Scholarship Program FAQs

A: This can vary from year to year and from program to program, and it depends on a number of factors, including the amount of funds available for scholarships each year and the number of applicants. All programs are competitive, and students should plan ahead to ensure they have time to discuss their plans with a faculty mentor and complete all parts of the application. We recommend that students attend program information sessions (scheduled in the weeks leading up to the application due date) and schedule one-on-one advising appointments in advance to discuss their application with our Graduate Research Mentors, or schedule appointments with advisers at the Undergraduate Writing Center or UCLA Library Inquiry Labs.

A: The UCLA WI+RE group offers a great online workshop to help you construct your research or creative arts plan: https://uclalibrary.github.io/research-tips/workshops/. This workshop is also offered every quarter as an in-person workshop as a part of the Cornerstone Research Workshop Series. Students can also attend the URC’s Research and Creative Proposal workshops each quarter for help with writing a proposal, or schedule an advising appointment to view samples of successful project proposals. While those proposals will include timelines, students should note that every project is different and students should discuss their plans with a faculty mentor or one of the URC’s Graduate Research Mentors.

A: Yes. For programs where a letter of recommendation is required (MMUF, URSP, and Keck) your mentor should attest to their support for your research or creative project and their commitment to mentoring you.

A: Yes, we welcome applications from students working on collaborative projects, including faculty-initiated projects (e.g., work in a lab or on a research team), and proposals for student-initiated collaborative research or creative projects. Please note that all our awards are made to the student and not the project. In drafting your application you should write the research or creative proposal in your own words and clearly specify your role and individual contribution to the project, along with a timeline of your activities or deadlines. You should also specify how the project or research or creative experience relates to your personal goals or interests.

A: Yes. GPA will be taken into consideration as a part of your application, but you will still be eligible for the program if you are accepted and meet the requirements by the time the program begins

A: The review committee is made up of UCLA faculty across a range of departments.

A: We recommend that students submit their application to the center that most aligns with their faculty mentor’s department or area of study. Cognitive science and psychobiology projects will be evaluated by the south campus URC; psychology projects will be evaluated by the north campus URC. If you are still uncertain which center to apply under, please email urhass@college.ucla.edu for further guidance.

A: No. Financial need will not impact whether you will be offered a spot in the program; however, in some cases UCLA is prohibited from disbursing additional need to students already receiving grants meeting their cost of attendance. Scholarships are available regardless of known need status; however, all applicants must check the box to allow the financial aid office to share student need information with the Undergraduate Research Centers.

A: Yes. Undocumented, AB540, DACA, and permanent resident students are eligible to participate in URFP, MMUF, URSP, Keck, Research Revealed, and the SRI and receive their scholarships.

A: Yes. International students are eligible to participate in URFP, URSP, Keck, Research Revealed, and the SRI and receive their scholarships.

A: FERPA stands for the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974. FERPA guarantees you access to your own educational records, including letters of recommendation. However, if you do not wish to access letters of recommendation related to your program application, you may choose to waive your FERPA rights to access, which will be communicated to your letter writer. Your FERPA preferences are not considered in evaluating your application.

A: MMUF and URFP decisions are typically announced by mid-December. URSP and Keck decisions are typically announced by early September. Research Revealed decisions are typically announced leading up to the start of each quarter. Summer Research Incubator decisions are typically announced by early June.

A: Keck students must submit an itemized budget to receive their research funds.
If you are admitted to one of our other programs with funding, the scholarship is an award made to you, the student. The office of Financial Aid and Scholarships will apply the scholarship to your Bruin Bill to offset any outstanding balances or reduce loan amounts. Any remaining funds will be sent as a check to the address on file with the Financial Aid and Scholarship office, or deposited into the bank account specified on Bruin Direct.
If you expect to incur significant direct costs to carry out your research or creative project, we recommend that you discuss these additional costs with your academic advisor and faculty mentor. They may be able to suggest additional opportunities for financial support or ways to minimize your research expenses.

A: Requests to study abroad during our scholarship programs are assessed on a case-by-case basis. In all cases it is expected that the student is continuing research or creative work and maintaining communication with their mentor during the period away from campus. Plans to study away from campus must be communicated in your program application. In most cases where the student maintains enrollment at UCLA (e.g., through CAPPP or UCEAP programs), scholarship disbursements should not be affected. If a student enrolls in a non-UCLA program, they will not be able to receive funding during that quarter.

If your study abroad case is approved by your program director, due to program requirements and events, URSP participants may only study abroad during the fall or winter quarters of their program. URFP students may only study abroad during the spring quarter. MMUF participants may only study abroad during the summer, only if all program requirements are met and with coordinator consent. Keck and Research Revealed students may not study abroad during their programs.

A: All participants must enroll in and pass the required Research Practice course(s) for URFP, MMUF, and Research Revealed. If you are offered participation in one of these programs, you must make arrangements to meet this requirement.
Similarly, participants in Keck and the Summer Research Incubator must attend the workshops and small group meetings for their program.

A: All Assistant, Associate, and full Professors are automatically eligible to mentor students for URFP, URSP, Keck, and MMUF. Non-ladder faculty such as Adjunct Professors and Lecturers are eligible to mentor students for URFP and URSP with email approval from their Chair to mentor SRP 99 or upper-division research contract courses, as long as they will be employed at UCLA for the entirety of the time their student is in the program. If your non-ladder faculty and would like to become a faculty mentor, please have them fill out the Faculty Participation Form and email it to the Undergraduate Research Center (urhass@college.ucla.edu).