HERO

Undergraduate Summer Research Housing Grants

During the spring semester, the Creative Work and Research Committee is charged with awarding housing to undergraduate summer research students. The committee receives information from Residential Life about the minimum number of beds that are predicted to be available. The committee prioritizes requests for summer housing if requests exceed available beds. The committee will award housing only up to the number of available beds. If more beds become available, additional students may be awarded housing later in the spring. The number of available beds will change from year to year due to the number of camps or conferences taking place on campus over the summer.

The CWR Committee considers the following in their deliberations:

  1. Priority is given to students doing research funded by grants.
  2. The committee prioritizes students who do not have alternate local housing options over students who could make alternate arrangements (e.g. commuting from home, beginning an academic-year lease early, or other local options). However, students who have alternate housing options will not automatically be disqualified.
  3. The committee prioritizes named housing applicants over applications for “student to be determined later.” However, students will not be automatically disqualified if they are named later in the housing allotment process.
Summer research students must meet the following criteria:
  1. Each student must be a registered undergraduate at Valparaiso University during the spring semester prior to the experience.
  2. Each student must be engaged in full-time research (at least 30 hours per week) while receiving the housing grant, up to a maximum of twelve (12) weeks.
  3. Each student researcher must have a faculty mentor.
  4. Each student must be engaged in research or creative work, as opposed to simply assisting with a faculty research project. For example, a student employed by a faculty member to work solely as a laboratory technician, to find journal articles in the library, or to proofread a manuscript would not be eligible for a Summer Research Housing Grant. The key criterion in defining research or creative work is that the student be engaged in, and contribute to, the intellectual development of the research or creative project. Two manifestations of such engagement are: 1) that the student write a comprehensive research report, and 2) that the student be included as a co-author of any scholarly publications that result from the research.

Students who wish to be considered for a Summer Research Housing Grant should ask their faculty mentor to complete a CWRC Summer Research Housing Grant Form by the last week of March. The specific date can be found on the deadlines web page.

Faculty mentors will need to provide the following information on the form:
  1. The student’s name and ID number.
  2. Expected graduation date.
  3. A short description of the student’s planned activities.
  4. Beginning and ending dates for the research/housing.
  5. The source of funding from which the student will be paid, if applicable. Lack of pay does not necessarily disqualify a student.
  6. Whether the student has other options for housing if free housing is not available due to space limitations.
  7. If this project involves multiple students or multiple faculty members, please explain the context.

The Committee on Creative Work and Research will review the submitted forms and select students to receive Summer Housing Grants before mid-April. The Office of the Provost will inform Residential Life, faculty mentors, and students about the committee’s decisions.

These awards are subject to the following additional conditions:

  1. Students enrolled in summer school must have the approval of the Financial Aid office in order to be eligible for this housing award.
  2. Students receiving this award must abide by all the rules and regulations of the residence hall system.
  3. Students must complete and submit a summer housing agreement form to the Residential Life office in the Harre Union by no later than the summer school housing application deadline. Students should indicate that they are a “summer research student” on the form itself. If students are not approved for free housing, and then wish to cancel their housing, they may do so without financial penalty.
  4. Grants will be for up to twelve (12) weeks. When not on campus for one week or more, students must vacate their rooms.
  5. Rooms will be double rooms with roommates assigned by the Housing office. Meals are not included in these awards.
  6. Faculty who anticipate receiving external grant funding prior to the end of the spring semester and wish to house student researchers in University housing, must submit a letter of request to the Committee on Creative Work and Research by the deadline (student may remain unnamed if unknown at that time). Late requests are strongly discouraged and may not be honored.