All rising juniors and seniors who will return to Brown for at least one full semester following the summer fellowship period are eligible to apply. For summer 2025, students with graduation dates of December 2025, May 2026, December 2026, and May 2027 are eligible. 

Students must also satisfy SPRINT Fellowship eligibility requirements.

Students must follow the SPRINT Fellowship application process. 

For the Advanced Undergraduate Research Fellowship, this includes three parts:

1. Registration in UFunds (SPRINT Fellowships)
2. Submission of a Google Forms application, in which you provide a detailed project proposal (Application Outline)
3. Submission of a recommendation form by your faculty mentor (Instructions for Mentors). Upon submission of the recommendation form, a confirmation email will be sent to the mentor and the student.

Your application will not be complete until all three required parts are submitted. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.

The deadline to complete these steps is 11:59 pm EST on Sunday, March 2, 2025. 

• Advanced Undergraduate Research Fellows are expected to participate in meetings with the cohort of Fellows over the summer. These conversations will include peer discussion of progress and challenges as well as workshops to support learning through the research experience.  
• Advanced Undergraduate Research Fellows are expected to present their research on campus at least once by the end of the academic year that follows the summer fellowship. Options include the Summer Symposium and semesterly Elevator Pitch events. Fellows may also identify or develop other on-campus presentation opportunities to share their projects.

You must identify a Brown faculty member who is both eligible and willing to serve as your project mentor. This mentor’s recommendation is considered as part of your fellowship application. 

Your project mentor may be a Brown faculty member with whom you are already collaborating on research and have a longstanding mentorship relationship. In such cases, it is important to discuss the specific goals of your summer project and how it is distinctive from your previous research involvement; this will help prepare you to articulate the rationale for the project and its anticipated significance for you. 

If you do not currently have a research mentor at Brown whose research relates to your project idea, you will need to secure mentorship from a Brown faculty member with relevant expertise. Plan to identify, contact, and meet with one or more faculty members to discuss your project idea; you can discover more about areas of research that Brown faculty are engaged in by visiting Researchers@Brown. You can always email faculty to schedule a conversation or attend office hours (even if you’re not enrolled in that professor’s class); you may find this template useful when drafting your email outreach. Bear in mind that several conversations may be required for both you and a prospective mentor to assess fit and for that faculty member to determine whether they can commit to serving as your project mentor.

Whether your mentorship arrangement is longstanding or new, it is essential that you develop your project proposal in consultation with your mentor. Make sure that you share a final (or near-final) version of your proposal in advance of the application deadline so that your mentor can comment knowledgeably about your project and its feasibility. Please share the Instructions for Mentors with them to ensure they are aware of what is expected of them during the application process and if you are awarded a SPRINT Fellowship. They will not be sent the link to the recommendation form automatically, so you must be proactive in sharing this information and sending reminders (as needed) as the March 2 deadline approaches.

The University has policies and procedures to ensure that research is conducted ethically and safely. Depending on the nature of your project, one or more of the following requirements may apply:

• Project Location: If your fellowship is located outside of Rhode Island, you must observe Brown’s Travel Policy and submit a completed TravelSafe application.
• Laboratory Safety: If you will be working in a Brown research laboratory or other areas on Brown’s campus where chemical, biological, or radiological hazards are present, appropriate safety training must be completed along with TrainCaster registration by the system manager in your mentor’s department.
• Human Subjects Research: If your project involves human participants, your faculty mentor must submit the Undergraduate Research Regulatory Determination survey. This requires detailed information about your project and documentation of CITI training certification for both you and your mentor. Upon completion of the survey, your mentor may receive approval to begin the project, instruction to obtain clearance from the Regulatory Advising Unit (RAU), or instruction to obtain a referral to the Institutional Review Board (IRB). Further detail is available on the RAU webpage, in the Undergraduate & Graduate Regulatory Guidance section, Undergraduate Regulatory Determination Process subsection. Please note that documentation of RAU clearance or IRB approval must be provided to undergraduateresearch@brown.edu no later than May 27, 2025.

Fellowship funding will not be disbursed until all relevant compliance and safety requirements have been met.

• Student Application Outline
• Proposal Writing Guidance (Coming Soon!)
• Instructions for Mentors
• Watch for Today@Brown announcements of proposal development workshops to be held in January and February 2025

Project mentors play an essential role in supporting the intellectual, professional, and personal development of undergraduate researchers. As Advanced Undergraduate Research Fellows engage in their independent projects, mentors serve as sounding boards and guides, providing the feedback and encouragement that empowers students to overcome project challenges.

During the application phase, mentors are expected to:

• Assist your mentee in refining their project proposal.
• Submit a recommendation form by the application deadline of 11:59 pm EST on Sunday, March 2, 2025. Reference the Instructions for Mentors for the form link and the specific questions you will be asked, as well as to confirm that you meet the eligibility requirements.
• Serve as the PI/Research Advisor for projects involving human participants, including submission of the Undergraduate Research Regulatory Determination survey and any additional requests for Regulatory Advising Unit (RAU) clearance or IRB approval required. Further detail about this process and the role of the faculty advisor is available on the RAU webpage, in the Undergraduate & Graduate Regulatory Guidance section, Undergraduate Regulatory Determination Process subsection.

During the project phase, mentors are expected to:

• Assist your mentee in navigating challenges as they implement their planned project.
• Support the development of research and transferable skills, such as project management and critical thinking.
• Review project progress regularly and provide constructive feedback.
• Collaborate with your mentee to establish regular meeting and communication practices. 
• Be responsive between meetings for questions, guidance, and feedback.

We encourage you to use the SPRINT|UTRA Mentoring Guide as a resource for questions, frameworks, and scenarios that can help inform your mentoring plan and practice.