Competition Alert! The Undergraduate Awards

Image courtesy of itsligo.ie

In some ways the title for this competition is pretty self-explanatory… there are awards to be had, and they are geared towards individuals in undergraduate programs. Simple enough. (Especially at a time when most of us are starting to experience the side effects of “exam brain”). But, here are a few more facts that you should know about the Undergraduate Awards:

1 There are 25 different categories to apply for which means that you likely fit into at least one of them. 

The categories are based on subjects, so they include things like Business, Education, History, Law, Life Sciences (which includes biology, paeleontology, virology, etc.), Math, Nursing, etc. 

2 The awards aren’t based on your overall GPA or your community involvement… they’re based on the grade that you’ve received on one of your course assignments. 

To apply, you simply have to submit a project/assignment/paper that you’ve received an A-, A, or A+ on. (Preferably from a senior year course… the program is geared towards students in one of their final two years of study.)

3 You can enter upwards of three different assignments for consideration. 

That means that you can have up to three chances to win in a single year.

4 Applying could win you a trip to Dublin, Ireland next November (from the 19th – 21st). 

The Undergraduate Awards are actually an international competition based out of Ireland and winners are invited to the three day UA Global Summit. The UA Global Summit is a conference experience that appears to be designed for our generation. Over the course of three days, winners get to participate in personal development workshops, brainstorming activities, and most impressively, The Colloquium.

5 Colloquium? Yes. Yes exactly. 

It’s a fancy word that’s used to describe the UA international event that, as the Undergraduate Award’s have eloquently explained, is “designed to help the winners and highly commended students realize their individual potential and their collective potential as a group to tackle some of the world’s biggest issues.” Participants will become a part of an inter-disciplinary think tank that will foster co-operation and responsible leadership. There will also be guest speakers to help guide the group.

6 Winners will have their work published in an academic journal… 

particularly in The Undergraduate Journal which highlights undergraduate research.

7 Winners will also get a gold medal. 

A real gold medal. Not a gold star, not a gold smiley face sticker, but a real medal.

8 You have until May 29th to apply.  

That should mean that you can even submit an A level final assignment from the Winter term. Also, if you want to apply, but don’t feel like you have time to do it right now (after all, finals, right?), you can simply register and submit your actual application later. If you register, the Undergraduate Awards will even remind you to submit (just in case exam brain causes you to forget about the May 29 deadline).

So, what says you UAlberta? Should we accept the Undergraduate Awards challenge?