| The GW Institute for Korean Studies invites applications for the 2025-2026 Undergraduate Research Fellows (URF) Program The GWIKS Undergraduate Research Fellows (URF) Program provides George Washington University, Spelman College, and Morehouse College undergraduate students with an opportunity to conduct research in the field of Korean Studies. Through a series of workshops, students will gain the skills and knowledge necessary to design and execute a research project on a topic of their own choice. In addition, fellows will connect with GWIKS faculty members and policy experts to receive one-on-one academic/career mentoring. Upon successful completion of their final papers, all students will be invited to take part in a hybrid mini-conference at GW where they will present their research. Five students will then be selected to take part in a joint conference at Indiana University-Bloomington, where they will present their research findings alongside undergraduates from the sister program at Indiana University-Bloomington’s Institute for Korean Studies. Through this academic exchange program, students will not only hone their formal presentation skills but will also learn how to engage in academic dialogue with colleagues from a range of backgrounds and disciplines. All students with a defined research interest related to Korean Studies are encouraged to apply! View Syllabus |
| Program Benefits Participate in four workshops throughout the year where students will learn research skills and will work to develop their research projects. Each student will produce a 15-20 page research paper (excluding bibliography) on a Korea-related research topic. This is a great opportunity to work on a research paper for any class or a senior thesis paper.Receive feedback and mentoring from GWIKS Core Faculty members. Each student will be assigned a faculty mentor based on their research interests.All students will be invited to participate in a “mini-conference” at the end of the program where they will present their research to their peers and faculty mentors.Faculty members will select the top 5 students at the end of the program and invite them to represent GWIKS at the 6th Annual GW-IU Undergraduate Research Exchange Program Conference. Receive publication support and advice for potentially publishing research papers in undergraduate academic journals.Gain experience in conducting research on Korea. Connect with other undergraduate fellows and serve as discussants for other research papers.Network with students interested in Korea across the university. GWIKS provides various opportunities to meet with other students throughout the year and meals are provided at GWIKS workshops and conferences. Get involved in GWIKS events.Optional – This program can be considered as an Independent Study course at the Elliott School of International Affairs and other schools, pending faculty approval. Registering for course credit is optional. If you plan to register your participation in the URF program as a course, you are required to do so for the Fall semester and your paper shouldn’t be submitted to other classes. Paper length and credit numbers are by the student and faculty advisor. Learn more about the course eligibility at the Elliott School’s website. Program Requirements, Eligibility GW, Spelman College, and Morehouse College Undergraduate StudentsPreference is given to juniors and seniors who have a strong research agendaApplication RequirementsPlease submit a complete application with the following materials to gwiks@gwu.edu with the subject line: “Last name, First name_2025-2026 URF Application”.Please be sure to send the following materials in PDF or Word Document form: One page research statement – the research statement should briefly summarize the Korea-related topic that the student plans on researching and their plans for conducting research. Students should have a specific research topic in mind when applying for the program, though topics may change over the course of the program.One page personal statement – the personal statement should describe the applicant’s motivations for participating in the URF program and their interest in Korean Studies.An unofficial GW, Spelman, or Morehouse College transcriptApplication DeadlineSaturday, August 2, 2025 at 11:59 PM EDT gwiks@gwu.edu |