By Tim Christie
Photos by Grace Mangali
May 1, 2026
Nearly 600 students are set to present at the 16th annual Undergraduate Research Symposium, which takes place May 7 in the Erb Memorial Union and at the Allen Price Science Commons and Library.
The event empowers undergraduates to share their ideas, discoveries and artistic work with the campus and community through poster presentations, public talks, creative works, performances, exhibits and films.
“We have students from virtually every major on campus presenting their work,” said symposium chair Kevin Hatfield, assistant vice provost for Undergraduate Research and Distinguished Scholarships.
The long-running event is not only a showcase for undergraduate research, but also an opportunity for family members, mentors, high school and community college students, alumni, and donors to learn about the research enterprise at the University of Oregon, Hatfield said.
The keynote speaker is Mérida Mahaffey, a 2018 UO graduate in environmental studies and history. She is now an interdisciplinary scholar in Brooklyn, pursuing a master’s degree at Bard Graduate Center, where she studies museum ethics, curatorial practice and Native American material culture.
In her keynote address, Mahaffey will discuss how her diverse undergraduate coursework and independent research experiences prepared her for her current interdisciplinary work, which explores the intersections of museum studies, cultural history, anthropology and fine art. Her talk takes place at 12:15 p.m. in the EMU Redwood Auditorium and will be livestreamed on the Symposium YouTube channel.
A record 597 undergraduates will present at the symposium — up from 520 last year — supported by 442 research mentors, of which 115 are graduate students, all new records. In total, a record 492 presentations are planned, representing all eight colleges and schools, the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact, and the Ballmer Institute for Children’s Behavioral Health.
The full schedule and program book are available on the Symposium website.