Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities Program

What is a URCA Assistant?

URCA Assistants work on full time tenured or tenure-track faculty-led research or creative activities.  Assistants typically work approximately 9 hours per week under the direct guidance of a faculty member on projects directly related to research or creative activities (i.e., not teaching or service-related tasks).  Assistant positions are for one semester and can be renewed. Up to 80 Assistants per semester will receive a $1000 award for their participation; several other Assistants serve in a volunteer capacity each semester. Students may also be able to earn course credit for participating. If the URCA activity is counted for course credit, the student must pay for those credit hours. There is no tuition waiver as a part of the URCA program! Faculty submit their research or creative activity proposals to the URCA Program and if approved, then students apply directly to and are selected by that faculty member.

Assistants:

• Work on faculty-led research or creative activity for approximately 9 hours each week
• Gain an introductory experience of research or creative activities in a specific field

Benefits:

• Opportunity to work closely with faculty mentor
• Opportunity to explore different areas of research or creative activities
• Possible opportunity to earn course credit for research participation (this is up to the individual faculty mentors; some positions may be for credit, some may not) If the URCA activity is counted for course credit, the student must pay for those credit hours. There is no tuition waiver as a part of the URCA program!
• Possible opportunity to earn $1000 award per semester of participation (up to 80 research assistant positions per semesters will be funded in this manner)

The following are requirements of all URCA Assistants in the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (URCA) Program at SIUE:

• Must have a cumulative grade point average of 2.3 or above
• Must be enrolled as a full-time student at SIUE (minimum of 12 credit hours) for entire length of participation in the URCA Program
• Must maintain satisfactory progress on the URCA project as defined by the faculty mentor
• Must maintain good standing with the university at large

For more information on the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities Program,
contact Dr. Laura Pawlow at (618) 650-2608 or lpawlow@siue.edu.