URCA: EURēCA! Programs Invite Students & Faculty to Collaborate
Get help with grants, student research jobs, fellowships, workshops, and 1-on-1 advising, and also feature undergraduate and graduate projects at the annual Research and Creative Activities Symposium (RaCAS).
Feb 26, 2025The Office of Undergraduate Research & Creative Activities (URCA) connects CU Denver students with the research and creative mission of the University. Through our EURēCA! programs, student collaborate with faculty to engage in inquiry, design, investigation, and discovery outside of the classroom. We help with grants, student research jobs, fellowships, workshops, and 1-on-1 advising, and also feature undergraduate and graduate projects at the annual Research and Creative Activities Symposium (RaCAS).
Join Us at RaCAS!
Encourage your students to present or attend RaCAS on Friday, April 25, 2025! Projects from all disciplines and stages are welcome. If students want to present, abstracts are due Friday, March 21. Inspire new students to explore research by offering extra credit or linking assignments to RaCAS. A few ideas for you, here.
Why Engage Students in Undergraduate Research? For faculty, mentoring students in research enhances student learning while advancing faculty research goals. Nationally, involvement in undergraduate research and creative activities has been found to create positive effects in students’ learning experiences (Jones et al., 2010), predicts academic success as measured by GPA (Sell et al., 2018), and increases retention and graduation rates (Lopetto, 2010). URCA participation in the first two years of college increases the retention rates for sophomores from 65% nationally to 81% (Nagda et al., 1998).
The same is true at CU Denver. Students who participate in EURēCA! programs have higher persistence and retention rates. Students who present at RaCAS graduate with more credits and higher GPAs in a shorter amount of time compared to CU Denver averages. The URCA office fosters student success through programs and events that support and empower faculty to engage, challenge, and mentor students effectively.