Profile:
Jackman Scholars-in-Residence
Jackman Scholars-in-Residence (SiR) is an annual 4-week undergraduate residency in humanities and social science research. SiR seeks to foster students’ research abilities, create a multidisciplinary community of students and faculty, and pioneer a collaborative, team-based model of experiential learning in the humanities and interpretive social sciences. Students live in St. George College residences, or at U of T Mississauga or U of T Scarborough (depending upon project location) while working for 20-hours / week on faculty research projects. Scholars also attend multidisciplinary workshops on research methodologies and protocol, roundtable discussions with leading U of T faculty, and team-building excursions across the GTA.
Program Details
Instructor / Program Coordinator(s):
Professor Angela Esterhammer, Director, Scholars-in-Residence and Dr. Ira Wells, Program Manager, Scholars-in-Residence
Profile(s):
Faculty & Staff Students
Division:
Faculty of Arts & Science
Benefits to Students:
Scholars-in-Residence provides students with measurable gains in research skills and confidence in their subject areas, as well as portable research skills applicable to a wide variety of disciplines and careers. As a research residency, SiR is centrally committed to providing students with opportunities to develop meaningful bonds with their peers, project supervisors, and with the University of Toronto. Students are compensated with free room and board and a $1000 scholarship.
Benefits to External Partners and the Community:
At a time when student isolation has emerged as a critical concern, participants often emphasize the sense of community fostered by Scholars-in-Residence. “The whole experience made me feel a closer connection to the U of T,” one participant reported in an exit survey. “I can’t stress enough how much opportunities like this foster a sense of inclusion at the U of T.”
Benefits to the University:
Scholars-in-Residence (SiR) involves faculty members whose work is broadly humanistic (including political theory, interpretive social science, law, education, music, and the arts) and draws from students in any unit within the Faculty of Arts and Science, U of T Mississauga, and U of T Scarborough. Project supervisors often prefer disciplinary diversity within research teams. SiR is also a unique opportunity for exchange among all three campuses. In 2019, nearly 40% of SiR participants worked on a research project based outside of their “home” campus.
Information for Interested Students:
Visit the Jackman Scholars-in-Residence (SiR) page to learn more about SiR, including eligibility and application deadlines.
Advice for Faculty and Staff Interested in Creating a Similar Experiential Learning Opportunity:
Previous SiR faculty supervisors have provided valuable advice for incoming faculty participants: supervisors often emphasize the importance of having a predefined workplan and schedule going into the program, while maintaining the flexibility to leverage the strengths of individual RAs on your research team. It can be valuable to discuss with your undergraduate RAs the goals, methodology, and trajectory of your overall research project. Many supervisors have indicated the value of providing clearly defined tasks with concrete deadlines; others have profitably incorporated graduate RAs to work alongside undergraduates in vertically integrated research teams. Project Management software can be useful for assigning tasks, submitting progress reports, discussing questions, and sharing resources to ensure projects stay on track.
Jackman Scholars-in-Residence students (Photo by Horst Herget Photography)
Details
University Based
Co-Curricular
Paid