Undergraduate Research Support Office

The Undergraduate Research Support Office (URS) promotes undergraduate research at Duke through workshops, the annual Visible Thinking Symposium, funding independent research, assistantships and conferences and by providing support for summer research programs. See the complete list of URS programs

Additional research opportunities and support are available directly through the departments and institutes of Duke University. See More Opportunities.   

What is URS?

1. MISSION

The Undergraduate Research Support Office (URS) provides grants and assistantships for undergraduate research projects

2. LEADERSHIP

Director of URS Office: Jessica Harrell, PhD.
Program Coordinator: Leah Wills, M.Ed.
Student Support: Randi Jennings ('24) 

3. AWARDS
  • URS Conference Grants
  • URS Assistantship Grants
  • URS Independent Study Grants
  • URS IDEA Grants
  • Deans' Summer Research Fellowship
  • Biological Sciences Undergraduate Research Fellowship (BSURF)
  • Student Team Grants
4. SUPPORT

Events supported by URS:

  • Visible Thinking Symposium
  • Summer Opportunities Fair
  • State of North Carolina Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium
Information from the What is URS page in an infographic format

 

Our Team

Dr. Jessica Harrell, Ph.D.

Director of Undergraduate Research Support Office 

Photo of Jessica Harrell in front of a blue background wearing a black blazer and teal shirt


jessica.harrell@duke.edu 

Jessica Harrell is the Undergraduate Research Support (URS) Director.  She came to Duke in 2020 via the Academic Advising Center where she has served as the Director of Academic Engagement (DAE) for Natural and Quantitative Sciences. In this role, Dr. Harrell has helped Duke undergraduates identify and engage in co-curricular opportunities, cultivate relationships with mentors, and apply to fellowships, summer research programs, and post-baccalaureate opportunities.  She is also an adjunct faculty in the Biology department and has co-directed the summer BSURF program.  Prior to this, Dr. Harrell served as the Director of Pre-Doctoral Student Development and Support in the Office of Graduate Education at the UNC School of Medicine. In this capacity, she directed several programs to support the engagement and persistence of students from underrepresented groups in the biomedical sciences and in pursuit of scientific-research career paths, with the express goal of increasing diversity within the scientific enterprise. Beyond her academic appointments, Dr. Harrell is a trained facilitator for the National Research Mentoring Network and has led numerous workshops for faculty and students to improve the mentor-mentee relationship, specifically helping faculty create inclusive lab environments and students to “mentor-up.”  She is a first-generation student and completed her Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry at Louisiana State University and her PhD in Cell and Developmental Biology from UNC-Chapel Hill. A native of Louisiana, you can often find Dr. Harrell rooting for her beloved Tigers, arranging crawfish boils, and enthusiastically preparing for Mardi Gras (no matter the time of year).