Submission Instructions
ELIGIBILITY
Current undergraduate students from all academic disciplines are encouraged to submit proposals for Symposium. Eligible students are those who meet any of the following criteria:
- are enrolled in SFU Honours;
- have presented their work at SFU faculty or department sponsored research symposia;
- participate in supervised research at SFU.
Please get in touch at ugrs@sfu.ca if you have any questions about eligibility. Interested undergraduate students should work closely with their supervisors on both the application and their presentations.
FORMAT
Students have the option of doing a live presentation at the Symposium or submitting a research poster for exhibition.
- Presentations – Students are invited to develop and deliver an engaging and accessible five-minute presentation of their research for an interdisciplinary audience using a maximum of five slides. Using a "5x5" model, the five-minute presentations will be grouped in sessions of five, followed by a 15-minute faculty-moderated conversation to explore common themes and encourage discourse across disciplines.
- Research Posters – Students are invited to produce a research poster that summarizes and showcases their research. Use of a supplied UGRS poster template that utilizes the #betterposter principles will be required. As a part of the Symposium, the UGRS Research Posters will be exhibited in W.A.C. Bennett Library at SFU’s Burnaby Campus. Students will be required to supply a print-ready file to the UGRS team who will have the poster professionally printed and installed. The posters will also be digitally published in the UGRS Journal.
- Symposium – In addition to the student presentations and poster exhibition, the Symposium will also feature a keynote presentation, graduate student panel, social time, and opportunities for undergraduate students to engage in meaningful dialogue about interdisciplinary research with faculty members and peers.
- Workshops – Workshops on how to design a research poster, use the UGRS poster template, and create a compelling conference presentation will be provided in advance of the UGRS.
THE SUBMISSION PROCESS
Step 1: Select the appropriate Section – UGRS 2022 Proposal Submission
Step 2: Check that you have met the Submission Requirements (checkboxes must be filled in to continue).
Step 3: Select Submit as "Author."
Step 4: For "Article Component" select "Description and Abstract." Upload your submission file in the template provided. Indicate in your submission file if you are proposing a presentation or a poster.
Step 5: Enter metadata:
- Title: This should be the title of your paper (you can ignore the Prefix and Subtitle fields)
- Abstract: This should be the same abstract from the submission template.
Step 7: Review and complete your submission
PROJECT CONSIDERATIONS
Research projects may be quantitative, qualitative, conceptual, theoretical, enacted, or practice-based. Here are some prompts to think about when preparing your session proposal as well as your symposium presentation:
- A well-defined research question/hypothesis
- What are you curious about or wanting to find out or explore through your research?
- A literature review
- What have you read and who are the other researchers who are working in this area?
- A clearly stated methodology
- What have you done in your research and how have you approached that work?
- Research findings, realized or anticipated
- What have you found out or do you expect to find out through your research work?
REVIEW AND SELECTION CRITERIA
- Clarity, coherence, and appropriate scope
- Relevance and appropriateness to the Symposium’s goals
- Accessible language and a clear proposed means of engaging a university-wide audience from across disciplines and subject areas
- Contribution to academic research/disciplinary knowledge (potential or actual)