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Certificate Requirements

Students are required to complete the following during their undergraduate career at the university to receive the Distinguished Undergraduate Research Certificate.

Requirement 1: Experience

Acquire a minimum of nine credit hours of coursework directly related to undergraduate research.

  • Courses that count for this requirement will vary by department but typically fall into one of the following categories: (1) specifically designated as undergraduate research, (2) independent studies that are specifically designed for undergraduate research, (3) research methods (e.g., survey research), (4) senior theses and capstone seminars, and (5) other classes as appropriate. Courses that are taken pass/fail count, but courses that carry no credit are not eligible to count towards the certificate.

  • SUBSTITUTION: Three hours of the course requirement can be substituted with paid or credit-based research assistantship, or internship experience, accumulating a minimum of 150 hours within a 12 month timeframe. A letter from the supervisor detailing the student's involvement, tasks undertaken, and duration of the position is required for verification.

Requirement 2: Exploration

Attend at least one in-person professional research talk.

  • Professional research talks include on-campus seminars, faculty candidate job talks, and presentations at conferences. Students should consult with their research mentor or OUR's curated list of campus research talks to locate these opportunities.
  • A one-page summary (minimum 500 words) is required for certification. Please include the following: (1) A summary of the talk and (2) a reflection on the research's implications, relevance, and significance.

Requirement 3: Skill-building

Attend at least two research skill-enhancing workshops.

  • Eligible workshops include select offerings by OUR, University Library's Savvy Researcher, CITL Data Analytics, and LinkedIn Learning sessions. All eligible workshops are listed on OUR's workshops page. Other workshops may be considered; kindly email OUR in advance to verify eligibility.
  • For each workshop attended, a one-page reflection (minimum 500 words) is required for certification. Students should reflect thoughtfully on: (1) The motivation behind your choice to attend this specific workshop, (2) the key insights and learnings gained, and (3) how you envision applying this knowledge to shape your current or future research endeavors.

Requirement 4: Presentation

Give two presentations (poster, oral, artistic performance, or exhibit) of your research at a conference or symposium.

  • One (1) presentation must be at the Undergraduate Research Symposium sponsored by OUR that is held every spring semester in April. Students can receive credit by presenting in a group or as a sole presenter.
  • The second presentation can also be at the Undergraduate Research Symposium or at another venue, such as a department, unit, college event, or external conference.

  • SUBSTITUTION: One presentation can be substituted by a publication in a peer-reviewed journal (including an undergraduate research journal).