Rights and Responsibilities - Participating in the URSS Experience
2014/15
Introduction
The Undergraduate Research Support Scheme (URSS) is a scheme that provides a bursary and/or skills
development training to undergraduate students who wish to carry out a summer research project in
addition to a degree course.
The skills development training is known as the ‘URSS Experience’. All students included in the URSS
Experience will be known as ‘URSS participants’.
You are entered onto the URSS Experience if:
1. If your application for a URSS-bursary is accepted - this happens automatically. You do not need to do
anything further;
2. You are completing your summer project via your department and the department is an affiliate of the
URSS.
All participants on the URSS Experience are required to complete training and submit certain tasks, as
specified below. Successful submission of all requirements will gain you an Official Warwick Certificate of
Completion and an endorsement on your Higher Education Achievement Record (HEAR).
Purpose of the Rights and Responsibilities Document
This document:

Formally acknowledges and supports the role of students wishing to undertake an extra-curricular
summer research project supported by URSS;

Sets out a policy to ensure good working practices;

Defines the rights and responsibilities of the URSS administration, supervisors and URSS participants.
Rights of URSS participant:
Every URSS participant has the right:

To be supported in completing his/her research project;

To be given appropriate training for the project being undertaken;

To be safe in his/her research location;

To have any concerns or questions dealt with promptly;

To stop his/her project at any time;

To have his/her personal information kept in a secure and responsible manner;

To have open access to his/her personal information kept by URSS ;

To be recognised as an individual, according to the University’s Equal Opportunities Statement;

To receive up to date information about URSS activities;

To have his/her work recognised;

For URSS participants in receipt of URSS funding: To receive the agreed amount of bursary in a timely
fashion during the project period, as agreed with his/her supervisor/department;
Responsibilities of URSS participants:
 To complete Getting Started Briefing as required;
 To complete the required tasks as detailed below and submit them on or by the submission date
specified;
 To communicate regularly with his/her project supervisor, as befits a professional position and have
regular meetings with his/her supervisor and/or research team;
 To keep in regular contact with URSS administration team, answering queries when required to do so;
 To maintain his/her agreed level of commitment;
 To attend training where appropriate;
 To be reliable
 To notify his/her supervisor and the URSS administration team as soon as possible if he/she is unable to
complete the project and/or needs to withdraw for any reason. Notification by email is preferable to
URSS@warwick.ac.uk;
 To abide by the University’s policies and procedures;
 To act in accordance with the University’s Equal Opportunities Statement;
 To act appropriately;
 To be open and honest with URSS administration team and his/her supervisor;
 To give feedback to URSS when requested;
 To have open and easy access to the required facilities for running your project;
 For URSS participants in receipt of URSS funding: To return the entire bursary already paid when
requested to do so, should it be reasonably determined that the bursary has not been used for the
purposes set out in the application or the project has been largely not attempted or if you fail to
complete the required tasks.
 To make available all information reasonably required by the Co-ordinator to establish such correct use
of the bursary.
Responsibilities of the URSS Administration:
 To provide all URSS participants with information about expectations, rights and responsibilities and
the support provided by the URSS Administration Team;
 To uphold the URSS objectives, policies and procedures;
 To effectively co-ordinate the URSS bursary scheme;
 To provide appropriate, effective and skills-based training for participants;
 To support participants by keeping in regular contact;
 To assist with issues of access (to buildings, online resources etc.) wherever possible;
 To keep in regular contact with project supervisors and inform them quickly of any problems or issues
which arise with the project or the URSS Experience;
 To maintain an up-to-date list of active participants;
 To act as intermediary between URSS participant and project supervisor in times of difficulty and/or
when direct communications breakdown.
 Following discussions with the project supervisor, the URSS Co-ordinator reserves the right to require
repayment of the entire up-front award should he/she reasonably determine that the bursary has not
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been used for the purposes set out in the application or the project has been largely not attempted or
if the student fails to complete the required outputs. The student should make available to the Coordinator all information reasonably required to establish such correct use of the award funding.
URSS Required Submissions
All URSS participants are required to:
 Complete the Getting Started briefing before commencing his/her project;
 Complete and submit the following by midnight Friday 16th October 2015:

o
The online reflective portfolio, including a research profile and culminating in a final reflection
on or by the submission date specified;
o
A 100-250 word abstract and submit only an electronic copy on my portfolio on or by the
deadline specified.
o
A research poster that is A1, portrait and submit both an electronic copy on my portfolio and a
hard copy to the Student Careers & Skills Helpdesk, on or by the deadline specified;
Members of a group project are each required to submit individual posters and abstracts. These may be
focusing on the same area of the project, but must be obviously individual or, in the case of the posters,
they may focus on different aspects of the project so that together they tell the full story – the posters
will be exhibited together at the Showcase.
Failure to adhere to these requirements will result in you not receiving your Certificate of Completion to
prove to that you participated in the URSS and your participation will not be recorded on your Higher
Education Achievement Record. You will also not be eligible to apply for future URSS funding.
Responsibilities of Supervisors of URSS Projects
 To hold regular meetings with your URSS participant(s) as agreed with him/her/them, to discuss
progress on the project, any successes or difficulties;
 To keep up to date with communications from the URSS administration team;
 To notify the URSS administration team as soon as possible if a URSS participant is unable to complete
the project and/or needs to withdraw for any reason. Notification by email is preferable to
URSS@warwick.ac.uk;
 To provide the URSS participant(s) with appropriate project-specific training, including health and safety
training to enable him/her to complete the research project successfully and safely;
 To provide full support to the URSS participant(s) in exploring potential ethical implications of the
project, seeking guidance from an appropriate University Research Ethics Committee (REC) and where
required obtaining formal REC approval before the project commences;
 To support the URSS participant(s) in completion and submission of the URSS requirements (online
portfolio, research poster and abstract) by 5pm, Friday 26th September 2014;
 To provide written feedback to the URSS participant(s) on completion of his/her project;
 For URSS participants in receipt of URSS funding: To inform the participant when he/she will receive
his/her bursary and to action the transfer of the funding when appropriate.
The participant’s engagement in the research project should not dictate whether or not the bursary is
paid. Lack of engagement may result in the project coming to/being brought to an end sooner and/or
the participant not gaining a certificate evidencing successful completion of the URSS. It should be the
responsibility of the supervisor to monitor and address this.
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Further Information
Insurance
 Participants taking part in an undergraduate project arranged via a University department are
covered by the University’s Public Liability insurance;
 Participants travelling overseas are automatically covered by the University’s Travel Insurance policy;
 See the University’s Insurance web pages for full details.
Equal Access and Support Requirements
URSS is committed to making undergraduate research accessible to all undergraduate students.
If you receive any additional support through Disability Services (e.g. study skills support), please contact
them directly to discuss your requirements during your URSS project.
Confidentiality
Any details of a personal nature will only be disclosed with the consent of the person involved and on a
need to know basis. The only exception to this is if there is an immediate safety issue for students, staff
or members of the public.
Data Protection
In accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998, written information about the URSS participant’s
personal details will be kept securely by Student Careers & Skills for 10 years following your
participation in URSS and will only be accessed by authorised members of Student Careers & Skills
staff and, on request, the relevant URSS participant.
All URSS participants may be invited to participate in other opportunities to showcase their research at
University exhibitions and events and to share information on the benefits of the Scheme and their skills
development as an outcome of their project. This will entail passing details, along with the title of the
project, on to other departments within the University. No findings/poster or abstract will be shared
without seeking permission.
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