| | We're springing into high gear this month!
The SURF application deadline is midnight tonight (April 8) so be sure to get your submissions in to present on April 22nd in the IMU. We are so excited for this venue, there will be a lot of opportunities to highlight the work happening across our campus. Please check out our judging form below and volunteer your time if you can, this feedback is so helpful for students looking to grow their presenting skills and we couldn't do it without you!
We have put out a final call for summer ICRU applications, due April 17th at midnight; this is a great time to finalize your summer plans. The office has closed the call for academic year ICRU fellowships and will be reviewing those in the coming days.
This month's newsletter highlights some of the great successes of Iowa students, our Distinguished Mentors, and much more! Thanks for your continued support of undergraduate research.
Best,
Tawny Tibbits
Director, Office of Undergraduate Research | | | Spring Undergraduate Research Festival | | | | Today is the last day to register for the Spring Undergraduate Research Festival! SURF is a campus-wide event that celebrates undergraduate research and creative work.
Need help making your poster? Resources are available! Contact OUR if you would like help creating your poster.
Registration for SURF: March 3rd- TODAY, April 8th
SURF Date: April 22nd, 2026, from 3:30- 6:00 p.m. in the IMU Main Ballroom | | | Interested in helping the undergraduate researchers at the University of Iowa? Your feedback can help to strengthen their presentation and communication skills. We need Faculty, Graduate/Professional Students, Post-Docs, Professional Staff, and community members to serve as judges for the event.
Sign up to judge here
Click here for more information | | | | On March 9th, 26 undergraduate researchers from the University of Iowa traveled to the Iowa Statehouse to present their research to Iowa legislators. This event gave students the opportunity to discuss their research with legislators and the public, highlighting its educational benefits and community impact.
"I was able to gain hands-on experience presenting my research to others and receive feedback to improve my ability to communicate my findings to others. This was a wonderful and informative event, and I would love to have the opportunity to present again!" - Vincent Hesselink, Environmental Engineering major | | | Join us tomorrow, April 9th to celebrate and support the five undergraduate researchers competing in the Quick Pitch Challenge (QPC)! The OUR Quick Pitch Challenge is a communication competition that challenges undergraduate students to present their research or creative work to a general audience in three minutes. We are so proud of all the students will be participating and want as many audience members there as possible. For more information, please visit the Quick Pitch Challenge page. | | | | Congratulations to Lindsey Henkenius, Sean Strand, Brooke Paasch, Nina Osborne, and Jackie Ott, the 2026 winners of the Excellence in Undergraduate Research Award (EURA)! This award recognizes their accomplishments in scholarly investigation, artistic creation, or performance by an undergraduate student. To learn more about the winners, click here.
Many undergraduate researchers were nominated by their mentors during this round of applications, and the Office of Undergraduate Research is proud to support such amazing students! Keep up the amazing work! | | Congratulations to the 2026 Distinguished Mentor Award winners, Jared McLendon, PhD, of the College of Pharmacy and Bingbing Zhang of the School of Journalism and Mass Communications! They will be honored at the annual award ceremony hosted by the Office of the President at the end of the year to recognize their achievements. Learn more about these distinguished mentors here!
The University of Iowa has many outstanding mentors who support undergraduate researchers, as evidenced by the many nominations submitted by students this year! Without the dedication of UI faculty and staff mentors, there would be no undergraduate research. Thank you, mentors! | | | Other News and Information | When students present research at a conference, the costs can add up. Through the new Poster Printing Award, the Office of Undergraduate Research hopes to help with this burden by awarding students for the cost of printing one poster ($100). Applications are accepted on a rolling basis during the academic year. Once funds are depleted, applications will close. For more information, please click here.The Army Education Outreach Program initiative is providing a summer internship for undergraduates interested in an environmental biochemistry opportunity. This internship will be a positive, fun experience for an undergraduate to work in a research laboratory, and comes with a stipend of $6,000 for up to 300 hours of summer work.The National Geographic Society (NGS) is pleased to announce a Request for Proposals (RFP) for academic researchers and graduate students investigating topics related to geography education in select states and locations. Awards of up to $10,000 (for researchers) and $5,000 (for graduate students) are available to support research projects.
2026 Summer Internship Housing
University Housing and Dining at the University of Iowa is piloting a summer internship housing program in the summer of 2026. For interns at the University of Iowa or in the Iowa City area, the university will make available beds in residence hall rooms between the dates of May 23, and August 1, 2026. Rates are pro-rated based on length of stay. The deadline to apply for summer housing is on Wednesday, April 29th.
Certificate in Clinical and Translational Science
Are you interested in treating patients, conducting medical research, or creating new healthcare policies? The Certificate in Clinical and Translational Science introduces a broad range of skills and experiences and add unique depth to your research portfolio, including clinical shadowing. The ideal student is interested in how research gets applied to patients and the community and is engaged in mentored research. Students must have completed 45sh by the fall semester in which they start the program. If you are interested, please reach out to Jamie-thrams@uiowa.edu.
Looking for Open Research Positions?
Visit the OUR Open Research Positions page. These listings are provided by faculty members or departments that are looking for undergraduates to join their projects. If you do not see anything that fits your goals, contact us at undergraduate-research@uiowa.edu.
Follow OUR on Social Media
Want to see what we are up to? Follow us on social media to stay updated with all things research. We answer questions, send updates on what's happening, post about events, and talk about future opportunities. Check us out at: Instagram LinkedIn
Contact us:
Tawny Tibbits, OUR Director, tawny-tibbits@uiowa.edu
Liz Saathoff, OUR Associate Director, elizabeth-saathoff@uiowa.edu
Jon Rovner, our Admin Coordinator, jonathan-rovner@uiowa.edu
Office of Undergraduate Research
undergraduate-research@uiowa.edu
https://our.research.uiowa.edu
6 Gilmore Hall
319-335-8336 | | | |
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