OUR Vision
UNLV’s Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR) seeks to elevate the status of undergraduate research at UNLV. OUR strives to increase direct undergraduate student participation in research and to enhance research education and learning experiences. We create rich and diverse research and funding opportunities and engage students with local, regional, national, and global challenges.
OUR Mission
We inspire, support, and nurture undergraduates in their efforts to discover, innovate, create, and experience research at UNLV. We help undergraduate students get research ready and connect them with faculty for successful and transformative research experiences. The research skills that students develop are transferable, ensuring continued success during the long journey of career development and professional life.
OUR Core Values and Principles
- Since undergraduate research (UGR) is a heterogeneous, high-impact, mentored activity that manifests itself in vastly different forms in a multitude of academic disciplines, we define research in the broadest and most inclusive sense to include all academic disciplines represented at UNLV.
- UGR is a student-centered, faculty-driven, and institutionally-supported enterprise. Hence, we promote a highly collaborative approach to connect UNLV students, faculty, and administration.
- At OUR, we subscribe to the ideal that UGR plays a key role in students’ personal and professional development; it is not co-curricular or optional. Thus, we aim to ensure that each UNLV student experiences experiential/active/discovery learning.
- As UGR is a process and a long journey, we place the emphasis on the process of undergraduate student research involvement rather than end-products or deliverables.
Services
We provide students from diverse backgrounds with ample opportunities to develop as scholars. All of these experiences serve as a real-world proxy to prepare students for graduate school, professional workforce, and life beyond college.
The specific programs and services we offer include:
- Individualized research advising
- Research programs and award opportunities
- Research Skills Academy (RSA) with professional development and career training opportunities
- Triannual research symposia: fall, spring, and summer
- Newsletter and research communications to highlight UNLV research news and opportunities for undergraduate researchers
- Research-oriented instructional support for faculty through classroom presentations
- A unique opportunity for undergraduate students to publish their research in Spectra Undergraduate Research Journal
- An open access outlet and service dedicated to capturing, curating, reporting, and disseminating high-quality and mentored research conducted at the undergraduate level through OUR's Digital Undergraduate Research Repository (DUREP)