URES Courses for Research Credit

Undergraduate Research for Course Credit (URES *95)

Beginning in Fall 2022, all undergraduate students at UNC-Chapel Hill will be required to engage in original research to satisfy the Research & Discovery requirement of the IDEAs in Action curriculum. Students can meet this requirement in one of two ways: 1) research conducted in approved classes and/or 2) individual faculty-mentored research experiences.

URES courses are offered to provide a mechanism for awarding credit for the Research & Discovery requirement for certain circumstances outside of department-based courses that grant credit for research experiences. The Director of Research Curricula in the Office for Undergraduate Research will provide oversight for the URES course program and will have authority for approving learning contracts and assigning student grades. The most important considerations include balancing the need to fairly award students credit and preserving academic integrity by ensuring that all students participate in legitimate, rigorous research experiences. With approval from the Office for Undergraduate Research, students may enroll in the following courses to earn curricular credit for research experiences.

URES 395

Students who participate in research under the direction of a UNC-CH faculty mentor in an academic unit (e.g. some of the professional schools), a campus institute, or center that cannot award them academic credit can register for URES 395 during the academic year or while enrolled in Summer School. The faculty mentor will agree via a learning contract (see enrollment process below) to verify the student’s participation (e.g. # of hours, required activities), approve a final report developed by the student, and recommend a letter grade for the experience. URES 395 will satisfy the Research & Discovery requirement and will award variable credit (1-3 hours) and a letter grade that will count toward both the graduation total and GPA similar to existing *95 courses (e.g. EXSS 395). Additionally, a tag will be added to the course in Connect Carolina and on the student’s transcript identifying the supporting department. For example, a student conducting research under the direction of a faculty mentor in the Department of Genetics in the School of Medicine would receive credit for URES 395-Genetics. Please note that students conducting research with a faculty mentor whose primary appointment is in the College of Arts and Sciences may not enroll in this course and should instead enroll via their faculty mentor’s home department. Students may enroll in URES 395 multiple times but their learning contract must specify how the learning outcomes are distinct for each iteration of the course.

URES 295

Students who participate in research under the direction of a mentor who is not a member of the UNC-CH faculty during the academic year or while enrolled in Summer School will register for URES 295. For example, students might work with mentors who are non-faculty affiliates (e.g. UNC Center and Institutes) or are not affiliated with UNC-CH (e.g. researchers affiliated with industry, nonprofits, or government organizations). The mentor will agree via a learning contract to verify the student’s participation (e.g. # of hours, required activities), approve a final report developed by the student, and recommend a grade for the experience. URES 295 will satisfy the Research & Discovery requirement and will award 1 credit hour and a P/F grade that will count toward the graduation total, but not toward GPA. Students may enroll in URES 295 up to two times, but each enrollment must be with a different mentor or for a different research project.

URES 195

Students who participate in not-for-credit research experiences (e.g. volunteer research activities during summer, paid research activities at any point during the year) will register for URES 195. Students will not be required to pay tuition for registration in URES 195. The mentor will agree via a learning contract to verify the student’s participation (e.g. # of hours, required activities), approve a final report, and affirm that the student completed the requirements established in the learning contract. URES 195 will satisfy the Research & Discovery requirement, but will not award academic credit hours.

URES enrollment process

Please note that applications for URES courses are due two weeks before the first day of classes for summer and fall terms, and four weeks before the first day of classes for the spring term:

Summer 2024: Wednesday, May 1, 2024
Fall 2024: Monday, August 5, 2024
Spring 2025: Wednesday, December 11, 2024

To apply, you will need to download and complete this learning contract, which requires your Research Mentor’s signature. You will then upload the completed learning contract using this Qualtrics form. OUR will review your application. If your application is approved, you will be enrolled in the appropriate course on Connect Carolina.

Trying to figure out which course you should take? Use this decision tree.

Note that the Required Final Product (minimum 5-page paper) is due to your Research Mentor by the last day of classes (For Spring 2024, April 30).