Overview
The Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) is a free nine-week program that provides supplementary infrastructure to undergraduate students at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa (UHM) during the summer.
SURE provides participants with a cohort of undergraduate peers; nine weeks of programming, including professional development modules and a presentation venue; and the Mentoring Grant to support eligible student projects.
Note that SURE does not provide undergraduate students with research/creative work projects, positions, or mentors.
Click here to view this year’s program flyer!
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Cohort of Undergraduate Peers
SURE provides students with a supportive cohort of peers. Most students conducting research and creative work at UHM in the summer may be working independently or in small groups, and therefore may feel isolated in their respective work spaces. Students in this situation are not benefiting from the cohort structure that other organized summer research programs offer (e.g., NSF-REU site programs). The SURE program serves as a central gathering place where students can meet each other and reflect on the challenges, solutions, and rewards they experience when working on their projects.
Programming
SURE offers professional development modules for students to build additional professional and academic skills outside of their research and creative work projects. There are no attendance requirements for registered students; i.e., after signing up, registrants are free to attend as many or as few sessions as they desire.
Please see below for a full listing of this year’s offerings.
The SURE Symposium provides an end-of-summer venue for undergraduate students to present their research and creative work. The event is free and open to students in all disciplines. The 2025 Symposium will take place on Friday, August 1 at the Hawai’i Imin International Conference Center. Learn more on the SURE Symposium webpage.
Mentoring Grant
The Mentoring Grant provides awards of up to $10,000 each to eligible mentors of undergraduate students conducting research or creative work during the summer. Funds are disbursed to mentors and must be used to directly support undergraduate student projects.
Submissions from all disciplines are accepted, with particular interest given to applications from non-STEM fields and from early-career mentors in any discipline.
Note that the Mentoring Grant has specific eligibility requirements independent of SURE eligibility requirements. Learn more on the “Eligibility tab” of the Mentoring Grant page.
Students participating in summertime research and creative work through the Mentoring Grant are encouraged to participate in the SURE professional development modules and are required to present their work either at the SURE Symposium or the Fall Undergraduate Showcase.
Participation and Eligibility Guidelines
Student Eligibility
Students eligible to participate in the SURE program include:
- All UHM undergraduate students with little to no mentored research and creative work experience or are already participating in mentored research and creative work
- Any non-UHM undergraduate student doing research or creative work with a UHM mentor
Students do NOT need to be funded by UROP’s ERC, Project, Presentation, or Mentoring Grant funding opportunities to participate.
Mentor Eligibility
Mentors whose students are eligible to participate in SURE include:
- Any UHM mentor of a UHM or non-UHM undergraduate student conducting research or creative work during the summer is encouraged to have the student participate in the SURE program
- Any non-UHM professionals (e.g. postdoctoral researcher at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [NOAA]) mentoring a UHM undergraduate student is also encouraged to have the student join the SURE program.
Mentors whose students are applying to UROP’s ERC, Project, or Presentation funding, or who are themselves applying for a Mentoring Grant, must meet certain eligibility criteria. See each page for additional information.
Participation is not mandatory. Students may choose which modules to attend. Students are encouraged to attend the end-of-summer Symposium, at a minimum.