STAR Conditions & Expectations

STAR Conditions & Expectations

Application Receipt Date: FEBRUARY 14, 2025 by 11:59 pm PST

Summer fellowships for the 2025 STAR Program are expected to be approximately $8,000. The entire award will be allocated directly to the recipients as a living stipend only. External fellowships and disbursements are subject to policies of the funding agency.

Please review the 2024 STAR Program Calendar for important dates and events, as many events/classes are required for the program. The calendar for 2025 will be released in January. 

Submission of a STAR Program application indicates that a successful applicant agrees to all of the following Conditions of Award:

  • Students are expected to commit full time effort to their project for the entire period of the award. Other activities cannot conflict or otherwise interfere with the ability of the student to participate full time in their research project. This includes any volunteer or paid positions.
  • Students are expected to conduct research full time for a 10 week period within these dates: June 2 - August 8, 2025. Any absence must be discussed with your mentor and the STAR Program Director.
  • Students who propose research projects requiring international travel in summer 2025 will be subject to any international travel restrictions and UC Davis guidance limiting international travel at that time.
  • Attendance and participation in the 2025 Laboratory Practices Orientation (date TBD) is mandatory. Exemptions will be allowed only if the student has previously participated in the STAR program and has completed the Laboratory Practices Orientation.
  • If a student receives STAR funding and also receives funding for another project to be conducted during the summer, the student can either accept the STAR award and turn down the other funded award, or vice versa...the student cannot accept STAR funding if they already have received funding for the same project during the summer (or for a different project during the same summer). 
  • Students that accept funding and commit to the STAR Program are expected to fully complete their obligations. At the discretion of the STAR Program Director, if a student is unable to complete all of the STAR requirements, all STAR funding received must be returned to the STAR Program (student illness or unforeseen family emergencies will be considered on an individual basis). 
  • ALL students are required to complete a poster and present it at the end of summer STARs in Science poster session presentation event held during the second week of Fall semester (mid to late August).
    • Posters will be on display on the screens in Valley Hall. Please alert our office if your poster contains sensitive information that cannot be on public display. 
  • Students must be aware that individual funding sources that support the STAR Program come with their own criteria for presentation of research findings (e.g., poster, oral presentation, attendance at a national conference/meeting, etc.).
  • Submit a one page written summary describing the research you performed, including hypothesis, methods used, results and conclusions, during the STAR Program no later than September 19, 2025. This summary should be sent as an e-mail attachment in Word format to svmstarprogram@ucdavis.edu.
  • Acknowledge STAR Program funding support in any publications resulting from the research project. All STAR related posters, talks and subsequent publishings must acknowledge the UC Davis STAR program and fund source. An example of how to acknowledge funding is "Financial support was provided by the Students Training in Advanced Research (STAR) Program through a UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine Endowment Fund (or Morris, BI, NIH, etc.).  Students funded by the NIH T35 grant will need to include the NIH grant number as well.