Research and Scholarship

The following programs, events, and resources provide graduate students with many opportunities to not only present their research and scholarship to the UCF community but also develop competencies they will need to excel both as graduate students and future professionals

Graduate Student Writing Retreat

We invite you to register for our Graduate Student Writing Retreat, a one-day, in-person experience designed to help you make focused, tangible progress on your thesis, dissertation, or other significant writing projects.

This retreat offers a structured, distraction-free environment where participants will clarify writing goals, engage in sustained writing time, and learn practical strategies for overcoming common challenges such as perfectionism, procrastination, and writer’s block.

The day also emphasizes sustainable writing habits, peer support, and planning strategies so the progress made during the retreat continues beyond the event.

Event Details

• Date: May 15, 2026
• Time: 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
• Location: University Writing Center, Trevor Colbourn Hall
• Who should attend: Master’s and doctoral students, especially those in the writing stage of their thesis or dissertation
• Cost: $35 participation fee (additional processing fees will appear, but are waived)
• What’s included: Morning coffee, lunch, and snacks
• What to Bring: Laptop, notes, and research resources
• Registration Deadline: Space is limited, so please register below by May 1!

Register today at Eventbrite

This event is offered in partnership with the College of Graduate Studies Office of Graduate Research and Scholarship, University Writing Center (UWC), Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC), and the Center for Writing Excellence (CWE).

If you have any questions, please contact gradworkshops@ucf.edu.

UCF’s Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Competition

Graduate research is presented in a novel and exciting way at UCF’s Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. Doctoral and Master’s students communicate their research in just three short minutes and with only one PowerPoint slide to non-expert judges while competing to win scholarship awards.

First developed in 2008 by the University of Queensland in Australia, the popularity of the competition has increased and 3MT competitions are now held in over 600 universities across more than 59 countries worldwide. 

The UCF 3MT is hosted by the Office of Research and Scholarship and the Office of Graduate Student Life in the College of Graduate Studies. For more Information, contact gradcenter@ucf.edu

Research Workshops

The Office of Graduate Research and Scholarship, in partnership with UCF resources such as the University Writing Center, the Center for Writing Excellence, and UCF Libraries offer support for graduate writers. See our Events Calendar for upcoming events.

UCF Libraries Workshops

The UCF Libraries offers workshops on various topics relevant to graduate student researchers. Sessions include Copyright & Image Use in Digital Scholarship, Citation Management, Establishing a Research Profile, Conducting Literature Searches & AI-Enhanced Citation Mapping Tools for Graduate Students and more. Please see the UCF Libraries Events Calendar for details and registration.

Writing Support

The Office of Graduate Research and Scholarship, in partnership with UCF resources such as the University Writing Center, the Center for Writing Excellence, and UCF Libraries offer support for graduate writers. See our Events Calendar for upcoming events.

IRB Support

The Office of Research offers office hours to help students navigate UCF’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) application process in the following ways:

• Provide guiding information to students who are ready to apply for IRB approval to conduct research
• Answer questions relating to the IRB application and approval process
• Offer help navigating the Huron IRB platform

Students should have their research proposal and study design complete and reviewed by their faculty advisor and thesis/dissertation committee members prior to meeting with the IRB Office for study application assistance. Students can use the IRB Office Meeting Scheduler to make an appointment or email irb@ucf.edu.

Research Computing Support

The UCF Office of Research Cyberinfrastructure (RCI) offers weekly virtual office hours to support researchers with a range of computing needs, including cloud services, high-performance computing (HPC), software development, and LaTeX. Researchers can drop in during the scheduled times or request individual consultations as needed. More information is available at: https://rci.research.ucf.edu/resource/virtual-office-hours/

LaTeX and Computational Office Hours

Support includes ARCC/ACCESS systems, Slurm/PBS job schedulers, Linux workflows, scientific software installation, and LaTeX troubleshooting. Join LaTeX and computational office hours at: https://rci.research.ucf.edu/join-office-hours-computational

Cloud Computing Office Hours

Support includes AWS, GCP, and Azure services, data pipelines, machine learning workflows, serverless architecture, and cost optimization. Join cloud computing office hours at: https://rci.research.ucf.edu/join-office-hours-cloud

Grant Seeking and Preparation Fundamentals Webcourse

Grant Seeking and Preparation Fundamentals is a free, self-guided webcourse, created by the Research Development Team in the UCF Office of Research, with the intention of providing a variety of primer information (videos and resources) on topics and tools related to grant seeking and preparation. Completing this course will help you prepare your first grant proposal.  

UCF Presentation Fellowship

Traveling to present your research? A UCF Presentation Fellowship is a great opportunity for students who plan to present a research paper or comparable creative activity at a professional conference. This fellowship provides funding for enrolled master’s, specialist, and doctoral students to share their research at a professional meeting. Students must be the primary author and presenter.