CURE – Purdue accepting applications to design course-based undergraduate research

The CURE – Purdue professional development program within the Office of Undergraduate Research is still accepting applications from instructors of any discipline for the 2023-24 academic year. The priority deadline has passed, but application review is now ongoing until all slots are full. Instructors of any discipline are encouraged to apply.

CURE – Purdue seeks to develop course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) across the Purdue West Lafayette campus as a way to increase undergraduate students’ overall access to novel research. The program provides instructors with the time and framework for designing a CURE, either by transforming an existing course or developing a new one.

CUREs have a number of features and positive outcomes, including increasing the overall capacity for undergraduate research by operating at a larger scale than the traditional apprenticeship model and increasing inclusion by allowing any eligible student to enroll. Research findings suggest additional benefits to instructors:

• Greater enjoyment when teaching CUREs over a traditional course.
• Ability to integrate their research and teaching.
• Advancement of their research agenda.
• Recruiting students to their personal research group.
• Potential to positively impact promotion and tenure. 

Past participants have reported that the workshop provides critical support in “aligning expectations and understanding best practices,” work that is “transformative for increasing equity and excellence in teaching CUREs,” and that the workshop also enables them to “make … mentoring more effective in course-based undergraduate research at a larger scale.”

The program is composed of four components:

1. A flipped-format workshop with asynchronous preparatory work and a two-day synchronous in-person workshop. Workshop options are June 13-14 or June 20-21.
2. One-on-one consultation support following the summer program.
3. Peer support via community-of-practice virtual meetings during the 2023-24 academic year.
4. Continued mentoring and access to resources during the implementation and assessment of their CURE.

Instructors selected for the program will earn $2,000 in unrestricted funding upon completion of the summer workshop and implementation of the course during the upcoming academic year. Teams of instructors are welcome to apply as follows:

• Each instructor in a team is eligible for a stipend if the course count meets or exceeds the instructor count. (For example, if three instructors want to collaborate to turn at least three courses into CUREs, then all three instructors are eligible for funding.) Each instructor should submit their own application identifying the course where they are the lead instructor.
• Only the lead instructor is eligible for the stipend if the team is working on one course.

CURE – Purdue welcomes and encourages graduate student involvement in instructional teams; however, there is no dedicated graduate student program or funding for 2023-34. Graduate students are not eligible to be the lead instructor and are not eligible to submit an application. 

Department head approval is required for participation. Application review will begin on March 1 and will continue until all slots are full. We anticipate accepting up to 30 instructors. Selected participants will complete a more detailed questionnaire regarding their research and teaching interests prior to the in-person workshop. 

Colleges or departments may expand participation with a limited number of fellowships through the full financial support of additional instructors and faculty mentors.

For more information about CUREs, the program and program eligibility, refer to the CURE – Purdue website. Instructors should direct questions about the program to Stephanie Gardner at sgardne@purdue.edu.