Attention Faculty Mentors: Registration is now open for the 2025 undergraduate Summer Research Symposium

The Office of Undergraduate Research is excited to announce the 2025 Summer Research Symposium coming up on Thursday, July 31, in the Hollings Program Room at the Thomas Cooper Library. Poster sessions will occur in the morning and the afternoon. The symposium is open to all undergraduate students working on summer 2025 research projects in any discipline, with faculty from any USC campus. Students visiting USC from other colleges and universities are welcome to present. Read more about the summer showcase, and register to present by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, July 1.

And, don’t forget to invite your summer undergraduate mentees to join in Office of Undergraduate Research professional development workshops, offered each Wednesday morning through July 9.

 

 

Research Security Spotlight: How do I prepare for a successful, secure international research trip?

Travel is exciting, and for those embarking on trips to international locations to conduct research, it can be an illuminating approach for learning, collaboration and on-the-ground data gathering. We know researchers plan their international trips carefully to make the most of their time, ensure good stewardship of travel resources and make a plan to complete all their destination-specific tasks before returning to campus to analyze the data and apply their travel experiences to their research objectives.

But, in today’s world, researchers have to plan more carefully than ever to keep their data, research-related electronic devices and themselves secure on international research trips. Fortunately, USC researchers have a travel security ally to support them every step of the way. The USC Office of Research Security (ORS) supports secure international travel by faculty, students and other covered individuals, offering travel security assessments and providing additional guidance and resources to ensure a safe and informative trip, no matter the international destination.

There are two ways to connect with the ORS for a travel assessment. For researchers who have approved travel authorizations, the ORS Team will reach out to you to get the travel assessment process started once your authorization receives approval. No travel authorization? No problem. Contact the Office of Research Security to request travel security support before your trip. No matter where you are in the travel planning process, all USC researchers are encouraged to check out the ORS Foreign Travel page to learn about foreign countries designated as countries of concern or sanctioned countries, access trustworthy travel resources from the U.S. State Department and other federal agencies, learn the basics of electronic device security and more.

 

 

Register Now: Statewide Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease Research Symposium, October 9-10

The University of South Carolina will host the 2025 Statewide Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease Research Symposium on October 9-10, 2025, in Columbia at the Pastides Alumni Center. The symposium is a statewide partnership between the state’s three major research institutions: University of South Carolina, Medical University of South Carolina, and Clemson University. The two-day symposium will feature a student poster session at the end of the first day. The review committee encourages students at all levels to submit an abstract for presentation by Monday, July 14, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. To attend the symposium, register by Monday, August 25.

 

 

Faculty representing wide variety of subject areas receive 2025 ASPIRE and ASPIRE AI funding

The Advanced Support for Innovative Research Excellence (ASPIRE) program is one of the university's primary internal funding mechanisms to support research by USC faculty at all levels, across all campuses. The 2025 funding cycle emphasizes support for early-career faculty who intend to pursue subsequent extramural funding. This year, ASPIRE will support 27 scholarly projects by faculty members. The Office of the Vice President for Research will also fund the inaugural cohort of awardees for the ASPIRE AI program, which was created to expand the reach of ASPIRE to include research projects focused specifically on artificial intelligence. This year, ASPIRE AI will support scholarly projects by 23 faculty members and 3 faculty teams formed in the 2024-2025 Propel AI program. Congratulations to all 2025 ASPIRE and ASPIRE AI recipients.

 

 

Calling all research administrators: grow your skills with upcoming STRIVE opportunities

Research Training and Education Services (RTES) is pleased to share several upcoming opportunities for research administration staff available through Strategic Training in Research Innovation and Administrative Excellence (STRIVE). Check out the RTES website for details and registration for a variety of STRIVE opportunities:

• STRIVE Training Program: Applications are now open for the tiered STRIVE Training Program, which offers training for demonstrated competencies and proficiencies in research administration at three levels. Learn more about the STRIVE Training Program and apply. Applications will be open until Friday, August 1.
• Certified Research Administrator (CRA) Study Hall: CRA Study Hall is a guided self-study initiative designed to support eligible research administrators at USC in preparing for the nationally recognized Certified Research Administrator exam. Learn more about CRA Study Hall and sign up to receive the Teams link.