Your Gift in Action

Our vision is for every interested undergraduate student at UCLA to be able to participate fully in research—for their benefit and for the world’s. Studies show that undergraduate research increases retention, promotes critical thinking and helps students choose a field of study and decide on a career path. Through experiencing the processes of scholarly research and discovery and by sharing their results with UCLA and the wider public, students become fully engaged members of the research community.

The Undergraduate Research Centers seek your support to help us provide a life changing experience to as many students as possible. By partnering with you in philanthropy, UCLA will be able to sustain and launch new initiatives like the ones outlined below.

Student Support

UCLA has thousands of students who participate in undergraduate research each year, yet we have funding to support only a small percentage of them. Scholarships eliminate financial barriers for students pursuing undergraduate research, and allow them to focus on opportunities to enhance their education, rather than juggling jobs with their studies while they are at UCLA.

By making a scholarship gift, you will provide students with the opportunity to gain experiences and skills that benefit them both academically and professionally, preparing them for graduate school and a wide variety of careers. You can support any of the following scholarship opportunities:

Discretionary Scholarship Support

Allows the Undergraduate Research Centers leadership to nimbly award students where there is the most need and student interest, including during Summer Sessions when funding opportunities are more limited.

Create a Named Scholarship

You can create a named scholarship with a donation of $100,000 which will provide scholarship support for students every year in perpetuity, creating a lasting impact for the future.

Program Support

Your gift will support a variety of programmatic needs for the URCs including the infrastructure to support research programs, public events and workshops.

• Research Preparation – Workshops, Outreach & Advising

In order to recruit and prepare students for the undergraduate research process, they need mentors and advisors. Through research workshops and advising appointments led by graduate student mentors, undergraduates are equipped with the skills to launch their research journey.
These programs are proven to help undergraduates secure research opportunities with UCLA faculty and create the right connections. Advising appointments provide undergraduates with crucial hands-on assistance as they navigate the large university research landscape at UCLA. By making a gift to support graduate student mentors, you are creating onramps for undergraduates to take the next step into research.

How to Make a Gift

You can make your gift to UCLA through the following methods: Multi-year Pledge (up to five years), Cash by check or online, Planned gift, or even your donor-advised fund.

For more information on how you can support the Undergraduate Research Centers, please contact Samantha Booras at (310) 569-7877 or sbooras@support.ucla.edu

Tori Crisostomo-Rickman is mapping out South LA to identify fresh food resources, examine food disparities and create strategies for expanding community access to fresh food in the area.

“I’m trying to understand what factors may prevent community members from accessing these resources and what local organizations can do to make fresh food resources more accessible,” said Crisostomo-Rickman, a fourth-year geography student.

Crisostomo-Rickman said she has connected with her community through her research and through the relationships and collaborations she has formed along the way. She is a recipient of the Undergraduate Research Scholars Program scholarship, which is awarded to students who have a strong commitment to research and are completing an independent research project with a faculty mentor.

“Research and the URSP program have allowed me to immerse myself within my community at UCLA and the greater Los Angeles Area. Through research, I’ve been able to draw on UCLA’s large network and form impactful relationships with my faculty mentor, local nonprofits, and undergraduate peers. When I first came to UCLA, I had little knowledge of what undergraduate research even entailed. As I took more and more courses across disciplines, I became equipped with a range of research skills to the point that I now spearhead an independent project of my own,” Crisostomo-Rickman said.

Being able to participate in research while an undergraduate student has taught Tori how to use her education to make a tangible, lasting change in the world.

“Undergraduate research has deeply impacted my life both as an academic and as a human. Oftentimes, academic learning can feel detached from the material world but through research, I’ve been able to really transform my learning into action plans on the ground,” Crisostomo-Rickman said. “Outside of the academic scope, undergraduate research has given me a strong network of mentors and friends that have provided me with so much support as I have learned to navigate life as a student and soon, as a post-graduate. I would not be the person I am today if it weren’t for the many community connections I formed through undergraduate research.”

Tori’s experience was made possible through philanthropic support to the Undergraduate Research Centers.

“When you donate to the URCs, you are helping to enliven the imaginative ideas of a community that is committed to building a better world. UCLA’s undergraduate community is truly filled with some of the brightest and most dedicated leaders of tomorrow. That said, many of us often do not have the economic or structural resources to take what we learn in the classroom to build the change-making solutions we want to see. By donating to URC, you are investing in minds and programs that will build a more sustainable and just future.”

We are grateful for your generosity that helps fund our greatest areas of need.

For more information on how you can support the Undergraduate Research Centers, please contact Samantha Booras at (310) 569-7877 or sbooras@support.ucla.edu.