The 2025 CURO Symposium is currently accepting proposals. Please see the Eligibility to Present page if you have questions about whether you are eligible to present.
How to apply
You will be asked to provide information on yourself, your co-presenters (if applicable), your faculty mentor, and your research. You will also have the opportunity to apply for the Best Paper Awards.
Your application will include:
- Research mentor(s)
- Co-presenters/ co-authors
For group presentations—whether it’s an oral or poster presentation—the primary student presenter must submit co-presenters’ names and email addresses during the application process. Co-presenters will receive an email to verify their participation and must update their information in the system to appear in the CURO Symposium program. All co-presenters must be current UGA undergraduate students. - Title
Your title will be used in the CURO Symposium program. Review your title with your faculty mentor before submitting. Titles should be in MLA format (guidelines found here). - Abstract
An abstract is a short summary of your research that highlights your findings and must be 250 words or less. Include information about the main research question, place that question in context, and then explain why it is important to answer that question. If you’re in the beginning stages of your research, write about what you expect to find and why. Work with your faculty mentor to review your abstract before submitting your application. - Format
You will select to present either a poster or a 10-minute oral presentation. The poster session for all poster presentations occurs on Monday, April 7, from 4-6 p.m. Oral presentations occur throughout Monday, April 7, and Tuesday, April 8, in periods that correspond to the university class schedule. - Availability
If you choose to do an oral presentation, you will need to indicate times that you, your co-presenters, and your faculty mentor (if they wish to attend) are available to present.
How to Submit an Abstract
1. Before you begin:
- Discuss the title of your presentation and your abstract with your faculty mentor and all co-presenters/co-authors
- You should not submit an abstract proposal to the CURO Symposium website unless you already have the approval of your mentor and co-presenters. Doing so best ensures the (quick) approval of your mentor when we send them your abstract for approval confirmation.
- Gather the UGA email addresses for your faculty mentor and (if applicable) other, undergraduate co-presenters.
- Decide if you wish to apply for a poster or an oral presentation
- If you choose an oral presentation, determine when you and your co-presenters are available to present
- Discuss with your mentor whether they will attend your presentation, and find out when they would be available before submitting your abstract
2. Open the application: Review the submission requirements and open the application here.
3. Enter your information.
4. Enter your co-presenter(s) information (if applicable): Your co-presenters will receive an email to confirm their application. Co-presenters who do not confirm their application will not be listed as co-authors on the abstract.
5. Enter faculty mentor information: Your faculty mentor will receive an email to approve your application. Your abstract will not be accepted for presentation until it is approved by your faculty mentor.
6. Choose your presentation type:
- Choose an oral or poster presentation
- Provide your availability for oral presentations
7. Add your abstract:
- All proposal titles must be in MLA format (guidelines found here). The most important rule to remember is to capitalize all principal words, but not the articles, coordinating conjunctions, or prepositions.
- Abstracts must be (i) no more than 250 words, (ii) free of spelling and grammatical errors, and (iii) contain a research question, a thesis statement (proposed answer to the research question), a description of methods, a statement of (anticipated or actual) findings, and a statement of significance. Abstracts cannot contain footnotes, endnotes, or parenthetical citations.
8. Submit your application.
9. After submitting your application:
- You will receive an email that confirms your successful submission. Your submission will also trigger an email to your faculty mentor, who will be asked to review and either approve or decline your abstract proposal. Remember, you should have checked with your mentor and secured their approval before submitting your abstract proposal.
- Once the faculty mentor makes a decision, whether approving or declining, you will receive an email that informs you of that decision. If your mentor declines your abstract, you will have a brief (2-day) window during which you can revise and re-submit your application for a second review. Abstracts declined a second time will not be considered further and not accepted for the symposium.
8. Apply for a Best Paper Award: You can submit a paper to be considered for a Best Paper Award either (i) at the time you submit your abstract, or (ii) any time after the abstract submission, until the deadline of February 20, 2025. If you would like to submit a paper for an award, please review the requirements. When you are ready to submit your paper, you can go to the submission site: Best Paper Award Submission.
9. Questions or problems? Email [email protected] if you encounter any difficulties or have questions.
2025 Symposium Timeline
- December 10: Application opens
- February 1: Nomination deadline for Faculty Research Mentoring Awards
- February 15: Application packet deadline for Faculty Research Mentoring Awards
- February 20 at 11:59 PM: Application deadline and Best Paper Award submission deadline
- February 24 at 11:59 PM: Faculty review deadline
- February 26 at 11:59 PM: Revision submission deadline
- February 28 at 11:59 PM: Faculty approval deadline
- March 25: Deadline for posters to be submitted to Tate Print & Copy.
- March 27: Recipients notified of Best Paper Awards and Faculty Research Mentoring Awards
- April 7-8: CURO Symposium
