Project Writing Guidelines
Brevity is better. Keep your proposal short, direct, and to the point.
Avoid jargon. The people who will be reading your proposal are educated faculty members across ALL disciplines. Thus, if you use jargon or acronyms specific to your individual discipline, the reader will not know what you mean unless you explain, in simple terms, what the words or acronyms mean. When in doubt, spell it out.
See instructions on prepartion of the abstract.
What is the question or technique that you want to explore in your research or creative work?
Why is this an interesting and important question? (Note: Significance means the intellectual significance to members of your discipline as well as to you.) Citation of literature references in this section is required.
Explain specifically what you plan to accomplish during the award period.
Describe exactly what activities or procedures will take place during the award period. Specifically explain how the project will be completed.
Identify what you will do and what other individuals involved in the project will do.
What kinds of techniques will you use? Are they new or unique? In what ways? What types of data will be collected and analyses will be performed?
Describe the extent of the involvement of the faculty mentor in the project.
Identify the time period (weeks, months, etc.) you plan to work on the project, and give the dates you expect the project to begin and end along with an approximation of how many hours each week you will focus on the project. Include a timeline that outlines the progression of activities that will take place during the entire award period sequentially. The timeline may be presented graphically or in outline form.
Briefly describe your qualifications to pursue the project. Include your major and number of completed credit hours and expected graduation date.
Explain why you are interested in this project, what related classroom or laboratory experience you have had, what background reading you have done, what discussions you have had with a faculty member, etc.
Describe ways that you might share the results of this project with the University community and with a larger audience if appropriate. (Don’t forget that if you receive monetary support from the Endeavor Awards Program that you will be required to present your work at the Endeavor Undergraduate Research and Creative Works Symposium held each April.)
- $2,500 maximum for student-written proposal
Make sure the items listed in your budget have been mentioned somewhere in the proposal. Remember to include shipping costs when appropriate.
Make sure you justify the expenses in your narrative including why the items you are requesting are needed and essential to your successful completion of the project.
All proposals must have citation of appropriate and relevant previous works and research. A failure to include relevant citations will result in automatic rejection of the proposal.