Part 1: Students Funding Students
[Editor鈥檚 note: This is part 1 of a 4-part series looking at the student-led ]
Obtaining money for research and projects can be difficult to come by, especially for students who have yet to establish themselves in their given fields. Without this monetary component, ideas can be left unrealized. At 欧美口爆视频 Boulder, a student-led pot of money works to solve this problem.
Managing more than $1.5 million each year, the (EEF) bridges the gap between ideas and their manifestations for engineering students at 欧美口爆视频 Boulder. The same people who benefit from the fund are those who pay into it, as the EEF comes from engineering student fees.
鈥淚t鈥檚 by the students, for the students,鈥 says Trevor Bennett, former chair of the EEF and now a graduate member of the committee. 鈥淲e are representatives of the student body, so it is our job to apply a critical eye to the proposals we see in order to invest in the students鈥 interests.鈥
A committee of 12 members manages the fund: six undergraduate students, three graduate, and three non-voting faculty/staff advisors. Students vote on how to spend and fund their peers鈥 money and projects, a unique opportunity among major universities and colleges.
鈥淢any engineering student groups, and pieces of equipment that student groups utilize at 欧美口爆视频 Boulder, are funded by EEF,鈥 said Bennett. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a pooling of resources to encourage and support innovative ideas.鈥
Unlike many of the long-term investments made at the university, the fund has a swift turnaround time鈥攆inancing projects with the money paid into it that year. This gives engineering students access to the money they put in for projects that will further their education and passions.
鈥淲e ask, what investments should we make right now for the current student body?鈥 said Bennett.
The proposal process is open to all engineering students with an idea. The fund handles proposals from different tiers offering varying amounts of funding. Mini proposals, which max out at $3,000, are the most commonly submitted and funded. How they are chosen is based on four pieces of criteria: uniqueness and innovation, student impact, financial sensibility, and quality.
Increasing awareness of the fund is a priority.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not general knowledge, and we want to change that,鈥 said Bennett. 鈥淚f students are contributing to the fund, they should be aware of this resource to which they have access.鈥
The next call for proposals begins early in the Fall semester. More information into the fund and the proposal process can be found at .
Tim Drugan-Eppich is an administrative assistant in the College of Engineering and Applied Science.