The NSF-Simons Center for Quantitative Biology’s Prize for Undergraduate Research in Quantitative Biology recognizes outstanding undergraduate research in quantitative biology. Finalists will be invited to present a poster describing their research at the NSF-Simons Center for Quantitative Biology Annual Conference. Applications date to be determined for 2023.
Awardees will be chosen based on the content and presentation of their research projects.
During this three-day event, participants will have an opportunity to engage in intimate big-picture science discussions with quantitative biology faculty, attend a series of talks on cutting-edge research, and learn about the interdisciplinary collaborative process.
This prize is sponsored by the Northwestern University Department of Molecular Biosciences and the Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems.
PRIZE:
1st: $1000; 2nd: $750; 3rd: $500
ELIGIBILITY:
Undergraduates who have actively participated in quantitative biology research and have a demonstrated interest in pursuing a Ph.D. Must be currently enrolled as an undergraduate at the time of the conference.
APPLICATION:
Application due date to be determined for 2023. To submit your application, send it as a PDF email attachment to NSF-Simons-QBio@northwestern.edu . Please write in the Subject line: Undergraduate Research Prize.
Materials required for submission:
- Abstract describing your research (a maximum of 500 words for the abstract).
- CV or Resume, include any publications, in any format.
- Letter of Support from your research mentor. Please have your mentor email the letter directly to NSF-Simons-QBio@northwestern.edu . It can be addressed to the “Selection Committee”.
All materials must be submitted as one file in PDF format with your last_first name as the filename. Format all documents in 11-point font or larger with at least 0.5-inch margins. Embedded figures are acceptable.
Your Letter of Support must be received by the deadline. Please have the recommender write in the Subject line: Undergraduate Prize, “your last name”.
POSTER-PRESENTATION EVALUATION CRITERIA:
Here are the criteria for which your project and presentation will be evaluated.
| Category | Questions |
| Preparation and Poster Quality | Well composed, visible content, ample illustrations, high attention to detail? |
| Level of Understanding of Project and Research | Project/experiment explained at the level that any broad scientist can understand? |
| Data Quality | Well-controlled experiment and/or unbiased analyses with implementation of reproducible data acquisition and/or analyses? |
| Scope: Level of Ambition | How ambitious is the project? |
| Hypothesis Driven Project | Is it a hypothesis-driven project? |
| Use of Mathematics in Biological Question | Unique/ Creative use of mathematical concepts in developing hypothesis? |
2022 Prize for Undergraduate Research in Quantitative Biology Winners
Five finalists competed for the Prize for Undergraduate Research in Quantitative Biology at the 4th Annual Conference on Quantitative Biology, March 16-17, 2022 hosted in person. They each presented their work as a poster for conference attendees and judges. Awards were based on the content and presentation of their research projects. The award ceremony was held on Thursday, March 17, 2022.
The winners are:
- First Place: Vivian Nguyen, The University of Arizona, Modeling the structural adaptation and dropout of blood vessels connected in parallel: implications for control of capillary density
- Second Place: Yichao Guan, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Cell cycle dependent gene expression in E. coli explained by promoter competition for RNA Polymerase
- Third Place: Ammaar Saeed, Harvard University, Computationally Capturing Concerted Motions in PTP1B
Finalists also included:
Tarek Jabri, The University of Chicago, Sloppiness in synaptic architectures of spiking neural networks consistent with murine neocortical wiring
Rosalind Pan, The University of Chicago, Evolutionary analysis of unalignable protein sequences
2020 Prize for Undergraduate Research in Quantitative Biology Winners
Five finalists for the Prize for Undergraduate Research in Quantitative Biology presented their work as a 10-minute video hosted on YouTube for conference attendees and judges and participated in an hour Discord chat on Friday, November 20, 2020. Awards were based on the content and presentation of their research projects. The winners are:
First Place: Riley Juenemann, Tulane University, “A first-pass statistical dashboard for categorizing diverse particle movement patterns”
Second Place: Ishaani Khatri, Brown University, “A novel systems biology and network model to predict mutational effect on protein interactome networks in human disease”
Third Place: Amber Park, Davenport University, “Gene Expression Meta-Analysis Identifies Molecular Changes Associated with SARS-CoV Infection in Lungs”
Finalists also included,
Phillip Nicol, Harvard University, “Modeling cancer evolution as an interacting particle system”
Jack Toppen, Georgia Tech, “Efficient Agent-Based Modeling of Self-Organization within Pluripotent Stem Cell Colonies”
2019 Prize for Undergraduate Research in Quantitative Biology Winners
Five finalists for the Prize for Undergraduate Research in Quantitative Biology traveled from across the country to present their work as poster presentations on Friday, October 4, 2019. Awards were based on the content and presentation of their research projects. The winners were:
First Place: Ruchira Ray, Yale University “A new biomechanical mathematical model to predict force effects on actin dynamics during clathrin-mediated endocytosis”
Second Place: Nicolas Hilgert, Purdue University “Physics of flow-sensing by self-communicating cancer cells”
Third Place: Hannah Scanlon, Wake Forest University “Modeling Blood Flow Regulation and Tissue Oxygenation in the Retina”
Finalists also included,
Nathan Burg, University of Illinois – Chicago, “Notch Signaling Regulates Stem Cell Behavior During Ciliated Olfactory Neuron Differentiation”
Gil Parnon, Portland State University, “Physics of flow-sensing by self-communicating cancer cells”
2018 Prize for Undergraduate Research in Quantitative Biology Winners
Five finalists for the Prize for Undergraduate Research in Quantitative Biology traveled from across the country to present their work as poster presentations on Friday, November 16. Awards were based on the content and presentation of their research projects. The winners were:
First Place: Jocelyn Garcia, University of Illinois Chicago
Second Place: Tingshan Liu, Smith College
Third Place: Bailey Moers, Gallaudet University
Runner Up/Honorary Mention: Catalina Medina (University of Nevada, Reno) and Anthony Aportela (Georgia Institute of Technology)
