Undergraduate Research

StFX prides itself on the opportunities for undergraduate students to participate in research. A diverse range of undergraduate student research training opportunities and awards are available.  Every summer close to 100 undergraduate students undertake research projects under the supervision of StFX faculty.  With the exception of the Research NS Scotia Scholar Undergraduate Research Awards which are applied for through the Research NS website, applicants submit using the ROMEO Researcher Portal, with a deadline of NOON February 7 (when this date falls on a weekend or holiday, applications are due at NOON the next business day).

The following are the key undergraduate student research awards (each valued at $6,250):

• Irving Research Mentorship Awards
• NSERC Undergraduate Research Awards
• Scotia Scholar Undergraduate Research Awards NOON January 23 (when this date falls on a weekend or holiday, applications are due at NOON the next business day) 
• RBC Foundation Undergraduate Summer Research Internship Awards
• UCR Undergraduate Research Awards
• Alley Heaps Undergraduate Research Internship Awards
• Schwartz Business School Research Internship Awards

Application Requirements

Download the application instructions for Students.

Download the application instructions for Faculty.

In the ROMEO Researcher Portal, attach the following as one single PDF document. Formatting instructions: ¾ inch margins all around, 11pt font, single spacing, and name at the top.

1. One page research proposal (objectives, context, methodology, expected impact or outcomes).

2. One page list of citations from page 1, with optional additional bibliographic references (if applicable).

3. One page statement of preparation. “How do your unique experiences make you ready for this opportunity?” Please discuss:

• Academic preparation and qualifications for this project: statements about courses taken / work done in specific courses to help prepare for the project; relevance of academic training to field of proposed research; activities; research experiences; research employment; Other employment; extracurricular activities; other.
• How this project fits with your longer term plans, if appropriate: statement of interest in the project specifically and research generally; plans / intentions for possible honours, graduate studies, employment in research or fields related to the project area.

4. STFX Student Grade Report (unofficial student grades from all years). If you have courses / transcripts from other universities or colleges, please include an unofficial grade list for these.

Evaluation Criteria

Academic Excellence 20%:

• Less emphasis on GPA / grades
• More emphasis on:
  
  • Relative standing in course
  • Grades in courses related to the proposed research subject matter
  • Course load (full course load vs less than full and overall performance)

Quality of the proposed research project and expected outcomes 40%:

• Significance, feasibility and merit of proposed research
• Clarity of proposal (ideas, theoretical, technical and/or concepts clearly and logically written)
• Appropriateness and clarity of methodology

Research Potential 40%:

From the student’s statement:

• Academic preparation and qualifications for this project:
  
  • Statements about courses taken / work done in specific courses to help prepare for the project; Relevance of academic training to field of proposed research
  • Activities; Research experiences; Research employment; Other employment; Extracurricular activities; Other

• How this project fits with longer term plans, if appropriate:
  
  • Statement of interest in the project specifically and research generally
  • Plans / intentions for possible honours, graduate studies, employment in research or fields related to the project area

From the supervisor’s statement:

• Clear statement about the student’s enthusiasm for the project and evidence of potential for the student to be successful in research
• Specific examples that point to the excellence of the student, more generally

Other funding sources include:

• Wallace Family Entrepreneurship Awards  

Featured Undergraduate Student Researchers

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Briony Merritt