Criteria and Application Process

The McKinstry Fellows Research Program is made possible through the generous support of Dean and Vicki Allen. Learn more about the origins of this program.

The McKinstry Fellows Research Program supports student-faculty (and possibly staff) research teams probing original research questions that are relevant to society today and that will impact future generations, with an emphasis on providing meaningful research experiences for undergraduate students in Health Sciences and STEM disciplines.

[GU = Gonzaga University, UWSOM = University of Washington School of Medicine]

Proposal Criteria

Proposals must satisfy at least one of these four criteria:

1. The project focuses on a significant health-related question.
2. The project is co-curricular, mindfully incorporating a non-academic office and/or non-faculty employee(s) at GU and/or UWSOM (e.g., RIDE, MEDEX, CCE, GU-Outdoors, UMEC, LLRC, Clinical Legal Programs).
3. The project is a collaborative effort involving at least one Inland Northwest government agency, nonprofit organization, or industry partner.
4. The project is interdisciplinary and involves faculty and/or students from different disciplines, especially those not traditionally linked.

We are particularly interested in projects that do at least one of the following:

• aim to improve the health and/or well-being of rural residents,
• include at least one research team member (e.g., student, faculty, staff) from both GU and UWSOM, or
• articulate how the proposed work connects to at least one of the mission statements of GU and the UWSOM.

Eligibility

Faculty affiliated with Gonzaga and/or UW School of Medicine who:

• will be returning for fall semester, and
• are able to serve as a research mentor in or near Spokane throughout the proposed research period.

If there are any co-mentors (faculty or staff), each co-mentor will need to submit a separate scope-of-work statement. If your project involves any outside agencies, the agency or a representative should provide a letter of support or scope-of-work statement. Details provided in the application packet.

Students - can be enrolled in any major at GU or UW School of Medicine, including undergraduate, graduate, medical, and physician assistant (PA) students, and must:

• be returning for fall semester.
• be available to work in the Spokane area throughout the proposed research period.
• be available to participate in any necessary safety and research ethics training.
• present their project through poster or oral presentations in Spokane in the fall (or spring if necessary) immediately following the summer research.

Student & Mentor Expectations

• While awards can be used to support medical and/or graduate students, one goal of this program is to provide meaningful original research experiences for undergraduate students. Proposals must address student impact and involvement in the research, and the lead mentor must be committed to work directly with the student(s) throughout the research period.
• Given that the summer research program should provide a meaningful research experience for students, proposals must demonstrate reasonable aspirations for timeline, budget, and goals.
• Projects that involve human subjects must be approved by Gonzaga's Institutional Review Board (IRB). If IRB approval is needed for your project, the expectation is that the lead mentor will have obtained IRB approval by the articulated start date. If IRB approval is not secured in time, funding will be withheld.
• While projects should have clear results and outcomes by the end of the summer, projects may extend into the next academic year after an initial summer period (6-10 weeks); clearly indicate in your application if you wish to do this. If the proposed summer research period is shorter than 10 weeks, it is expected that the project will (most likely) extend into the following academic year.
• Teams are expected to present their work at the UW-GU Health Sciences Symposium in the fall. Poster printing will be provided free of charge.
• Lead mentors must submit a summary of results (~2-3 pages) to CURCI by October 14, 2027. For projects that have been extended into the following academic year, a preliminary report is due Oct. 14 with a full summary of results due 5 weeks after the proposed project end date.
• You are encouraged to try to leverage outside additional funding for projects; if you are requesting that your project including the possibility of extending into the academic year, please consider funding sources such as McDonald Work Awards and Work Study funds for paying students to stretch your budget further.
• After awards are announced, faculty lead mentors can either self-identify research students, or CURCI can help recruit as needed. Students will be asked to submit a separate application for database tracking purposes.
  

Funding Specifics

• Typical awards are between $15k and $30k; the maximum award will be $32k.
• Undergraduate student compensation should account for at least 30% of the proposed budget.

Application Process & Timeline

The application for Summer 2027 will open on January 27th, 2027 and close on February 25th, 2027. The lead mentor should request an application packet by emailing CURCI at curci@gonzaga.edu.

Proposals are reviewed by members of CURCI's External Programs subcommittee (faculty and staff). You will be notified of the status of your application in late-March or early-April.