The Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS) is inviting faculty members to submit research projects for the 2020 session of the Dean’s Award for Research Excellence (DARE).
Now entering its third year, the DARE program underlines the importance of collaboration between undergraduate students and contract faculty, supporting students with a tremendous opportunity to participate in a research project of their interest while receiving a monetary award of $5,000 for their contributions.
DARE is open to full-time undergraduate students enrolled in any LA&PS degree program, with a minimum accumulative GPA of 7.0 and at least 48 credits completed at the time the DARE project commences. Contract faculty, professors and other LA&PS academic leaders are all encouraged to submit research proposals in hopes for a varied mix of subjects among this year’s selections.
Set to take place over the summer term (beginning on May 1 and concluding on Aug. 31), DARE provides a hands-on experience for all parties involved, culminating in a celebratory presentation event in the fall/winter term where faculty members and students will be able to showcase their findings.
“DARE is an excellent initiative that does a wonderful job uniting our Faculty’s students and instructors,” LA&PS Dean JJ McMurtry said. “The program covers a wide range of thought-provoking topics in multiple areas of study in LA&PS. It’s a unique and invaluable experience that helps today’s undergraduates transition into their roles as tomorrow’s leading researchers in whatever career path they choose. We’ve received amazing feedback from students and faculty alike.”
The primary goal of the award is to foster positive mentor-mentee connections between undergraduates and faculty members, while also adding meaningful scholarly inquiry to various fields of study. In previous DARE sessions, supervisors and students have worked together to examine several topics, ranging from the arts and humanities to more technology-based areas – with each assignment aiming to address key issues.
This year, research projects of interest must be submitted by faculty members by Jan. 20. Selected projects will then be uploaded to the DARE website and made available to students by Jan. 23.
Additional information on previous DARE research projects and this year’s application forms can be found here at laps.yorku.ca/research/dare.