Upload your selfie to #URCAD and be eligible to win a gift card from the UMBC Bookstore!

Categories include: Best selfie taken with your mentor, family member, or research poster/presentation.

Best Overall: Take a photo with a UMBC celebrity (President Hrabowski, Provost Rous, Dean Stacey…) or get creative!

Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day (URCAD) features research, scholarship, and creative work carried out by UMBC undergraduates. Student work is shared through oral presentations, posters, artistic exhibits and performances, and film.

Over 250 presenters participate annually. Researchers work with faculty mentors on independent research, or research that is part of the mentor’s on-going projects.  They are from all disciplines, and can be working on a thesis, capstone project, part of a scholars or honors program, or they can be unaffiliated with other programs.

Students who have received Undergraduate Research Awards (URA) for the previous year will be presenting their findings. The UMBC Review, UMBC’s annual peer-reviewed research journal, which features academic papers written by UMBC undergraduates, makes its debut at this event- stop by and get your copy! Come hear the alumni keynote speaker talk about their experiences after UMBC, and how being an undergraduate researcher benefited them.

UMBC is unique in providing this opportunity for undergraduate students to conduct and present their research in a professional and supportive setting.  Students get valuable feedback from their peers, faculty, and staff, and practice their public speaking and presentations skills.  This campus-wide celebration of achievement affirms UMBC’s commitment to the twin goals of research and a distinctive undergraduate experience.

Come to URCAD on Wednesday, April 26. Iman Said's present her research on "The Impact of Religious Identity and Religious Practices on Behavioral Measures of Self Control".

“The Impact of Religious Identity and Religious Practices on Behavioral Measures of Self Control” is an inquiry on Religion and the large role it plays in the lives of many. Religions may make future consequences (e.g., afterlife) more salient, and this may affect the extent to which delayed consequences affect choice during everyday life. Subjects included in this study are UMBC students over the age of 18.

Read her abstract here...

The UMBC McNair Scholars Program has just completed their spring recruitment. Although they have had many highly-qualified applicants, they must extend the application deadline to fulfill the federal requirements. 

REQUIREMENTS FOR EXTENDED DEADLINE APPLICANTS

§ First-generation AND low-income

§ Freshman or Sophomore

§ 2.7 GPA or better

§ U.S. citizen or Permanent resident

§ Desire to pursue doctoral studies in any field of study

§ Deadline for Application: Rolling, until the cohort is complete

IMPORTANT NOTE: They are in need of students who are BOTH first generation college students (meaning the guardian(s) which whom they resided on their 18th birthday has not earned a bachelor's degree or higher), AND are from low-income households (based on the Federal TRIO Programs Current-Year Low-Income Levels which uses taxable income).  

 HOW TO APPLY

Applicants must complete the UMBC McNair Scholars Application by typing their responses, signing, and scanning the application and all required documentation, and then submit it using the following link, https://goo.gl/forms/Do4mD3nx0KHGrVyV2. 

The McNair office (MP 007) will only accept recommendation forms and letters, but they highly suggest that recommenders scan their form and/or submit a letter directly to Michael A. Hunt, Interim Assistant Director,  huntmi1@umbc.edu. 

For extended applications, only TWO recommendations needed. Any other application material delivered to their office will not be considered. 

It’s the responsibility of the applicant to make sure all items are submitted using the online form.  Applicants will only be contacted if all items have been received and if they are offered an interview. 

On April 13th 2017, UMBC hosted Take Back the Night. The night began with an introduction by the emcees and march leaders, Kayla and Sarah, and Women’s Center staff member, Amelia.

After the introduction was the survivor speak-out. The speak-out is the heart of Take Back the Night. This is the point in the night where survivors are encouraged to come up and share their story with the crowd before the march throughout campus. As a survivor, sharing your story at TBTN allows you to publicly acknowledge your experience with a crowd that believes you and supports you.

Photo credit: Jaedon Huie

Photo credit: Amelia Meman

Photo credit: Amelia Meman

We then moved on to the march portion of the night where we got loud and chanted in support of victims of sexual violence.

Photo credit: Jaedon Huie

Photo credit: Jaedon Huie

Photo credit: Jaedon Huie

Photo credit: Amelia Meman

After the march, community members got together for some craftivism! This portion of the program is intended to provide space for reflection, creative expression, and community building.

Photo credit: Jaedon Huie

Photo credit: Jaedon Huie

Photo credit: Jaedon Huie

Thank you so much to everyone for a powerful and moving evening. Thank you to every survivor for sharing their story, to every ally who supported the survivors and a special thank you to all the volunteers who made TBTN possible!

Photo Credit: Amelia Meman

If you weren’t able to make it, here are some resources:

• Women’s Center at UMBC
• UMBC Counseling Center
• Title IX and UMBC’s Interim Policy on Prohibited Sexual Misconduct and Other Related Misconduct
  

Photo credit: Amelia Meman

The UMBC Cyber Defense Team took first place at the 2017 National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition held in San Antonio, Texas this past weekend. The team defeated nine other regional winners from across the country in a contest to protect their networks from cyber attacks and threats efficiently and effectively.

“We are as excited about the national cyber defense competition as we are about an NCAA athletic competition,” says UMBC President Freeman Hrabowski. “UMBC is developing brainpower to protect our nation and build the economy in the Baltimore region. Our partnerships with the Department of Defense, NSA, the Naval Academy, NIST, and dozens of cyber companies at bwtech@UMBC and beyond expose students to authentic problems and allow them to immediately provide value to government and business employers. Our campus is an ecosystem for cybersecurity talent development.”

2017 National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition trophy

Cyber Dawgs’ faculty advisor Charles Nicholas, professor of computer science and electrical engineering, calls the win “my proudest moment at UMBC.” He explains that the competition puts the team in a realistic situation that requires them to use resources and rely on their colleagues and teammates in challenging situations. During 14 hours of competition over two days, the teams are not able to interact with their coaches. Eight students used a dozen pieces of equipment throughout the tournament to keep the services on their network accessible and make sure that the systems are not brought down by hacks or cyber attacks.

“We are absolutely ecstatic with our win at Nationals. We have worked very hard to be the first team from the Mid-Atlantic region to win nationals,” said Christian Beam ‘18, computer science. “I am filled with pride to be a part of such an amazing team, and we are looking forward to returning to compete at the 2018 Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition!”

Leading up to the national and regional tournaments, the team spent hours training, studying, and reviewing scenarios that they might encounter during the competition. They prepared and practiced counterattacks to combat attacks from the other teams.

In early April, the Cyber Dawgs placed first in the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition, and solidified their spot in the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition. The Cyber Dawgs beat teams from Towson University, the University of Maryland, College Park, and Drexel University during the regional competition.

Originally published on UMBC News. Photos by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.

The post UMBC CyberDawgs top 2017 National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition appeared first on Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering.