Undergraduate Research Award

The UW-Madison Libraries are offering an Undergraduate Research Award to support and celebrate excellence in undergraduate, library-based research. Undergraduate students who intend to make creative and intensive use of library resources as part of year-long research project (capstone, independent study, thesis, performance, exhibit, etc.) during the 2025-2026 academic year are encouraged to apply.

The selected student will receive $2,000, upon completion of the following requirements –

1. An introductory meeting with the Undergraduate Research Awards team, where the student’s research interests and needs will be discussed and clarified.
    
2. One or more meetings with a librarian with expertise in the student’s subject area who will assist the student as they pursue their research. The Undergraduate Research Awards team will facilitate this meeting.
    
3. One to three check-in meetings per semester with a member of the Undergraduate Research Awards team, to assure that progress is being made and the student is being appropriately supported by the Libraries’ staff, collections, technologies, equipment, and other resources.
    
4. A 15-20 minute presentation to library staff on the research topic. The format and style of the presentation will be decided by the awardee, in coordination with Undergraduate Research Awards team. The presentation will take place on Thursday, May 7th, 2026, between 3:00pm-4:30pm during the Libraries’ Undergraduate Research Joint Reception. 
    

The award will be distributed in two payments. The first payment of $1,000 will be distributed after acceptance into the award program and successful completion of Requirement 1. The second and final payment of $1,000 will be distributed after successful completion of Requirements 2, 3 & 4 within the same academic year as the project.

Failure to meet any of these requirements could result in rescission of the award and notification of said rescission to the faculty/staff member indicated on the application.

We invite students to apply for the award by completing a short application. The application deadline is Thursday, May 8, 2025.

To learn about the Undergraduate Research Award program and past winners, please see our press releases.

For more information, contact Jessica Newman.