COEH Student Project Award

The UCLA Center for Occupational and Environmental Health (COEH) invites applications from UCLA MS and doctoral students who would like to conduct a year-long research project in occupational or environmental health. Teaching, service, community intervention, and policy projects will also be considered. The purpose is to encourage M.S. and doctoral students to work in teams with students from other disciplines in order to better address real-world problems.

Now Accepting Applications

Due March 25, 2022

Download the 2022 Flyer for COEH Student Project Awards

Award Amount & Project Time Period

Short projects (minimum of one quarter): Up to $2,500 in funding for projects lasting at least one quarter.

Year-long projects: Up to $5,000 for projects beginning Spring 2022 and ending Spring 2023.

Eligibility

Competition is open to currently registered graduate students or medical residents (“students”) who will remain in active status for the entire academic year. One of the students’ faculty advisors must be either a COEH Faculty or Associate member. Reference our People page for a list of eligible faculty and associate advisors. Interdisciplinary projects are encouraged, but not required. Students are expected to meet with their faculty advisors on a regular basis to obtain input and keep them informed of their progress. Faculty advisors are expected to actively mentor the project and approve the final report.

Submission Procedure

Submit Application form and items 2-5 below to coeh@ph.ucla.edu by Friday March 25, 2022.

1) Application form

2) Project description (about 2 pages) should include: abstract, statement of significance, specific objectives, relevance to occupational and environmental health, background, methodology, timeline, role of each student and description of other sources of funding.

3) Budget (Template)

4) Budget Justification

5) Strategy for seeking access to a work site (if applicable)

Allowable Expenses

Includes equipment, supplies and project-related travel; salary will be considered if it enables a student to reduce work commitments. Equipment purchased becomes University property. The review committee may require budget revision.

Timeline

MILESTONES	DEADLINES
MILESTONES	1-Qtr projects	2-Qtr projects	Year-long
Application Deadline	March 25, 2022	March 25, 2022	March 25, 2022
Award Announcement	March 31, 2022	March 31, 2022	March 31, 2022
Response to Reviewer Comments Proof of workplace access	April 6, 2022	April 6, 2022	April 6, 2022
Project Start Date	April 1, 2022	April 1, 2022	April 1, 2022
Submit study protocol to IRB*	N/A	April 20, 2022	April 20, 2022
IRB Approval	N/A	April 27, 2022	April 27, 2022
Mid-Year Progress Report	May 1, 2022	Sept 1, 2022	Dec 1, 2022
Poster Presentation	Spring 2023	Spring 2023	Spring 2023
Final Report Due	June 3, 2022	Dec 2 2022	June 9, 2023
Project End Date	June 10, 2022	Dec 9, 2022	June 16, 2023

* Campus IRB (Institutional Review Board) approval required for projects working with humans or vertebrate animals. Links to campus protocol compliance information available at http://ora.research.ucla.edu/ohrpp/Pages/OHRPPHome.aspx

Review Criteria

Research projects will be judged on scientific merit. Teaching, service, community intervention, and policy projects will be judged on their impact on the target audience.

Program Priorities

Field and laboratory studies that evaluate adverse health effects and/or exposure to hazardous agents in occupational and community settings.
Risk assessments that use existing information to estimate exposure quantitatively to hazardous agents among occupational and community groups, and the consequent risk of adverse health effects.
Survey studies using questionnaires or interviews to gather new or updated information on occupational and environmental health hazards and controls.
Policy analyses of alternatives to address occupational and environmental health problems.
Methodological studies of innovative service delivery to high risk, vulnerable workers or employer groups.
Studies that assess or address health impacts related to transportation and the built environment.

Final Report and Conference Presentation

Each team must produce a one-page mid-project progress report and brief final project report. The teams will be invited to present their findings during an annual COEH event.

The mid-year progress report should include description of a) progress towards project goals; b) challenges in meeting goals; c) summary of funds spent.

The final report should include a) project summary; b) methods; c) findings; d) discussion and other considerations; and e) a financial report showing how the funds were spent. The reports must be reviewed and signed by at least one faculty advisor, generally the lead student’s.

Each student or team must submit an abstract or poster describing their project to a professional conference.