The MU Libraries Undergraduate Research Paper Contest seeks to recognize and reward outstanding research conducted by undergraduate students at MU. Any undergraduate in any discipline is invited to enter the contest, which will be judged by a cross-disciplinary panel of librarians, members of the Friends of the MU Libraries and MU faculty members. The first- and second-prize winners will receive a $500 and $250 prize respectively, will orally present their papers at Ellis Library and will have video of their presentations and their papers archived in MOspace, MU’s digital repository.

Jim Cogswell, director of the MU Libraries, stated, “The MU Libraries Contest is different from other research paper contests in that it does not judge only the paper itself, but also the research process and the student’s ability to articulate his/her experience conducting research. The research contest is also a unique opportunity for undergraduate students to present their research to an audience.”

The research paper must be between 7 and 20 pages in length and must represent original research carried out within the last twelve months by a current MU undergraduate student for an MU course. A preponderance of resources used to research the paper must be from the MU Libraries, and the applicants must submit a brief description of their research process and sources. The deadline for submission of all materials to the 2011 contest is Feb. 25.