USC Provost’s Undergraduate Research Fellowships

Grant Period: Spring 2025 (Note: Should COVID-19 rates increase, we ask all faculty supervisors and their students to conduct their research projects remotely)

The Office of the Provost will provide a limited number of fellowships for undergraduate research each academic year in the fall, spring, and summer terms. Each undergraduate student funded by the program will receive a stipend in the amount of $1000 ($3000 in the Summer) to support research in any academic field for a period of not less than ten weeks at 8-10 hours per week for Fall and Spring, and 20 hours per week in the Summer (no less than eight weeks) during the awarded term. All full-time USC faculty actively engaged in research are eligible to serve as faculty supervisors.

Application Instructions (Deadline Changed to Tuesday, December 3 (11:59 pm)

Applications will be available beginning October 30, 2024. Eligible undergraduate students will submit the following by Thursday, November 28, 2024 (11:59 pm) deadline to be considered for funding:

• Please select the “Submit Application” option (also listed below). You will also be asked to include your intended research project (one page 500-word limit) on the application. Students should use the text box provided on the portal (preferred). If you have images (i.e., symbols, charts, graphs, etc.,) you may want to use the browser feature on the application to upload your one-page project description.
• Provost Faculty Supervisor Recommendation. The portal will generate an email to faculty supervisors so that you can complete an online or upload a faculty recommendation letter through a link provided to them via their USC email address. Please note: Faculty Supervisor Recommendation Forms are valid for one year. Faculty whose previous recommendation forms are less than a year old are encouraged to enter “Use faculty recommendation already on file” when submitting recommendation form through the portal. Faculty may either upload their recommendation letters using the upload browser feature or copy and paste their recommendation in the text box provided through the portal.

All funding decisions will be announced by mid-January 2025.

Please note: If you find an error in your application, please contact Dr. Glasgow via email at dglasgow@usc.edu to place it back into draft mode. Please be sure to select the SUBMIT option to officially send your application. All applications that are in draft mode will not be considered for funding.

Student Eligibility Requirements

• Enrollment of 12 or more units at USC during Spring 2025 in a program leading to an undergraduate degree (Progressive Degree students are ineligible to apply for Provost Fellowship awards).
• Prior volunteer or funded research experience with a research active USC faculty member is preferred.
• USC cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better. Preference will be given to students whose USC cumulative GPA is 3.5 or better.
• Students must complete at least 64 units before submitting an application.
• Current Provost Fellowship recipients who plan to apply for a fellowship must submit an online application, an updated project description and faculty recommendation letter (valid for one year only), and a two-page final summary report (due at the end of the semester). Students who received a Provost Fellowship this semester and intend to re-apply for the upcoming semester must complete another online Provost Fellowship application along with an updated project description for the upcoming term.
• All funding decisions will be announced by mid-January 2025.

Direct Deposit Stipend Instructions

If you are a US citizen or permanent resident, you may receive your stipend by direct deposit to a checking or savings account. To opt into direct deposit, you can set up an account by inputting the information online in Workday using this guide. If you are an international student, the USC Provost Budget Office will contact you separately to discuss payment options.

If you are awarded a fellowship and do not have Direct Deposit, your stipend checks will be mailed to your local address directly from USC Financial & Business Services. Checks are normally sent to students during the third week of the month (as requested by your faculty supervisor). Please ensure your local address is accurate on ExperienceUSC at the beginning of each semester/term. We cannot pick them up from the University Payroll Office and distribute them to students from our office.

IF YOU ALREADY HAVE DIRECT DEPOSIT, it is not necessary to resubmit the form. All funding decisions will be announced by mid-January 2025 (by add/drop).

Please note: If you find an error in your application, please contact dglasgow@usc.edu to request your application to be placed into draft status. Please be sure to select the SUBMIT option when you have made your changes to the application.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you have any questions, please read the FAQ. Otherwise, contact us below. For students inquiring about the status of their payments, please contact aphelp@usc.edu and inform them that you have not received your payment.

Contact

If you have any questions, please contact Dr. David Glasgow via email at dglasgow@usc.edu.