FCRH Undergraduate Research Symposium

Save the Date! The 18th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium

Wednesday, April 30, 2025 

We can't wait to celebrate with you all! The deadline for abstracts is Friday, April 11 and the complete program will be available soon after.  Our schedule of events is as follows:

11:00-3:00          Oral Presentation Panels (JMCC 3rd floor Great Hall, 311, 112)

1:00-1:45            Poster Session #1 (JMCC 3rd floor Great Hall)

2:00-2:45            Poster Session #2 (JMCC 3rd floor Great Hall)

3:00-3:30            Awards Ceremony (JMCC 3rd floor Great Hall)

Here are some previous highlights too! Our "May the 4th Be With You" themed Undergraduate Research Symposium was a blast! It was amazing to have our wonderful students back in person to present their research that they worked so hard on. Watch this video to hear from a few of our researchers about their experience as we held one of the only in-person undergraduate research events in the country.

 
 
  • Please follow all directions on the abstract submission form and review your entries carefully as they will be displayed in the symposium program.

    You should only submit one abstract per project. Multiple authors should coordinate to determine who will submit their project.

    If you have made an error in your submission, please email Dr. Annunziato.

    We look forward to reading your submissions!

     
  • An abstract usually acts as a summary of work already completed and is used by prospective readers to decide whether or not to read the entire text. Abstracts are usually found immediately preceding a research document (such as a thesis or dissertation), and/or in professional journals and abstract indexes (both online and in hard copy). An abstract should represent as much as is possible the quantitative and qualitative information in the document, and also reflect its reasoning.

    In order to participate in the Undergraduate Research Symposium, all students must submit an abstract, or summary of their work, at the time of their application. Please heed the following guidelines when preparing your abstract:

    • Abstracts should not exceed 250 words (not including title, authors, department).
    • The abstract should clearly state the argument, summarize the evidence that supports the argument, and describe the significance of the work. 
    • Don't include a bibliography unless your work specifically responds to, or is an extension of, previous work.
    • The faculty member under whose supervision the work was produced should be listed as an author.
    • We encourage artistic or musical performances, or displays of artwork! Please contact Dean Annunziato during the submission process so we can work with you to make arrangements for your presentation.
    • Oral presentations may be scheduled anytime between 11:00-3:00 on the day of the symposium, and like external conferences, we are unable to guarantee your time slot. Therefore, please work out any class or other conflicts asap.
    • About a week before the symposium, you will receive an email with your presentation time and the name of the moderator for your session. 
    • If using slides, you will be instructed to add your presentation to a Google drive by the morning of the symposium. We recommend having a back-up plan too, like emailing a copy to yourself.
    • If you are on a panel with 4 presenters, please keep your presentations to a maximum of 10 minutes. For panels of 5 or more, the limit will be 8 minutes.
    • For a dynamic presentation, please try to maintain eye contact with your audience instead of reading from your paper. If you choose to use a power point, we recommend including graphics and supplemental images instead of copying and pasting from your paper.
    • The preferred size for posters is 3'x4' or 2'x3'.
    • Please consult with your mentor first and foremost about preparing your poster. Some departments have a printer to make one free of charge.
    • Ram Print, located in FMH, can print 3'x4' at a cost of $72. Please contact them directly to make arrangements. Requests must be submitted before the day of the symposium.
    • There are a variety of good resources to consult, such as Brown University (with additional links to several other helpful sites particularly tailored to different disciplines). Possible templates may also be requested from our team.
    • FCRH will host a session on creating posters on Monday, April 8 at 1:00.