May 16, 2021
The 24th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium to happen virtually on May 21
On Friday, May 21, nearly 750 undergraduates from all three University of Washington campuses as well as local community colleges and regional colleges will participate in the 24th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium, which will be held online for the second year. The UW’s Undergraduate Research Symposium is one of the largest in the country and provides a professional opportunity for undergraduates to present their research, scholarly and creative work.
Undergraduates from all disciplines show the ways their research connects to issues that matter in our communities and contributes to the University’s work as a leading public research university. In 2019-20, nearly 8,300 students participated in at least 1 quarter of research. More than 1,200 students presented their work in the 2019 Undergraduate Research Symposium, and over 850 students presented in the virtual Symposium in 2020.
This year is the fifth year that the UW’s Population Health Initiative is awarding select student presenters a Population Health Recognition award for “their innovative and well-presented research work.” Among this year’s 12 student awardees are these timely and challenging research projects:
- Dancing Around the Point: Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy amid the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Puget Sound Region by Annette Mercedes, who’s majoring in anthropology and biology.
- Ultrafine Particle Inequality by Race, Ethnicity, and Income in Seattle by Kaya Bramble, who’s majoring in industrial engineering.
- Firearm Injury and Violence Research Articles in Health Sciences by Funding Status and Type: A Scoping Review by Pavithra Prabhu, who’s majoring in microbiology.
“The application of classroom concepts in problem solving and experimentation have made me a better student, a better learner, a better teacher, a better thinker, and a better person. I believe every student, no matter the field, should conduct a mentored internship/research project in their area of study.”
— 2020 Symposium Presenter
Overview of the format and registration
The Symposium begins at 9 a.m., Pacific Daylight Time, and will run to 5:00 p.m. UW President Cauce, Provost Mark Richards and UAA Vice Provost and Dean Ed Taylor have each recorded videos to welcome students and guests; congratulate undergraduates on their accomplishments; share who the recipients of the Research Mentor Awards are; and recognize the invaluable role mentors play in encouraging undergraduates to transform their education through research.
Students will present their research in one of these formats, all followed by a question and answer period:
- Lightning talk presentation,
- 10-minute oral presentation,
- Visual arts and design presentation, or
- Performing arts presentation
Registered guests will be able to access students’ abstracts and presentation times, watch presentations by students they specifically want to see, and explore and attend multiple sessions.
All presentations will be pre-recorded and played in real time, according to the event schedule; they will not be available for later viewing. Registration is required to attend this free event.
To view the sessions, register for the Symposium and make sure to set up a Zoom account if you do not already have one. Information about how to access the sessions and a detailed Symposium conference schedule will be emailed to registered attendees the week of Symposium.