CALS Distinguished Undergraduate Research (DUR) Program

CALS students who wish to participate in the DUR process are required to attend an information session that will describe the DUR process as well as address student questions/concerns.

• DUR Process and Requirements (Powerpoint file)
• DUR Process and Requirements (PDF)

Students must identify a faculty mentor for their project. The faculty mentor does not need to be a CALS faculty member.

With guidance from their faculty mentor, students must identify and confirm two additional members of the Review Committee.

The three-member Review Committee (that includes the faculty mentor) must meet the following requirements:

• Two members must be UVM faculty (including LCOM), and at least one must be CALS faculty or CALS adjunct faculty.
• The third member may be:
  • another UVM faculty member (including LCOM);
  • a community member who has mentored the student during the project; or
  • a faculty member or expert from another college or university with relevant expertise.

If the third member is a community member or non-UVM expert, the student must provide a 2–3 sentence statement describing the individual's qualifications or expertise.

Students must prepare a formal project proposal describing the research or creative/design project being considered for DUR honors. Important deadlines are listed below.

Proposal Requirements

The proposal must be:

• No more than 6 pages, excluding references, figures, and tables
• Double-spaced, 12-point font
• Formatted with 1-inch margins on all sides
• Numbered by page
• Submitted as a PDF with the DUR/PLHC Application Form

For research projects, the proposal must include:

• Project title
• Hypothesis or central research question
• Background: no more than 2 pages, with 8–15 key literature references
• Objectives: a concise statement or list
• Methods: a detailed description of data collection and analysis, including statistical and bioinformatics methods, as appropriate
• Expected results or outcomes
• Potential pitfalls or limitations of the proposed methods or approach
• Anticipated timeline for completing the project

Review and Submission

Before submitting the proposal to the CALS Academic Awards Committee:

1. Send the completed proposal to all members of your Review Committee for feedback.
2. Incorporate their suggested edits.
3. Submit the revised proposal with your DUR/PLHC  Application Form. Proposals that have not been reviewed by all Review Committee members should not be submitted to the CALS Academic Awards Committee.

Mentor Letter and Application Materials

Students must ask their faculty mentor to provide a letter of support confirming that the proposal has been reviewed and is ready for submission. The letter must address:

• The level of independence the student will have in conducting the project
• The project's contribution to the field of study
• Why the project has the potential to earn DUR honors
• The likelihood that the project will result in or contribute to a peer-reviewed publication

If the primary mentor is not CALS faculty or CALS adjunct faculty, a letter of support from the CALS review committee member is also required.

The DUR/PLHC Application Form will request:

• Student and mentor contact information
• Target journal or publication outlet (The target journal or publication outlet should be appropriate to the scope and aims of the project and dictates the formatting of the final written thesis.)
• Review Committee faculty names
• Mentor letter(s)
• Project Proposal

IRB Review

If the project requires IRB review or an exemption, this must be identified as part of the application process. Students should plan ahead: obtaining IRB approval or an exemption can take weeks or, for more complex projects, months. Work requiring IRB review or exemption should not begin until the appropriate determination or approval has been obtained.

Spring 2027

• DUR/PLHC Application Form by Friday, September 18, 2026, by 4:00 p.m. ET
• DUR/PLHC Project Update by Friday, February 5, 2027, by 4:00 p.m. ET
• DUR/PLHC Title Verification form by Friday, April 2, 2027, 4:00 p.m. ET
• DUR/PLHC Final Project Submission by Friday, April 23, 2027, 4:00 p.m. ET

Fall 2026

• DUR/PLHC Application Form by Friday, April 17, 2026, by 4:00 p.m. ET
• DUR/PLHC Project Update by Friday, September 18, 2026, by 4:00 p.m. ET
• DUR/PLHC Title verification form by Friday, October 23, 2027, 4:00 p.m. ET
• DUR/PLHC Final Project Submission by Friday, November 13, 2026, by 4:00 p.m. ET

Review Committee members should receive a copy of the student’s DUR thesis at least one week before the scheduled presentation.

Students must work with their faculty mentors to set up a day/time to present their DUR work to a public audience and review committee. 

The student presentation should be at least a 12-minute presentation with time for questions after the presentation. Note that many departments already have a system in place to schedule a department-wide DUR presentation session.

Students are encouraged, but not required, to present their work at the campus-wide Student Research Conference in April.

Following the oral defense, students must make any required changes to their written DUR thesis based on Review Committee feedback. Once the edited thesis is approved by the Review Committee, the mentor and reviewers must sign the DUR Thesis Cover Page, which is linked below. 

Students must submit the following materials to the CALS Dean’s Office using the DUR/PLHC Final Submission Form. 

1. Final draft of the thesis that has incorporated all changes suggested by the Review Committee,
2. A properly signed DUR Thesis Cover Page, 
3. A 1-2 page Student Reflection (See below for details),
4. A letter of support from the project mentor/adviser (See below for details).

The student reflection paper should be 1-2 pages in length (double-spaced, 12-point font, with 1-inch margins on all sides) and should describe the degree of independence in designing and carrying out the project and in preparing the final paper or product. If challenges were encountered, how were these addressed? The student should also indicate what was personally gained from the project – in terms of knowledge, skills, self-awareness, personal development, or future goals. 

A letter of support from faculty mentor for the project should describe the overall performance of the student, the degree of independence exercised by the student, and the nature of the supervision provided during the course of the project and in preparing the final paper or product.