Cleveland State University Undergraduate Research Poster Session: A Comprehensive Guide
The Cleveland State University (CSU) Undergraduate Research Poster Session serves as a valuable platform for undergraduate students to showcase their research and creative activities. This event, often the culmination of programs like the Undergraduate Summer Research Award (USRA), provides students with an opportunity to present their work, engage with faculty and peers, and develop crucial communication skills. This article provides a detailed overview of the guidelines and opportunities surrounding the CSU Undergraduate Research Poster Session.
Introduction: Fostering Undergraduate Research
The USRA program at CSU aims to provide undergraduate students with an engaged learning experience through intellectual inquiry, faculty mentoring, and a connected environment that fosters student involvement. This program offers a unique experience for CSU students, helping them decide whether to pursue a Master's or PhD as a step towards a career. It also allows them to receive practical experience and improve their resume. According to Bond, the USRA program is often the very first research experience for many undergraduate students, opening their eyes to the thrill of research.
The Value of Poster Presentations
Poster presentations are a vital component of the undergraduate research experience. As Stergar noted, attending such events can be a novel experience. "I’ve never been to something like this before," Stergar said, gesturing to the event housed in the student center. During the poster presentation, students learn how to summarize and “sell” the results of their work.
Research Project Guidelines
To participate in the poster session, students typically conduct a research project under the guidance of a CSU faculty member over an academic year. This project can take the form of an independent study class for credit or an unpaid or paid undergraduate research experience not for credit.
Alternatively, students can engage in a public science outreach project. These projects should be a sustained effort in public outreach to schools and other public venues through either a CSU academic student organization (e.g. SPS, Math Club, ACS, SWE, IEEE, ASME, AICHE, AIAA, etc.) or a CSU faculty or department-led outreach program (e.g. Fenn Academy outreach, etc.). Students who join an existing outreach program must participate in both planning and execution of lessons.
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Upon admission into the COF Research/Science Outreach Track, a faculty advisor will work with you to identify CSU faculty for a potential research project/independent study or student organization/CSU outreach program for public science outreach opportunity. Note that if the COF Research project is closely related to a project counted toward your degree completion, a poster presentation on the completed research/independent study or public science outreach work will be presented by the COF Scholar at the annual Choose Ohio First Research Poster Conference prior to graduation. For team-based projects, several COF scholars may present a single poster with contributions from each team member clearly identified.
USRA Program Details
The Office of Research at CSU offers the Undergraduate Summer Research Award (USRA) Program. The goal of the USRA program is to provide undergraduate students with a summer learning experience that involves intellectual inquiry and faculty mentoring, and to foster an engaged environment that promotes a culture of student involvement in research and scholarship.
Eligibility
Full-time faculty who can serve as effective research mentors and can offer a meaningful, engaged learning experience for students are eligible.
Award Terms and Conditions
The award period begins on May 15 following award notification and concludes the first day of the fall semester. All unexpended grant funds at the end of the award period will revert to the Office of Research. Acceptance of an award signifies the agreement of the faculty member to require the participating undergraduate students to attend summer Office of Research seminars that are related to the conduct and presentation of research. See the general award terms and conditions for additional requirements.
Reporting Requirements
Any scholarly output resulting from the award must carry an acknowledgment that the project was conducted with support from the Cleveland State University Undergraduate Summer Research Award Program. Award recipients are responsible for helping their undergraduate research students submit an abstract and present a poster at the Fall Undergraduate Research Poster Session.
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Allowable Expenditures
Allowable expenditures include undergraduate student hourly wages, fringes, survey costs, participant costs, and travel that is directly related to the conduct of the project. The faculty member’s college will monitor the account for adherence to University accounting policies and practices. Over-expenditures will be charged to the college.
Proposal Preparation Guidelines
Proposals should be written in language that can be understood by non-specialists. Proposals should be written with 12-point font on letter-sized paper with one-inch margins, should consist of a single PDF, should include no more than four pages (including the cover page), and should include the following sections:
- Cover Page: The cover page template is available on the CSU website.
- Pages 2-4:
- Introduction and Background
- Justification for Research or Scholarly Activity
- Student Engagement: Explain how the students will be engaged during the summer, and explain the role of the faculty mentors, without naming any specific students.
- Desired Outcomes
- Bibliographic References
- Budget: One-page budget description and justification. USRA grants are generally limited to \$5,000. Expenses are limited to the expenditures described above. In exceptional cases, an additional \$2,000 can be requested for biological, chemical, or similar consumable supplies, if strongly justified.
Submitting the Application
When you are all finished preparing your USRA proposal, use the online form available on the CSU website to submit your application.
Poster Design and Printing
The Undergraduate Research Office collaborates with campus partners to offer workshops that prepare students for creating and presenting their posters. Students can select from two board sizes to best suit their poster size: 32' x 40" or 40" x 60".
Some students may find it helpful to use a template when designing their poster. There are two campus vendors who provide poster printing services: University Student Activities and Leadership (SA&L) and FedEx. Students should choose one of these vendors and follow their specific guidelines.
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Examples of Undergraduate Research
The poster session showcases a diverse range of research topics. Here are some examples of projects presented by CSU undergraduate students:
- Janell Craig, a marketing major from Cleveland, examined how culture, personality, customer loyalty, and marketing efforts impact consumer sustainability efforts, focusing on the grocery retail sector.
- Nadia Cruz explored the life of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the founder of ISIS, and the events that led to his radicalization.
- Lewis Davis worked on generating a dataset for deep reinforcement learning, where a computational agent interacts with the environment, learning an optimal course of action by trial and error.
- Michael Angelo De La Cruz Ortiz presented on a guide to ensemble styled machine learning with JavaScript and Brain.js, detailing the development of AI using brain.js, a library of features which allow for the high-level development of ANNs, all purely written in the JavaScript programing language. He also presented on thought quantification with a single-channel EEG BCI system, aiming to develop a means of processing data to optimize the use of a single-channel EEG.
- Dalton Hundt examined the relationship between intimate partner violence, trauma, attachment, and help-seeking self-efficacy.
- Tyler Johnson conducted a systematic review of the literature on the impact of adverse childhood experiences on child development and communication.
- Dominique Ryder explored the examination of the forbidden fruit, noting that the dominant subculture in each region significantly influences long-term behavioral changes.
- Elisha Sledge presented on the assessment of the intersectionality of Muslim and Queer identities, exploring the intersections of familial judgment and sexual identity among Queer Muslims.
These examples demonstrate the breadth and depth of research opportunities available to undergraduate students at CSU. Some students are even recognized for their outstanding work, such as Zeitz and Mohan, who won the Best Poster Award for Undergrad Research.
Student Perspectives
The Undergraduate Research Poster Session provides numerous benefits to participating students. Stergar's surprise at the event highlights the potential for students to discover new aspects of academic life. The program also provides undergraduate students an engaged learning experience through intellectual inquiry, faculty mentoring and a connected environment that fosters student involvement.
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