All undergraduates have the opportunity to earn 4000-level course credit for individual research pursued under the direction of a UGA faculty mentor through three sequential CURO research courses (4960R, 4970R & 4980R).
If you are also a student in the Morehead Honors College, these courses count as Honors credit and are part of the thesis and internship elective capstones.
CURO research courses satisfy the university’s Experiential Learning requirement. CURO recommends that you consult with your academic advisor to best determine whether the course satisfies your individual college requirements.
Eligibility
All students—regardless of major, year, or GPA—may pursue these courses. If you are pursuing a CURO course, you must have a UGA faculty mentor who will direct the research and mentor you.
Availability
CURO research courses are available during fall, spring, summer thru term, and summer extended sessions. Please note that departmental deadlines may not match CURO deadlines.
Departmental prefixes
If you are intending to enroll in CURO courses with the following departmental prefixes, please reach out to the department directly, as they are processed within department and not by CURO: ADSC, all engineering courses, ATSC, BCMB, BIOL, CHEM, ECOL, ECON, ENGL, GENE, GEOG, IDIS, INTL, KINS, LACS, MARK, MIBO, PBIO, PHYS, POLS, and PSYC.
Honors prefix
Any student, not just those in the Morehead Honors College, can register for research classes using the HONS prefix. Students often register for HONS 49x0R when the student and mentor are in different schools or departments. Applications for HONS 49x0R classes are reviewed by CURO staff and approved by the faculty mentor and the dean of the Honors College.
The difference between 4960 and 4960R
Classes with the -R suffix have a specific set of requirements that must be met. Students must spend at least 45 hours working on the project for each credit hour for which they are registered. For example, in a fall or spring semester, this equates to three hours a week for each credit hour. In addition, the assignments for the course must include one significant writing assignment turned in for a grade. Classes with the -R suffix count for Experiential Learning credit and count as Honors classes.
Classes without the -R suffix will not be eligible for Experiential Learning credit, will not count as an Honors class, and will not count toward the Honors capstone or CURO graduation distinctions.
Application process
- Discuss the full undergraduate research course application with your mentor and agree on its contents before completing the online application.
- Submit your completed CURO Undergraduate Research Course Application by the deadline. For the CURO research course application on our website, the deadline is the third day of drop/add. Departmental applications may have different due dates.
- Your application will be reviewed. Applications submitted via the CURO website will be reviewed by CURO staff and sent to your faculty mentor and the department undergraduate coordinator for their approval.
- You will be notified by email if we are unable to process your application because the specified department processes its own undergraduate research courses. If that is the case, you will need to submit the required forms / application directly to that department. See the departmental prefixes list above to check which departments process their own research courses.
- Applications submitted directly to a department will be processed within that department.
- We will provide access to the course after your application is reviewed and approved by your faculty mentor, the department’s undergraduate coordinator, and CURO. Once approved, you will receive an email with the corresponding CRN. It is your responsibility to enroll in the course.
If you have questions or concerns, contact CURO at [email protected].
Course credit hours
CURO research courses can be taken for 1-6 credit hours. Credit hours are determined by the amount of time you are able to dedicate to the course. For each credit hour earned in a given semester, you are expected to dedicate at least 45 hours of work. You are required to list the course credit hours you are requesting on your application.
