The Elizabeth Long Atwood Undergraduate Research Award

The Emory Libraries' Elizabeth Long Atwood Undergraduate Research Award recognizes Emory undergraduate students in all disciplines who . . .

• use the Emory Libraries' collections and research resources in their original papers, digital projects, or posters;
• show evidence of critical analysis in their research skills (i.e., locating, selecting, evaluating, and synthesizing information).

Undergraduate Research Award Details 

Application Deadline:

Applications will be accepted through Sunday, March 24, 2024 at midnight.

Number of Prizes 

Up to four prizes per year ($1000 each) are awarded, and first-year students are encouraged to apply. Awards are supported by the Elizabeth Long Atwood Fund. 

Eligibility

To be eligible to win, applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Be current Emory undergraduates at any class level and in any discipline (humanities, sciences, or social sciences);
• Have completed their research project in the form of a paper, digital project, or poster since March 1 of the preceding year for an Emory University credit-bearing course; and 
• Allow library staff to display their research project for public viewing following the receipt of the Undergraduate Research Award.

Evaluation

An evaluation panel composed of Emory University faculty and librarians will focus primarily on the evidence of the applicant's research strategy, process, and personal learning, as summarized by the research essay. Expectations for achievement will be commensurate with the applicant's class year and the requirements of the discipline. For more details, see Undergraduate Research Award Criteria.

Award

The award is presented at the end of spring semester.

How to Apply 

Applications will be submitted through the student application form and must include the following: 

• A 500-700 word essay describing your search strategies and use of library tools and resources. See Research Essay Tips; 
• A final version of the project, which may be in the form of a paper, digital project, or poster. Maximum length is 30 pages. Submissions may be portions of a larger work, such as a chapter of an honors thesis; 
• A bibliography or other appropriate listing of sources consulted. See Bibliography Tips.

Applications may also include (optional):

• A faculty or librarian recommendation, submitted through the faculty or librarian recommendation form.

Questions?

If you have questions or need to report issues with the forms, please contact Jennifer Elder at Jennifer.J.Elder@emory.edu.

Undergraduate Research Award Criteria 

Submissions will be judged based on how well they demonstrate the following:

• Sophistication, originality, and/or unusual depth or breadth in the use of library collections, including but not limited to print resources, databases, and other secondary resources; primary resources; and materials in all media;
• Exceptional ability to locate, select, evaluate, and synthesize library resources and to use them in the creation of a project that shows originality and/or has the potential to lead to original research in the future;
• Evidence of significant personal learning and the development of a habit of research and inquiry that shows the likelihood of persisting in the future.

An evaluation panel composed of Emory University librarians and faculty will focus primarily on the evidence of the applicant's research strategy, process, and personal learning, as summarized in the research essay. Expectations for achievement will be commensurate with the applicant's class year and the requirements of the discipline. 

• The primary focus of judging should be the research essay and bibliography as evidence of the research process.
• The project itself provides evidence of the appropriateness and synthesis of the research.
• The optional faculty or librarian recommendation should be used to learn about the initiative and independence shown by the student and to give an indication of the originality of the research and where it falls within its discipline.

An excellent submission should . . .

• Demonstrate use of complex research tools such as primary sources, secondary sources, datasets, archival finding aids, and/or specialized databases;
• Utilize a variety of types of information sources;
• Make use of Emory's collections and services to their fullest;
• Show originality of thought and the potential to lead to original research in the future;
• Show evidence of significant personal learning and the development of research and inquiry skills;
• Show careful evaluation of quality of information sources;
• Include correct and complete citations of materials with annotations if appropriate.

Research Essay Tips 

The judges will use your essay to evaluate your use of library resources and collections. Consider the following questions:

• What did you learn about the process of doing research during the course of your work?
• What discoveries did you make through carefully planned research and what through serendipity?
• How will what you learned through conducting research for this project inform your future research work?
• What did you learn about finding and evaluating sources?
• What new discoveries did you make about library tools, techniques, and services?

Bibliography Tips 

Your bibliography is a crucial part of your entry. When creating your bibliography, remember the following:

• Properly cite all sources consulted in your project.
• Questions? See the Emory Libraries' guide to Citing Your Sources.

Recent Recipients 

Research Award Recipients for 2023 

• Harrison Helms, class of 2024, history major, received an Atwood Award for his paper, "Shattering the Anti-Catholic Monolith: Religious Toleration in Hanoverian England, 1778-1829," that he completed in History 411W. 
• Maurice Safar, class of 2025, double major in neuroscience and philosophy, received an Atwood Award for his paper, "On the Relationship Between Science and Catholicism," an assignment for his Religion 100 course. 
• Mercedes Sarah, class of 2025, double major in history and English & creative writing, received an Atwood Award for her paper, "Covert Resistance to #MeToo: The Uptake of Social Change and Public Anxiety in the Men's Lifestyle Magazine Cover Genre," that she completed in her Independent Study: English_OX 399R. 
• Amanda Sotolongo, class of 2025, nursing major, received an Atwood Award for her presentation, "Laying the Groundwork for a Digital Archive: Documenting Thirty Years of Oxford College's Muslim Students' Association (MSA)," which was an assignment for the Oxford Research Scholars Symposium. 

Research Award Recipients for 2022

• Courtney Norteman, class of 2021 and graduating a year early in 2022, international studies major, received an Atwood Award for her chapter, "Repression or Progression: The Question of AI's Impact on Political Crackdowns," an excerpt from her Honors Thesis that was completed for her Political Science Honors course. 
• Cameron Obioha, class of 2022, philosophy, politics, & law major, received an Honorable Mention for his paper, “The Parade Is Cancelled Due to Rain . . . Now Play the Blues Until It Stops: Revisiting Jazz Diplomacy During the Cold War,” an assignment for MUS 460W: Studies in Music History and Culture: Jazz and Society in the 1950s.
• Luiza Sobreira, class of 2023, BBA major with a concentration in Strategy and Management Consulting and Marketing, received an Atwood Award for her paper, “British Women’s Reproductive Habits in the Georgian Era: From Courtship to Contraceptive Methods,” an assignment for History 411W: Jane Austen’s World.
• Mellissa Xie, class of 2022, biology major, received an Atwood Award for her Honors Thesis, “Higher expression levels of MSL2 in D. virilis lead to histone locus binding that is not seen in other Drosophila species,” that she wrote for BIOL 495BW: Honors Research.Chris Cháirez Batterman, class of 2019, music major, for "'Ser como el aire libre': Resistance and ethnic identity in the music of Teatro Campesino during the Chicano Movement, 1960-1976." Faculty recommendation from Dr. Laura Emmery.

Honorable Mention

• Lauren Oates, class of 2022, anthropology major, received an Honorable Mention for her paper, “Places of Permanent Precarity: An Examination of Palimpsest Landscapes in Dekalb County’s Constitution Lakes Park,” that she completed in ANT 385: Anthropology and the Environment/ANT 499: Senior Capstone.

History of Elizabeth Long Atwood Undergraduate Research Award 

The Elizabeth Long Atwood Undergraduate Research Award has recognized the outstanding scholarship of Emory undergraduates annually since 2009, thanks to the generosity of the Elizabeth Long Atwood Fund.