ALL APPLICANTS HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED OF DECISIONS.
If you did not receive a decision email as of April 9, 2025 please be sure to check your spam and junk folder. Please contact us at purc@psych.ucla.edu if you did not receive your application decision.
You will receive a confirmation email after submitting the application, which will serve as your official confirmation. Make sure to check your spam folder if you do not receive the email initially. Please contact us if you do not receive the email after your submission.
Application Fee
There will not be a fee associated with applying to the 2025 conference.
Application Timeline
January 27, 2025: Application opens for submissions
March 3, 2025: Application closes for review
April 9, 2025: Submission decisions sent to applicants
May 9, 2025: PURC at UCLA!
Application Criteria
Presenter & Project Criteria
- Applicants must be currently enrolled as an undergraduate student at a 4-year higher education research institution. Individuals who are not currently undergraduates are not eligible to apply, even if the research was conducted when they were an undergraduate.
- The project must cover a psychology topic (or a topic closely related to psychology).
- The project can represent original research or research that is a derivative of another’s original research work (i.e. the work of a faculty or graduate researcher). The student(s) should have contributed significantly to the research that is presented at the conference.
- The research does not have to be completed before the conference. However, at the time of the application deadline, applicants should be able to complete an APA abstract of the research including the research design and methods. Data results and the conclusion do not have to be completed, but projected results and concerns can be addressed in the poster display or oral presentation. We are flexible in including students who are at different phases in the research process. However, projects that are significantly less developed may be less competitive in the applicant pool.
- Research theses, research assistantships, and independent research projects are all possible projects appropriate for this conference. Research projects completed during a research methods course may be submitted, but may be less competitive in the applicant pool.
- Poster presentations may be done either individually or in groups. Groups can have no more than two presenters.
- 5-minute data blitzes should not have more than one student presenting.
Faculty Sponsor Criteria
- The sponsor must be Psychology faculty (or faculty in a closely related field) at the presenters’ school.
- The sponsor must be available to assist his/her students with abstract editing and to assist with preparing presentations and presentation materials.
- The sponsor must be available to communicate with PURC coordinators regarding his/her students’ progress.
Selection Process
PURC has grown increasingly more popular over the last few years, so acceptance to the conference is not guaranteed. We are looking for applications that represent high quality undergraduate research efforts. Additionally, we are looking for diversity in the projects represented at this conference. Any undergraduate student may apply, but only the more competitive and qualified projects are likely to be accepted.