Mary E. Ferguson Memorial Research Grant

Overview and Deadlines

Established by Ms. Aileen Ferguson in honor of her daughter Mary E. Ferguson, this award supports undergraduates doing independent research.

Award: $200-600, to be spent within the fiscal year of award.
Nomination Deadlines: Two application deadlines per year: Oct 16 and Feb 21.
Deadline Policy: If a deadline falls on a holiday or weekend, it will be extended by 2 days.
Summer Research: The Feb 21, 2026 deadline includes applications for the summer.
Fiscal Rule: Please remember that all funds must be spent within this fiscal year—so plan ahead for summer work!

Eligibility and Priority Guidelines

Eligible Students: Includes those enrolled in 403, 495, 496, 303, and 201.
- Note: 303 and 201 students are eligible only if the applicant is planning on conducting summer research.
Interdisciplinary Scope: Includes relevant biology research through other programs' research sections (e.g., Neuroscience, Marine Science, Environmental Science and Policy).
Selection Process: All applications will be ranked by members of the Undergraduate Studies Committee (USC).
Lab Distribution: Grants will be distributed among as many labs as possible. The amount awarded depends on Ferguson award money available each semester (typically between $200-600).
Priority: Priority is given to proposals from first-time applicants and those from labs who have received less than 2 Ferguson awards in a given academic year.

Submission Instructions

Proposals that do not adhere to the following formatting guidelines will not be reviewed. Proposals for other awards should be submitted separately.

Proposal (maximum of 2 pages): A brief description of the research project including title, summary/scientific abstract, research proposal, itemized budget, bibliography and any figures or tables. The proposal should be written for biologists, by the student, in consultation with the faculty advisor. It should be crafted around the student’s particular research question and describe experiments to be conducted, rather than primarily being a description of what goes on in the advisor’s lab. Where possible, an overview of the advisor’s research questions should be provided.
Lay-abstract (maximum of 150 words): Abstract aimed at a general audience describing the project and how funds will be used. This abstract is for lay-persons and is NOT part of the 2-page research proposal. It should NOT be the same as any summary/scientific abstract provided in the 2-page research proposal because the abstract will be read by non-scientists such as donors or administrators, while the research description will be read by biologists. The lay-abstract should be written by the student in consultation with their faculty advisor.
Letter (maximum 1 page): Letter of support from nominating faculty member.

Compiling and Submitting (For Faculty Advisors)

Compiling: The faculty advisor should create a single PDF document including the items in the following order: (i) proposal, (ii) lay-abstract, (iii) advisor’s letter of support.
File Naming: Student Last Name-Advisor Last Name-Grant name-Semester (e.g., Jones-Forsyth-Ferguson-Spring2026.pdf). Please follow these instructions—although they are specific, they will make the job of the selection committee much more straightforward.
Resources: If you do not have Adobe Acrobat, there are a number of free resources for generating merged PDF files on the web including pdfMaster and pdfFiller.
Submission: The final PDF file should be submitted via email to the current Chair of the Undergraduate Studies Committee (Diane Shakes for 2025-26).
Final Notes: Late, incomplete, and applications that do not meet the guidelines will not be reviewed. Students and PIs are notified by email about the outcomes of the review in a timely manner. Students who do not receive an award may resubmit revised proposals at the next deadline.