At the core of URS is the partnership forged between the student and the URS Mentor through the student’s two-semester research or creative practice experience.
URS Mentors are faculty, staff, and advanced graduate students from across the UW–Madison campus, representing many different disciplines.
Mentors guide students in learning many aspects of a research or creative practice process including:
- data collection methods
- literature reviews
- developing a thesis, question, or hypotheses
- project design, methods, and ethical implications
- presenting results
- careers in research or the arts
- writing.
Matching students and projects
URS Scholars begin with an orientation the day before classes begin in the fall. The student identifies five preferred projects from the list of that year’s research and creative practice opportunities. The URS staff then invites each student to contact two potential URS Mentors.
Interview
The student contacts the potential URS Mentors, usually through email, to make interview appointments.
Both the student and the Mentor have a choice about working together. The decision should be mutual. The interview process should be geared toward learning about their interests, what the project entails, expectations, aspects of the research or creative process the student will learn, etc.
Mentors may interview several students, either because they have more than one spot on their team for a URS Scholar, or many students are interested. Mentors may also conduct group interviews with URS Scholars, as student and Mentor schedules allow.
Contract
The URS Scholar and the URS Mentor work out the expectations and duties of the research or creative project together. These details are recorded in the URS Scholar-Mentor Contract, signed by both the student and the Mentor. The student submits the contract to the URS staff (via Canvas) by the fifth week of the semester.
The contract helps ensure clear and up-front communication of expectations and what the student can hope to accomplish and learn. It should clearly outline:
- tasks for which the student is responsible;
- which aspects of a research or creative process the student will learn;
- number of hours per week the student is expected to work; and
- the number of credits appropriate for that amount of work per week;
- 1 to 3 hours = 1 credit
- 4 to 6 hours = 2 credits (most common)
- 7 to 10 hours = 3 credits
The URS Mentor, or a post-doctoral researcher or graduate student under their direct supervision, take an active role throughout the student’s research or creative practice experience. The tasks they assign and the learning goals they set can help the student develop a deeper understanding, engagement, and excitement about research and creative practices.
Evaluation and grading
URS Mentors schedule regular conversations with their students about their progress during the course of the semester and year. Ideally, URS Scholars and their Mentors meet once a week for (at least) 30 minutes. During this time, Mentors give Scholars feedback on their work and they both talk through any problems or roadblocks that may be coming up, share next steps, and invite each other to ask questions.
Participation in the research or creative practice component of URS is 75% of the overall INTER-LS 250 course grade. Mentors grade students using these guidelines:
- A | Exceptional. Student took initiative or performed above and beyond expectations in research or creative practice project.
- AB | Active engagement in project activity, completed all assignments, reported to work regularly and for expected number of hours, developed new skills and applied them appropriately.
- B | Did not meet all expectations. Not fully engaged in project activity, did not always work expected number of hours, some evidence of new or improved ability for systematic inquiry.
- BC | Did not meet several expectations. Below average engagement in project activity, regularly did not work expected number of hours, little evidence of new or improved ability for systematic inquiry.
- C | Below expectations. Minimal initiative and engagement in project, rarely worked expected number of hours. Poor performance in all areas.
- D or below | Very poor performance in all areas.
UW–Madison Undergraduate Symposium
During the spring semester, each URS Scholar presents their research or creative project in a talk, poster, performance, or other form of presentation at the campus-wide Undergraduate Symposium.
Mentors work with the student to develop both the abstract and presentation, then approve the student’s abstract to ensure their acceptance to the Symposium. This abstract is published online and in the Symposium program.
Federal Work Study
URS Scholars who are eligible for Federal Work-Study are permitted to earn pay as a research assistant in the URS program if:
- the URS Mentor has funds to pay the employer portion of the salary, and
- the student works more hours than those agreed on in the URS contract for degree credit.
The URS Mentor’s departmental office is responsible for collecting the reports of Federal Work-Study hours worked (time sheets) and for processing them so students are paid. Scholars may not earn more than their Federal Work-Study allocation per semester. The Mentor’s departmental office is required to have on file a description of the Scholar’s work position paid for by the Federal Work-Study funds.
The Office of Student Financial Aid Office will assist you and your URS Scholar in every way possible to work out this arrangement: financialaid.wisc.edu/types-of-aid/work-study/
Scholars are permitted to earn pay for their URS-related research or creative practice if the URS Mentor has grant or other funding available to support student workers, though URS Scholars generally only expect to earn course credit for their work.