Semester Research Grants

Application Procedures

A semester research grant application consists of the following parts

  1. A SOAR semester grant cover-sheet Google Form (one per student) containing vital information about the project, student, and faculty mentor.
  2. A faculty proposal for the project that explains the goals of the project and roles of the participants.
  3. A student statement of purpose that describes the student’s rationale for pursuing SOAR and expected outcomes.
  4. (Where Relevant) An expense proposal that enumerates and justifies material and travel expenses for the project.

Fall-semester grant applications are due on the last day of the previous spring semester. Spring-semester grant applications are due on the last day of the previous fall semester. Applicants will receive notification of the status of their grant within 2 weeks.

The faculty proposal, student statement(s) of purpose, and expense proposal are submitted electronically to the Director of SOAR. The cover sheet is submitted electronically as a Google Form.

Application Part I: SOAR Cover Sheet

  1. The cover sheet for your application will be completed as separate Google Forms for the student (or students) and the faculty advisor(s). Please reach out to the SOAR Director at soar@moravian.edu to obtain the cover sheet link for semester SOAR applications.
  2. If the GPA of a student is less than 3.0, the faculty mentor should include an explanation of why the student is recommended for the program.
  3. Submission of the Google Form will act as your signature (for both students and faculty). Do not submit these forms until your application is submitted.

Application Part 2: Faculty Proposal

  1. Proposal length is limited to three single-spaced pages.
  2. In the heading of the proposal include:
    • The title of the project.
    • The name, rank, and department of the faculty mentor.
    • The names of all students on the project.
  3. Provide a succinct and non-technical description of the project. The audience for the proposal is a committee of inter-disciplinary faculty.
  4. Enumerate the roles and responsibilities of the student(s) and faculty mentor, and include a time table of expected milestones.
  5. Describe how the student will be engaged in discipline-appropriate scholarly research.
  6. Describe how the work of the student will contribute to the discipline and opportunities the student will have to share his or her work with other students, faculty, and the community.

Application Part 3: Student Statement of Purpose

  1. Statement of purpose length is limited to two single-spaced pages.
  2. In the heading of the statement include:
    • The title of the project.
    • The name, major, and expected date of graduation of the student.
    • The name of the faculty mentor.
  3. Provide a brief discussion of your rationale to participate in this project.
  4. Describe your expected outcomes for the project.

(Optional) Application Part 4: Expense Proposal

  • Expense proposal length is limited to two single-spaced pages.
  • In the heading of the proposal include:
    • The title of the project.
    • The name of the faculty mentor.
    • The names of all students on the application.
  • The body of the proposal should contain a fully itemized list of equipment, supplies and/or travel expenses for the project. Travel expenses are only covered if they are for the purpose of conducting the research. For each item, describe why it is necessary for the successful completion of the summer project, and if relevant, how the item supports a long-term project.
  • Explain why each requested material item is not available through existing on-campus resources (e.g. IT, media services, or Inter-library loan) or why the available item is insufficient for the project.