Abstracts are brief summaries of the presenters’ research projects. The abstracts of the presenters at SURF will be available online.
Components of an abstract
- The title and author information
- The body of the abstract
- The acknowledgment statement
ABSTRACT GUIDELINES (You are required to use this format!)
Follow the format shown in the template and the sample abstract below:
SURF Template – SURF Abstract Template 2025
SURF Sample Abstract – SURF Sample Abstract 2025
ABSTRACT REQUIREMENTS
Abstract Formatting Instructions:
- File Type: Abstracts must be generated in MS Word (.doc or .docx).
- File Name: Please title the abstract file using the presenter’s entire last name, followed by the first initial of their first name, plus the word “Abstract”. Example: An abstract from Julia Smith should have the name “SmithJAbstract.doc”
- Page Format: 8.5″ x 11″ page with 1-inch margins and 12-point Times New Roman font.
- Page Limit: 1 page for complete abstract.
- Title: The abstract title should be in all CAPITAL letters and left-aligned on the page. Do not use italics.
- Authors: The presenting author’s name (student) should be underlined. The presenting undergraduate author should be the first author listed, and the research mentor should be the last author listed. Any coauthors should be included between the first and last authors. Affiliations should be included for all authors/coauthors and noted using superscript numbers. If you have more than one presenting co-author, please underline all the names of the presenting students.
- Affiliations: Provide the affiliation for each author. Use superscript numbers to identify which author is associated with the listed affiliations. An author may have more than one affiliation. The format for affiliations should be as follows: Department of XXX, Presenter Institution Name, Street Address, City, State (abbreviation) ZIPCODE. Example: Department of Biological Sciences, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250
- The Body of Abstract: Maximum word count is 300 (title, authors, affiliations, and acknowledgment statement are not included in the word limit). The text should be left-aligned. Do not use italics.
- Acknowledgement Statement: This should specifically recognize funding support of the research project. Program coordinators, directors, and/or research mentors can provide this information.
Abstract Content Instructions:
- Suggested content for the body of the abstract on the presenter’s research includes background, research question, approach and experiments, and conclusion.
- Remember that the presenter’s research mentor must approve the final abstract before it is submitted. It may take a few rewrites to get a final version, so please allow ample time for the mentor review process.
- Once the abstract is submitted, the mentor will receive an e-mail requesting him/her to confirm his/her approval of the abstract. Note, it is REQUIRED that student presenters have their mentor review the abstract before it is submitted and agree that the abstract and presentation can be viewed by the public.
- Please check all spelling and grammar.
Presenter Registration & Abstract Submission Form:
Individual undergraduate researchers who want to present their findings at SURF are responsible for completing the Presenter Registration & Abstract Submission Form.
For shared/group presentations, each (and every) presenter should submit the Abstract Submission and Presenter Registration form with all co-presenter names, which can be listed in order of effort or alphabetical order, if equal effort was devoted to the project. The names of all presenters should be underlined.
Abstract Submission Deadline: July 18, 2025, 11:59pm
The submission process requires undergraduate researchers to submit their abstracts using the SURF 2025 Registration and Abstract Submission Form.
Students who have questions that their research mentors cannot answer should send them to surf@umbc.edu.