(SAULT STE. MARIE, ON – May 10, 2017): Six Algoma University students have received Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA) from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada.
“We are pleased to see so many of our students receiving Undergraduate Student Research Awards,” said Dr. Richard McCutcheon, Academic Dean of Algoma U. “These awards demonstrate our students’ academic achievements in the classroom, but also their commitment to research. It is crucial that our students receive such funding to encourage them to continue their research efforts which will have a direct impact in the scientific community.”
NSERC-USRAs are awarded to students who are studying full-time in the sciences at an undergraduate level in a post-secondary institution. The awards, valued at $4,500 each for a duration of 16 weeks, are meant to cultivate students’ interest and research in the field of science, and encourage students to pursue a career in the research sector. Such funding also provides valuable paid work experience, which will help students obtain a career in their field or gain access into graduate studies.
Gaetano Coccimiglio, Riley Gridzak, Leah Hodgson, Christine Caron, Kendriah Pearse, and Brendan Fera have received USRA awards. These students will be conducting research at Algoma U throughout the summer months. Coccimiglio will be researching in the field of computer science, while the others will be working in the Essar Convergence Centre, completing research in the biology labs.
All of the USRA-funded students are from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
Three of the six students have previously held USRA funding and will be graduating at this year’s June Convocation ceremony.
“Winning this NSERC-USRA award allows me to continue my work at Algoma U in Dr. Molina’s lab, and to keep working on my project beyond my thesis,” said Christine Caron, a soon-to-be graduate of the Honours Bachelor of Science in Biology program. “I’m also pursuing graduate studies in September to obtain my MSc, so this award helps me to build on my lab experience and prepare me for future work in research.”
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