Broadening access to, and enhancing, undergraduate research experiences is a central priority in UBC’s strategic plan. UBC committed $1M in strategic funds over two years for the Program for Undergraduate Research Experience (PURE). The call for proposals was open to faculty, staff and students from both Vancouver and Okanagan campuses for innovative pilot projects.
Funding recipients were announced in April 2019.
For the purposes of this funding competition, undergraduate research was defined as “…academic pursuits that provide either a) an academic contribution to an area of research or to a discipline pertinent to one’s field of study or b) a practical application of academic learning, with consequences for society.”
PURE COMPETITION
Faculty, staff and students are invited to submit proposals for innovative projects that will expand access to and/or enhance undergraduate research experiences at UBC. Proposals should demonstrate how the requested funding will be used to support innovative pilot projects and the anticipated outcomes for students.
Applications are limited to 5 pages (free-form), plus the template title page and template budget and justification form (excel form may download directly). Applications should provide:
- The principal applicant and confirmed team members, collaborators and partners and a description of the team’s commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion. All applications from teams must have sign-off and approval from sponsoring Dean(s) of a Faculty/ies and/or a member of Executive.
- The CVs/resumes of the team members up to a maximum of 5, including the principal applicant and the co-applicant (if applicable).
- A description of the project, including goals, objectives and expected outcomes of the proposed project.
- The role and involvement of, and/or consultations with, undergraduate students in the project.
- If applicable, contributions (cash and/or in kind) from Faculties, departments and other partners.
- Plans for sustainability of the pilot project beyond the funding end-date.
- Plans for scaling the pilot project to benefit a significant number of students.
- Evaluation plan that will be used to determine the project’s success/impact.
eligibility
Faculty, staff and students from both the Vancouver and Okanagan campuses are eligible to apply for PURE. If the Principal Applicant is a student, the application must be supported and signed by a co-applicant who is a faculty member. Undergraduate student participation in pilot projects is essential.
AWARD DETAILS
A total funding envelope of $1 million is available for this competition. Teams may apply for projects between $5,000 up to a maximum of $50,000 for a one-year project and $100,000 for a two-year project.
A strong budget justification is expected to align specific activities with goals and expected outcomes. The PURE review committees will consider each budget item and may recommend funding only some budget items, or reduced terms.
The principal applicants of successful teams will be required to attend a post-award informational workshop with the VP Research & Innovation office.
REVIEW PROCESSES
Multi-disciplinary peer review panels composed of faculty, staff and students, and including external reviewers, at each campus will review the applications. Each campus will develop a ranked list of proposals based on final proposal scores. A cross-campus multi-disciplinary panel will then select proposals for funding.
SUBMISSIONS PROCESSES
The VP Research & Innovation office will held proposal development information sessions on January 22, 2019 (Vancouver Campus) and January 23, 2019 (Okanagan Campus).
Notice of Intent to Apply
In order to submit an application to the PURE competition, teams were required to submit a short Notice of Intent (NOI) in advance of the final deadline. The NOI is non-competitive and was used internally to plan review panels. At the NOI stage, it is not necessary to have approval / sign-off from a dean or executive, but the NOI list will be shared with appropriate deans and executive for informational purposes.
Application Submission
Applications for this funding call are submitted as a single PDF document comprising a 5-page, free-form proposal, the template title page,the template budget page and CVs.
Questions should be directed either to Helen Burt (Vancouver Campus) helen.burt@ubc.ca or Paul van Donkelaar (Okanagan Campus) paul.vandonkelaar@ubc.ca.
Only applicants who submitted a Notice of Intent are eligible to submit a completed application for PURE funding.
Assessment Criteria
Specific assessment criteria for PURE include:
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The project is innovative and positively impacts the undergraduate research experience at UBC. It should not be limited to an expansion of existing undergraduate research experiences or programs.
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Ideally, the project demonstrates potential for curricular impact.
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The project team membership and proposed activities reflect a commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion. Projects that meaningfully engage Indigenous students are encouraged.
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The proposal provides a clear project description including rationale, overarching goals and specific objectives.
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The proposal clearly articulates specific, well-defined outcomes that are achievable. Where applicable, dissemination strategies should be outlined, for example, published articles in peer-reviewed journals, abstracts, conference presentations (e.g. the Multidisciplinary Undergraduate Research Conference) posters, reports etc.
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The proposal describes the roles, involvement and/or consultations with undergraduate students.
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Plans for sustainability and scaling of the project to benefit a significant number of students, particularly under-represented student populations.
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The proposal outlines an evaluation plan that identifies outcomes criteria that will be used to assess the project’s success/impact.
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Where feasible, the project demonstrates cash/in-kind commitments from partners.
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The proposal outlines the research mentorship/teaching that will be offered to undergraduates by faculty, post-doc, and/or graduate students.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The VP Research & Innovation Office hosted two information sessions on the 2019 competition.
Timeline
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January 7, 2019 |
Competition Launch |
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January 22, 2019 8:30 – 11:00 a.m. |
(Optional) PURE Information Session (Vancouver), Location: The Centre for Brain Health, 2215 Wesbrook Mall |
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January 23, 2019 9:30 – 12:30 p.m. |
(Optional) PURE Information Session (Okanagan), Location: SCI 333, 1177 Research Road |
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February 4, 2019 11:59 p.m. |
Deadline to submit a Notice of Intent. |
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March 4, 2019 11:59 p.m. |
Final proposal deadline. |
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Week of March 18, 2019 |
Panel meetings, notifications |
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March 29, 2019 8:30 – 10:00 a.m.
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Vancouver pre-award workshop (required for all successful proposals) Henry Angus Rm. 037, 2053 Main Mall |
| TBC, 2019 | Okanagan pre-award workshop (required for all successful proposals) |
FAQs
The definition of undergraduate research is taken from the report of the UBC Vancouver Senate Undergraduate Working Group which is a working group of the Senate Teaching and Learning Committee.
Yes. Please contact the VPRI or appropriate Executive office contact for discussion of the process to follow.
Please obtain approval from all Deans involved.
When the project proposal is primarily affiliated with, or led out of an executive portfolio such as VPRI or VPS, or it is a joint project proposal from a Faculty and an executive portfolio, the principal applicant should obtain sign-off from the appropriate
member of executive.
Yes.
Yes, no-cost (with no additional funding) extensions may be granted. Extension requests should be submitted to the VPRI office and provide the following information:
- Additional time for completion of the project and expenditure of funds may be requested, up to a maximum of 2 months for one-year projects and 4 months for two-year projects from the original end date of the project.
- Rationale for request and justification for use of any remaining budget.
All one-year projects must submit final project reports by August 31, 2020. Two-year projects must submit final project reports by October 31, 2021.
Travel expenses; student/staff support/stipends; costs associated with workshops, retreats, planning meetings, speakers, communications etc; project materials and supplies; equipment costs; data analytics.
Yes, provided there is a letter of support from the Head/Director of the unit or Dean of the Faculty as appropriate.
There is no maximum. There may be any number of team members. There are no requirements about faculty:student ratio.
No, up to a maximum of 5 CVs/resumes, including the principal applicant and co-applicant (if applicable) may be attached to the proposal.
No. We are not suggesting there is a need for cash/in-kind contributions from external partners. However, where feasible, Faculties/departments should report any cash or in-kind contributions being made to a project.
Yes. If the term of the PDF appointment is shorter than the length of the pilot project, including a co-applicant to the project team is advised.
Yes. However, the Principal Applicant must be a UBC person.
The limit is one application as Principal Applicant. However, there is no limit to the number of proposals a person can be on as a team member.
Yes. Please be sure to follow co-op program guidelines (e.g. positions must be posted/advertised). Co-op student salary is considered an eligible PURE expense.
This report from the Undergraduate Research Working Group details how the development of PURE was informed.
Workshops