URI Mentors
The Faculty of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies partners with and supports the Undergraduate Research Initiative (URI).
The Undergraduate Research Initiative (URI) is dedicated to supporting graduate students and postdoctoral scholars who want to develop their mentorship and leadership skills by working with undergraduate researchers. Your involvement helps shape the next generation of researchers while enhancing your own professional development.
Opportunities for Involvement
There are several ways for graduate students to engage with the URI:
- Mentoring an undergraduate researcher: Graduate students and postdoctoral scholars play a vital role in the research community by directly supervising undergraduate students. This can range from guiding a student through a summer project (e.g., via the URI Stipend or another funding program) to supervising a specific component of a project during the academic year.
- Volunteering as a FURCA judge: Every March, the URI hosts the Festival of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (FURCA). We recruit graduate students and postdoctoral scholars to serve as volunteer judges for oral and poster presentations. This is a small time commitment (about 2 hours) that offers a great opportunity to practice critical evaluation and engage with research across multiple disciplines.
- Peer reviewer for Spectrum: Graduate students and postdoctoral scholars are invited to serve as peer reviewers for Spectrum, an interdisciplinary journal that publishes undergraduate research. Reviewers are asked to provide feedback on 1-2 submissions per year, assessing their technical merit and quality. This is a flexible commitment (approximately 4-5 hours per submission) that provides mentors with valuable experience in the academic publishing process and scholarly critique.
- Host a HYRS student: The Alberta Innovates High School Youth Researcher Summer (HYRS) program offers graduate students and postdoctoral scholars the opportunity to mentor a Grade 11 student intern (paid by the HYRS program) for a 6-week research placement (July to August). Hosts provide direct, continuous supervision on a health or medical science-related project. This role is ideal for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars looking to develop their mentorship skills while encouraging youth to consider career paths in health research and innovation.
Why Become a Mentor?
Beyond supporting the university community, mentoring offers tangible benefits for your academic and professional career:
- Professional development: Training sessions on mentorship can count toward your PD requirement.
- Skill development: Gaining supervisory experience is highly valued by future employers in both academia and industry. Mentoring helps you refine your communication, project management, and leadership skills.
- New perspectives: Undergraduate students often bring high energy and new questions that can reinvigorate your own research projects.
How to Get Started: A Guide for Grad Students and Postdoctoral Scholars
If you are interested in mentoring an undergraduate student, please follow these steps:
- Consult your supervisor: Before making any commitments, you must discuss your plan with your faculty supervisor. Ensure that your lab or research group has the capacity to host an undergraduate student and that this aligns with your own research goals.
- Recruit a student: Once you have approval to recruit a student, we recommend advertising the opportunity transparently to undergraduate students. URI has several options for advertising research opportunities, and some faculties/departments also maintain their own listings of research opportunities for students.
- Access training and resources: First-time mentor, or just looking to improve your mentorship skills? Look for mentorship workshops offered through the Faculty of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies (GPS). URI also has practical guides and tip sheets on the URI Mentors & Instructors page.
- Funding for your mentees: You do not always need to rely on your supervisor’s grant to pay an undergraduate student. We strongly encourage you to share the URI Funding Page with prospective mentees for a comprehensive list of summer studentships, stipends, and similar opportunities to support undergraduate research projects.