VUSRP 2026 Full Memo, revised
Kathleen Quigley, Immersion Vanderbilt
2026-03-30
214 students applied for the 2026 VUSRP, and 107 will be offered an award.
Award Details:
Proposal Type
| Proposal discipline | n applicants | % of group awarded | % of total awarded |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health and Medicine | 67 | 43.3 | 27.1 |
| Biological and Environmental Sciences | 54 | 61.1 | 30.8 |
| Social and Behavioral Sciences | 33 | 63.6 | 19.6 |
| Mathematical and Physical Sciences | 19 | 57.9 | 10.3 |
| Engineering and Design | 16 | 25.0 | 3.7 |
| Computers and Technology | 10 | 30.0 | 2.8 |
| Economic and Political Systems | 7 | 28.6 | 1.9 |
| Education | 4 | 50.0 | 1.9 |
| Cultural Studies and Humanities | 3 | 33.3 | 0.9 |
| Arts and Performance | 1 | NA | NA |
Financial Need
| Need Status | n applicants | % of group awarded | % of total awarded |
|---|---|---|---|
| No Need | 103 | 50.5 | 48.6 |
| High Need | 86 | 45.3 | 36.4 |
| Medium Need | 19 | 52.6 | 9.3 |
| Low Need | 6 | 83.3 | 4.7 |
Academic Level
| Academic level | n applicants | % of group awarded | % of total awarded |
|---|---|---|---|
| Junior | 105 | 48.6 | 47.7 |
| Senior | 3 | 33.3 | 0.9 |
| Sophomore | 106 | 50.9 | 50.5 |
25 first generation students applied, comprising 11.7% of the applicant pool. 16 first generation students will receive offers.
Students who declined VUSRP
| Rank | First Name | Last Name | Which of the following best describe(s) the type of research you are proposing? | Faculty Sponsor First Name | Faculty Sponsor Last Name | Faculty Sponsor Primary Department |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 103 | Jade | Smith | Biological and Environmental Sciences | Breann | Brown | Biochemistry |
| 30 | Daniel | Yoo | Economic and Political Systems | Mark | Chin | Leadership, Policy, & Organizations |
| 29 | Hannah | Hart | Engineering and Design | Ethan | Lippmann | Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering |
| 2 | Sindur | Patel | Health and Medicine | Carrie | Jones | Pharmacology |
| 23 | Barghav | Vissa | Health and Medicine | Heidi | Hamm | Pharmacology |
| 27 | Caleb | Ching | Health and Medicine | Erin | Calipari | Pharmacology |
| 31 | Emily | Melton | Health and Medicine | Christian | Crannell | Surgery |
| 97 | Tyler | Truong | Health and Medicine | Kathleen | DelGiorno | Cell & Developmental Biology |
| 95 | Sophie | Citron | Health and Medicine | Paula | Trujillo | Neurology |
| 15 | Ahmed | Nawaz | Social and Behavioral Sciences | Andre | Bastos | Psychology |
Remaining Waitlist
| Rank | Total | First Name | Last Name | Need Status | Proposal discipline | Faculty Sponsor First Name | Faculty Sponsor Last Name | Faculty Sponsor Primary School or College | Faculty Sponsor Primary Department |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 105 | 124 | Caroline | Hammack | No Need | Biological and Environmental Sciences | Shan | Meltzer | School of Medicine | Pharmacology |
| 105 | 124 | Youhyun | Noh | No Need | Biological and Environmental Sciences | Niswender | Colleen | School of Medicine | Pharmacology |
| 105 | 124 | Dalton | Malmin | Medium Need | Health and Medicine | Gilbert | Gonzales | College of Arts & Science | Medicine, Health, & Society |
| 105 | 124 | Kathryn | Lu | No Need | Biological and Environmental Sciences | Ken | Lau | School of Medicine | Cell & Developmental Biology |
| 105 | 124 | Mariana | Gioffre | High Need | Social and Behavioral Sciences | Megan | Saylor | Peabody College | Psychology & Human Development |
| 106 | 123 | Arisa | Okamoto | No Need | Biological and Environmental Sciences | Lin | Meng | College of Arts & Science | Earth & Environmental Sciences |
| 106 | 123 | Ingrid | Lok | High Need | Biological and Environmental Sciences | Anna | Huang | School of Medicine | Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences |
| 106 | 123 | Mary | Gorman | High Need | Health and Medicine | Marjan | Rafat | School of Engineering | Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering |
| 106 | 123 | Huitong | Xu | No Need | Biological and Environmental Sciences | Allison | Walker | College of Arts & Science | Chemistry |
| 106 | 123 | Mackenzie | Dagrosa | No Need | Health and Medicine | Katherine | Van Schaik | School of Medicine | Radiology & Radiological Sciences |
| 109 | 120 | Lingfei | Kong | No Need | Mathematical and Physical Sciences | Glenn | Webb | College of Arts & Science | Mathematics |
| 106 | 123 | Makenzie | Edgar | High Need | Health and Medicine | Eman | Gohar | School of Medicine | Medicine |
Faculty Mentor Details (n = 166 unique project mentors, 94 whose students were offered an award):
Faculty School
| Faculty Sponsor Primary School or College | count | percent | count_award | percent_award | percent_category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| School of Medicine | 97 | 45.3 | 48 | 44.9 | 49.5 |
| College of Arts & Science | 64 | 29.9 | 35 | 32.7 | 54.7 |
| School of Engineering | 24 | 11.2 | 8 | 7.5 | 33.3 |
| Peabody College | 21 | 9.8 | 13 | 12.1 | 61.9 |
| College of Connected Computing | 5 | 2.3 | 1 | 0.9 | 20.0 |
| Blair School of Music | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Law School | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| School of Nursing | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 0.9 | 100.0 |
Faculty Discipline
| Faculty Discipline | count | percent | count_award | percent_award |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medicine - Clinical | 60 | 28.0 | 29 | 27.1 |
| Natural Sciences | 46 | 21.5 | 26 | 24.3 |
| Social Science | 43 | 20.1 | 23 | 21.5 |
| Medicine - Basic | 37 | 17.3 | 19 | 17.8 |
| Engineering & Computer Science | 23 | 10.7 | 7 | 6.5 |
| Arts & Humanities | 4 | 1.9 | 1 | 0.9 |
| Nursing | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 0.9 |
Faculty Department
| Faculty Sponsor Primary Department | count | percent | count_award | percent_award | percent_category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medicine | 26 | 12.1 | 14 | 13.1 | 53.8 |
| Psychology & Human Development | 16 | 7.5 | 11 | 10.3 | 68.8 |
| Biological Sciences | 14 | 6.5 | 11 | 10.3 | 78.6 |
| Pharmacology | 14 | 6.5 | 6 | 5.6 | 42.9 |
| Physics & Astronomy | 13 | 6.1 | 9 | 8.4 | 69.2 |
| Cell & Developmental Biology | 10 | 4.7 | 6 | 5.6 | 60.0 |
| Biochemistry | 9 | 4.2 | 4 | 3.7 | 44.4 |
| Chemistry | 9 | 4.2 | 4 | 3.7 | 44.4 |
| Electrical and Computer Engineering | 9 | 4.2 | 2 | 1.9 | 22.2 |
| Psychology | 9 | 4.2 | 4 | 3.7 | 44.4 |
| Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering | 7 | 3.3 | 4 | 3.7 | 57.1 |
| Neurology | 7 | 3.3 | 3 | 2.8 | 42.9 |
| Biomedical Engineering | 6 | 2.8 | 2 | 1.9 | 33.3 |
| Medicine, Health, & Society | 6 | 2.8 | 3 | 2.8 | 50.0 |
| Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences | 6 | 2.8 | 5 | 4.7 | 83.3 |
| Computer Science | 5 | 2.3 | 1 | 0.9 | 20.0 |
| Anesthesiology | 4 | 1.9 | 1 | 0.9 | 25.0 |
| Molecular Physiology & Biophysics | 4 | 1.9 | 3 | 2.8 | 75.0 |
| Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology | 3 | 1.4 | 1 | 0.9 | 33.3 |
| Pediatrics | 3 | 1.4 | 1 | 0.9 | 33.3 |
| Political Science | 3 | 1.4 | 1 | 0.9 | 33.3 |
| Radiology & Radiological Sciences | 3 | 1.4 | 1 | 0.9 | 33.3 |
| Special Education | 3 | 1.4 | 2 | 1.9 | 66.7 |
| Earth & Environmental Sciences | 2 | 0.9 | 1 | 0.9 | 50.0 |
| Economics | 2 | 0.9 | 1 | 0.9 | 50.0 |
| Mathematics | 2 | 0.9 | NA | NA | NA |
| Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences | 2 | 0.9 | 1 | 0.9 | 50.0 |
| Surgery | 2 | 0.9 | NA | NA | NA |
| Asian Studies | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 0.9 | 100.0 |
| Biomedical Informatics | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Blair School of Music | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Cardiac Surgery | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Civil & Environmental Engineering | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| English | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Gender and Sexuality Studies | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Hearing & Speech Sciences | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 0.9 | 100.0 |
| Human & Org. Development | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Law School | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Leadership, Policy, & Organizations | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Mechanical Engineering | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 0.9 | 100.0 |
| School of Nursing | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 0.9 | 100.0 |
| Sociology | 1 | 0.5 | NA | NA | NA |
44 faculty mentors (26.5 %) also volunteered to serve on the VUSRP review committee.
Reviewer Details (n = 119 unique reviewers):
Reviewer School
| School | count | percent |
|---|---|---|
| School of Medicine | 46 | 21.5 |
| College of Arts & Science | 37 | 17.3 |
| Peabody College of Education & Human Development | 13 | 6.1 |
| School of Engineering | 11 | 5.1 |
| School of Nursing | 8 | 3.7 |
| Blair School of Music | 2 | 0.9 |
| College of Connected Computing | 2 | 0.9 |
Reviewer Department
| School | Department | count | percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blair School of Music | Blair School of Music | 2 | 0.9 |
| College of Arts & Science | Biological Sciences | 5 | 2.3 |
| College of Arts & Science | Chemistry | 4 | 1.9 |
| College of Arts & Science | Earth & Environmental Sciences | 4 | 1.9 |
| College of Arts & Science | Psychology | 4 | 1.9 |
| College of Arts & Science | French & Italian | 3 | 1.4 |
| College of Arts & Science | Medicine, Health, & Society | 3 | 1.4 |
| College of Arts & Science | Economics | 2 | 0.9 |
| College of Arts & Science | English | 2 | 0.9 |
| College of Arts & Science | Mathematics | 2 | 0.9 |
| College of Arts & Science | Physics & Astronomy | 2 | 0.9 |
| College of Arts & Science | Anthropology | 1 | 0.5 |
| College of Arts & Science | Center for Latin American, Caribbean and Latinx Studies | 1 | 0.5 |
| College of Arts & Science | History of Art & Architecture | 1 | 0.5 |
| College of Arts & Science | Jewish Studies | 1 | 0.5 |
| College of Arts & Science | Political Science | 1 | 0.5 |
| College of Arts & Science | Sociology | 1 | 0.5 |
| College of Connected Computing | Computer Science | 2 | 0.9 |
| Peabody College of Education & Human Development | Psychology & Human Development | 7 | 3.3 |
| Peabody College of Education & Human Development | Special Education | 2 | 0.9 |
| Peabody College of Education & Human Development | Teaching & Learning | 2 | 0.9 |
| Peabody College of Education & Human Development | Human & Org. Development | 1 | 0.5 |
| Peabody College of Education & Human Development | Leadership, Policy, & Organizations | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Engineering | Biomedical Engineering | 3 | 1.4 |
| School of Engineering | Mechanical Engineering | 3 | 1.4 |
| School of Engineering | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2 | 0.9 |
| School of Engineering | Engineering Science and Management | 2 | 0.9 |
| School of Engineering | Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Medicine | 16 | 7.5 |
| School of Medicine | Pharmacology | 6 | 2.8 |
| School of Medicine | Cell & Developmental Biology | 4 | 1.9 |
| School of Medicine | Neurology | 4 | 1.9 |
| School of Medicine | Biochemistry | 3 | 1.4 |
| School of Medicine | Hearing & Speech Sciences | 2 | 0.9 |
| School of Medicine | Anesthesiology | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Biostatistics | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Cardiac Surgery | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Molecular Physiology & Biophysics | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Orthopaedic Surgery | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Pediatrics | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Radiology & Radiological Sciences | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Medicine | Urology | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Nursing | School of Nursing | 6 | 2.8 |
| School of Nursing | Academics | 1 | 0.5 |
| School of Nursing | Research | 1 | 0.5 |
Scoring details:
The average application score was 41.7 out of 50 total points.
The minimum score assigned was 14 (reviewer-averaged min = 22.7)
The maximum score assigned was 50 (reviewer-averaged max = 49.3)
64 perfect scores of 50 were assigned
The average reviewer score was 41.8, but some reviewers scored proposals consistently higher or lower than expected.
