semester.
• An outreach event to connect with potential future applicants.
• A recognition event near the end of the 2023-2024 academic year.

Deliverables

• Student recipients are expected to attend at least one conference to present their work; this may be a student research conference such as the LCA Undergraduate Research Showcase, or the student section of a professional conference. 
• At the end of the spring semester, the fellows are expected to submit a report (1000 words) summarizing their year-long project, and all other materials that pertain to their work, i.e. a paper, portfolio, etc.

Preparing a Proposal

1. Interested students should approach a faculty member with a project in mind and ask whether the faculty member is willing to serve a mentor for the project. Students should provide the faculty member with this document at the first meeting.
2. The student, under the guidance and supervision of the faculty mentor, will prepare the proposal for submission. Keep in mind that proposals may take several weeks to develop and complete.

Components of the Proposal

The PDF document containing the research proposal will be written in Times 12 font, single-spaced, and with one-inch margins. The document should contain the following parts labeled according to the print in bold:

1. Title of the Project: The title of the project should describe the project succinctly.
2. Research Question or Project Goal: (1 sentence)
3. Abstract: (100-150 words)
4. Personal Statement: This section includes the student’s academic interests and goals and any personal information the student and faculty mentor think would be useful to convey to the review committee. (maximum 500 words)
5. Project Proposal Narrative: In this section, the student introduces the project, states the research question, describes the methods that will be used, and explains the value of the project (maximum 1,000 words)
6. Timeline: This section provides a proposed timeline for the project from beginning to end, including mentor meetings, tasks associated with the project, and completion dates for the various activities. (maximum 1 page)
7. Bibliography (optional): Provide a list of sources referenced in the proposal in the format and style expected in your discipline.
8. Unofficial Transcript: For SFSU coursework only.
9. Course status – Is the project independent or part of a course? (If yes, then in one paragraph identify all of the activities that are beyond the course requirements)
10. Faculty statement: This section is prepared by the faculty mentor and explains the merits of the project, the likelihood the project can be completed in the timeline provided, describes the mentoring plan (e.g., frequency of meetings), and other information the faculty member thinks reviewers might find helpful (maximum 500 words)

Criteria for Proposal Evaluation

1. overall quality and clarity of the proposal
2. realistic scope of the project and likelihood of completion
3. potential impact on student, the value of personal outcomes
4. clear evidence of a student-initiated project
5. level of faculty collaboration, as described in the timeline and faculty statement
6. student preparation, evidence of the training necessary to conduct the activity