With a faculty advisor’s guidance, all graduate students who write theses conduct extensive research during their tenure at UMBC. Students in non-thesis programs also have the opportunity to participate in research if they choose. Graduate student research is the backbone of knowledge creation here, as at any high-caliber research university. Research teaches students to be resilient problem-solvers and prepares them for a wide range of careers in academia, government, or industry. Many graduate students also mentor undergraduate researchers. Mentoring gives students valuable practice communicating their research to non-experts, and the mentee benefits from having an accessible role model. At UMBC, the Graduate School, individual academic departments, and the Graduate Student Association provide support for graduate student research on campus and off through a variety of assistantships, grants, and other initiatives. The links below connect to some of the resources graduate students can access at UMBC.
- Graduate Student Association (GSA) – professional development, advocacy and support.
- Graduate Student Research and Travel Grants– funding for graduate student research and travel to conferences.
- Graduate Research Symposium – UMBC’s premiere annual graduate research event.
- Graduate Academic Programs – listing of all graduate degrees and programs.
- PROMISE – Maryland’s Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate – multi-campus alliance to increase the number and diversity of Maryland graduate students in science, tech, engineering and math (STEM) fields.
- Research Assistantships – details on graduate assistantship and fellowship funding.
- GSA Writing Advisor – a full-time graduate assistant skilled in writing and ready to help you with your thesis or other written projects.
- Dissertation House – a hands-on series that helps you get your thesis DONE.
- College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences Resources
- College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences Resources
- College of Engineering and Information Technology Resources
- Student Data Use Agreement (DUA) Guidance
- Creating Human Subjects Research Protocol Applications – This link directs you to the Office of Research Protections and Compliance. The ORPC team provides guidance to graduate students who will create, with a faculty advisor, their own human subjects use application (via the IRB) or who may participate in an IRB approval as a research team member. An important aspect of an IRB approval is being appropriately trained (via the university’s CITI IRB training module subscription) in the protection of human subjects.
- Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) – UMBC is committed to instilling in our research community a shared understanding and adherence to the principles of responsible conduct of research (RCR). Graduate students and postdoctoral fellows (funded either by the NIH or NSF) are required to complete a RCR training module (via the university’s CITI RCR training module subscription) that elaborates on the underlying principles of responsible conduct of research. Students are reminded that required training is verified by the Graduate School’s compliance check at the candidacy stage for doctoral students and prior to the thesis submission for Master’s students.