By Rebecca Kellogg
The number of applicants for an Office of Research and Creative Activities (ORCA) scholarship increased by more than 50 percent this year.
Melvin Carr, associate director of the Office of Research and Creative Activities, said there are a couple reasons for the sharp increase in interest.
“This year Associate Academic Vice President Gary R. Hooper raised the individual scholarships to $1,500 instead of $1,000,” he said. “One of the new marketing tools that was used to promote the ORCA Undergraduate Scholarship was to send an e-mail to every sophomore, junior and senior on campus, telling them about the ORCA scholarship. Most undergraduates are extremely ardent users of their e-mail, so that worked out well.”
Despite the dramatic increase, Carr said the office will try to keep the funding ratio the same, with scholarship money going to one of every three applicants.
The funding comes from a number of different sources, but the main one is the university”s general budget, Carr said.
“Receiving the funding signals that someone was impressed enough with what you were doing that they were willing to give you money to do it,” he said. “A lot of times when you”re applying for graduate school, or when you go to apply for a job or something beyond the undergraduate, people will want to know what you have done that is ”extra.””
Students often use ORCA scholarships to propel themselves on to bigger and better things, such as the National Science Foundation Fellowship. BYU generally ranks in the top 25 schools nationally in number of NSF Fellowships received.
“We”ve found the ORCA Undergraduate Research Scholarship to be one of the things that helps students stand head-and-shoulders above other students at other schools,” Carr said. “In fact, we”ve been copied several times by other schools wanting to know how we did it.”
The best resource for undergraduate research is neither the laboratory nor the library, according to Carr. Instead, he said faculty members are the best resource, no question.
“If I were an undergraduate student again, I would focus some of my attention on working with a faculty adviser,” Carr said. “This is an excellent way to augment the value of a BYU education.”
Carr said the ORCA Undergraduate Research Scholarship is an enabler.
“If you have that enabler, you go to class, then you go work as a researcher somewhere, dong the same thing you learned in the morning, and then you go home and study.”
This puts a more academic slant on the student”s job.
“I would encourage students to get to know their faculty adviser,” Carr said. “You should get to know what research they are doing, and if possible, assist them. The benefit is to you as a student, even if you do it for free.”
One frequent ORCA adviser is Don Norton, professor of English, who also edits drafts of student proposals.
Norton said he places emphasis on students” finding their own topics of interest to explore.
“Pure science or pure research is more valuable – stepping out of set bounds and looking at things in a different way,” he said. “For instance, one young woman did an honors thesis on family traditions; and when her examining committee asked who her audience was, she said ”me.” I found that very refreshing. The committee didn”t.”
Norton said that the main advantage of students undertaking research as an undergraduate is the valuable skills they learn on how to systematically go about learning something they want to know better.
“I”m partial to research on subjects and areas the student genuinely wants to know more about,” he said. “Too often, in my opinion, students shirttail onto their teachers” research for the sole purpose of furthering their teacher”s research or getting a letter of recommendation. It”s better if students pursue topics and questions that interest them.”
ORCA hopeful Jake Larsen came up with the idea for his proposed research while mentoring in a local junior high.
“The idea just came to me one day that made me want to combine my language experience with my desire to work within the public school system,” said Larsen, 22, a senior from Orem majoring in Spanish and French. “My research deals with the soci-emotional effects that learning a second language may have on a students” self-confidence, motivation, and discipline. My project will be in-depth research in magazines books, Internet sources, educational seminars and conferences.”
Larsen said the chance to receive an ORCA scholarship is not the primary motivator for his research interest.
“Since I am interested in the topic I would probably still do the research if I didn”t get the grant,” Larsen said. “However, it would have to be later on down the road when I had more time. Honestly, the money is a big incentive because it would permit me to focus on my research instead of having to use that time to work. We all have to pay for tuition, books and housing!”
