APPLICATION PERIOD

  • October 15 – November 15, 2023
  • The application can be accessed as a Survey on MyUCLA under the “Campus Life” tab.
  • You may begin preparing your application in advance using the prompts below. All application materials are due by 11:59 PM. Any applications in progress after 11:59 PM on November 15 cannot be submitted.

APPLICATION PROMPTS

  1. Personal Statement – Briefly describe how the Undergraduate Research Fellows Program will impact your short- and long-term goals. Include any special circumstances you feel are relevant to your application. This statement is meant to place your academic record into the context of your opportunities and obstacles. 3000 character limit, including spaces.
  2. Research Proposal:
    1. Title – Provide a descriptive title for your proposed research project. 100 character limit, including spaces.
    2. Proposal – Describe the research project you plan to conduct during Winter and Spring 2024. Your proposal should include the following sections with section headers: introduction, hypothesis, materials & methods, expected results, and timeline. Literature citations (optional) should be listed in the section below. 1000-4000 characters, including spaces.
      • Introduction – provide sufficient background such that a scientifically-literate reader can understand and appreciate the context of the work being described
      • Hypothesis – describe the questions you will be addressing or that your project will test
      • Materials and Methods – describe the tasks you will be performing, including laboratory techniques and equipment you will be learning and applying to address your hypothesis. Explain the type of data you will be collecting, if applicable.
      • Expected Results – explain the predicted outcome based on your hypothesis and methods
      • Timeline – include a timeline for the project and what you plan to complete in Winter quarter vs. Spring quarter.
    3. Literature citations (optional) – List any literature references you cited in your research proposal. 1500-character limit, including spaces. Due to the Research Proposal’s character limit, we recommend using numerical in-text citations (e.g. “(1)”) if you choose to use in-text citations.

APPLICATION EVALUATIONS

Applications are evaluated after the application deadline only. There is no advantage to submitting an application early or disadvantage to submitting an application closer to the deadline.

Each application is evaluated by multiple members of our Selection Committee, which is comprised of UCLA faculty, postdoctoral scholars, and doctorate-level (MD, PhD, and MD-PhD) career research staff. Applications are evaluated solely on the quality of the written responses to the prompts in the section above.

Admission decisions will be shared with applicants before the winter campus closure. Applicants who are selected for the URFP will receive PTE numbers in early January to enroll in the required RES PRC 103 course.