Home > News > Research and Artistic Showcase premiers today
Research and Artistic Showcase premiers today
BY ROBERT DOWNS
STATESMAN STAFF WRITER
ISSUE: 78/29
Some UMD students are putting on presentations at the 14th annual UMD Research and Artistic Showcase
that is taking place today from 12-4 p.m. Undergraduate students are putting their creative and investigative talents on display in the Kirby Ballroom for all to see. The showcase includes presentations from UMD’s Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) program, as well as independent projects from students throughout the five collegiate units.
UROP is a program in which UMD undergraduates select a faculty sponsor and collaborate with the sponsor to prepare research project presentations. The students are given a $1,400 stipend to cover the cost of research, and must present the project at the showcase. Dr. Stephen Hedman, the associate vice chancellor of academic administration, explained that the purpose of the showcase is to allow students to share and explain their projects and research with peers. “There’s a bit of peer bonding that goes on there,” he said. “I think it’s a positive experience for both the presenter and the student observer.”
The formats of the presentations will include poster boards, oral presentations and computer demos. The presentations are not just products of the UROP program, however. According to Hedman, the program aims to support students that have done work as part of a course, independent study or simply out of interest for the topic. “We decided that there were lots of students that were doing good and independent work, which they had not done under the [guidelines] of a UROP program. So why not give them a chance [to display their projects] as well,” he said.
Hedman indicated that the majority of students participating would be seniors, as the UROP program must be applied for a year in advance. “If juniors were interested in [entering their projects], it would mean that they would have had to apply for it in their sophomore year. Normally, people are too busy taking courses and trying to meet prerequisites, which is why we normally end up with mostly seniors,” he said.
UMD senior Ellen Burns, who is presenting on “The Effectiveness of Grammar Education in Five Minnesota
High Schools,” has been gathering information and drafting surveys since last summer in efforts to prepare for her study. She said that her research project has been beneficial for her in many ways. “[I signed up for this] because I wanted to gain more experience, I wanted to make some contacts within a few different schools, and I wanted to gain more knowledge on the subject,” Burns said. “I really didn’t know what to expect from it, but it was really beneficial. It also looks really good on a resume.”
Hedman expects up to 80 or 90 people to be presenting, and maintains that the showcase is important to both student observers and the undergraduate presenters. “It is a celebration of the work of our undergraduates in their independent study projects and is a positive experience for all concerned,” he said.
