Master of Scholarly Resources Award
Application | Eligibility | Requirements | Award Criteria | Deadline | Recipients
Librarians and teaching faculty share the common goal of supporting students as they strive to develop excellent research and writing skills. The Reinert-Alumni Library, in cooperation with the College of Arts and Sciences, is offering the sixth annual Master of Scholarly Resources Award to recognize outstanding achievement in research methodology and writing. The award will include a cash prize of $350 for 2009.
Eligibility
Undergraduate students currently enrolled in a course offered by a department within the College of Arts and Sciences.
What Can Be Submitted for Award Consideration?
A substantive term paper of 7 pages or more written for a course during
Spring, Summer, or Fall 2009.
How Will Papers Be Judged?
Each submission will be evaluated by a panel consisting of 2 librarians from the
Reinert Alumni Library and 2 faculty members from the College of Arts and
Sciences. An additional faculty member with expertise in the topic of the paper
may be consulted.
Each submission will be evaluated on two broad criteria:
- Excellent and innovative use of library research resources
- Excellent writing style and technique appropriate to the topic or discipline
2009 Panel of Judges:
- TBA
- Sherianne Shuler, PhD, Department of Communication Studies
- Mary Nash, MLS, Reinert Alumni Memorial Library
- Michael Poma, MLS, Reinert Alumni Memorial Library
Submission Requirements
- An application form
- The Essay:
An essay of 1 to 1 1/2 pages (approximately 700 words) is a required part of the application for the Master of Scholarly Resources Award.
The essay is intended to describe your research strategy, how library resources helped focus and direct your research, and what you learned about the research process. You might think about these ideas:
- How did library resources help you focus your topic?
- What did you learn about the nature of research resources pertaining to your topic?
- If you used a research strategy, how did you create it?
- Did anything about library resources surprise you as worked on your research?
- How much of your research was actively planned?
- How much consisted of unexpected discoveries?
- How did you evaluate or select the resources you chose?
You are not required to address each of the questions above. They are intended as "food for thought." You may discuss any aspect of your research that you believe is relevant.
- The completed term paper, which must
meet the following requirements:
- The paper must have been written for a College of Arts & Sciences course taken during the Spring, Summer, or Fall 2009
- Minimum length of 7 pages
- A standard documentation style (MLA, APA, Turabian, etc.) or other style specified by the professor must be followed consistently throughout the paper
- The paper must include a complete bibliography or references page formatted in accordance with the chosen documentation style
- A Faculty Letter of Support from the
professor for whom the paper was written
All term papers submitted for consideration must include a signed letter of support from the faculty member for whom the paper was written. Faculty are asked to address characteristics of the term paper that distinguish it as an example of outstanding student scholarship and writing.
We ask that faculty give an original, signed copy of the letter to the student so that he/she can include it with the application package.
Award Criteria
Each submission will be evaluated based on two broad criteria:
- Excellent and innovative use of library research resources
- Excellent writing style, technique and documentation appropriate to the topic or discipline
Within the two criteria, the evaluators will consider:
- Evident skill in selecting and evaluating resources used
- Appropriate use of an array of library and research resources such as print materials, microforms, archival materials, primary sources, databases, electronic text resources, internet, etc.
- Evidence of excellent understanding of appropriate research methodologies
- Evident ability to synthesize resources used to create an original, well-focused, coherent text
- Evidence of superior ability to articulate complex ideas clearly and effectively
- Excellent command of written standard English
Deadline
Submissions must include all of the above items and be delivered to:
Mike Poma
Reference Department
Reinert Alumni Memorial Library
by Friday, January 15, 2010.
Questions can be directed to Mike Poma at 280-2298 or mapoma@creighton.edu