Student Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, you need to have a research mentor in order to apply. They need to start the SURF application and invite the student to be a collaborator on the application.

A great first step is to look at our database of research projects and to submit an interest form. The next step is to attend one of our Start Here Information Sessions that are held every other Friday in Bolton Hall 192 at 1pm.

Generally, the award amount is $1500 for fall and spring and $2000 for the summer. Those amounts may change based on the number of applications we receive and the budget we have. The award is paid at $14/hours as a student hourly position. This is not a scholarship or stipend. Students need to log hours in order to receive their funding.

Yes, you can apply for two projects with different faculty. The full award amount would be split between the two, you would not receive two full awards. For example, if the full award amount is $1500 you would receive $750 for each project. If you would like to distribute the funds in a different way because you plan on working on one of them more than the other, you can let us know that.

No, only the students who are paid by our office for this program are considered SURF students. There are many ways to be an undergraduate researcher: volunteering, for credit, being paid by another source other than our office, or being part of one of our other programs. If you fall into one of these other categories, please let us know so that we can add you to our list serve of students! Everyone involved in research is welcome and encouraged to make use of our resources and attend our events.

You can see the questions that are asked on our Application Preview page.

• You must be a degree seeking student.
• Special Students are not eligible for SURF funding
• Enrolled in at least 6 credits.
  • Summer SURF does not require that you are enrolled in credits, but you should be enrolled in courses for the fall semester.
• Students cannot receive both credit and SURF funding for doing the same work in the same semester.

Students cannot simultaneously receive funding through multiple programs for the same work. Thus, students should not apply for SURF funding if they are already receiving funding for the work through other means, including NSF, NIH, McNair and departmental funds. SURF Awards are intended to provide support where other resources are not available.

Students should look for an email from SM-Apply, not their faculty mentor. They should also check their Clutter box for the email. In the email there will be a link to your application. If you have never logged in before you will need to create an account using your UWM credentials.

This is a common issue for first time users of Survey Monkey (SM) Apply. Your mentor should resend the application invitation. There are instructions for how to do that in the Mentor Frequently Asked Questions. You can also reach out to Jessica Schuld (jlschuld@uwm.edu) to resend the invitation.

In some cases, the research mentor has not completed the first section where they state that they are the mentor and enter the project title. Until they mark that section as complete, you will not be able to see your application.

From the dashboard view of the application platform, there is a lot of text at the top, scroll down the page, often the application is there and students haven’t scrolled far enough down the page to see it. If you are still having issues, please contact Jessica Schuld (jlschuld@uwm.edu) for assistance.

Yes! You can find them on our Application Step-by-Step page.

We work closely with HR to get students into the Workday system, which handles payroll. If you have never worked on campus before, you will need to submit some information to HR before they can create your appointment. Keep an eye on your email for more instructions. You will also need to fill out an Employment Eligibility Verification Form (Form I-9) and bring in an acceptable form of identification to Engelmann Hall 125. If you have additional questions, please contact sscstudenthr@uwm.edu.

Student HR Frequently Asked Questions can be found by clicking the link provided and scrolling down the page.

Students are paid every two weeks. You can check the Payroll Calendars for specific dates. Click the provided link and then clink on “Pay Schedules & Payslips” and then the correct year.

• We expect that you are logging your time accurately. This includes making sure you do not clock more hours than you have been awarded. You should be able to look at your Payslips in Workday to calculate how many hours you have already worked.
• You should meet your research mentor’s expectations. If you aren’t sure what those are, you should have a conversation with them about it.
• You will be required to share some of your research findings at our Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium at the end of the spring semester (historically the last Friday of April). We will communicate more information to you at the start of the spring semester.
• In compliance with federal and university policies, students must not work more than 25 hours per week (20 hours per week for international students) across all campus appointments during the academic year, including Winterim and spring break. During the summer, students may work up to but not exceed 40 hours per week. Students working in excess of 25 hours in a week during the school year or 40 hours in a week during the summer risk losing their SURF awards.