P&N establishes new award for Duke Undergraduates

September 25, 2015

The Jerome S. Bruner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research will recognize an
undergraduate in their senior year at Duke for his/her excellence in research activities, intellectual
curiosity, and future potential for scholarly activity. Eligible applicants will be engaged in research, either as part of the Psychology major or under the supervision of a primary faculty member in Psychology and Neuroscience.

To apply, applicants must submit (A) the names and contact information for two references, (B) a bulleted list of research
activities, and (C) a 1‐page essay. This essay should explain how one’s research experiences have led to intellectual growth, in the same way that Dr. Bruner felt that research at Duke “opened up the idea of possibility” and “different ways of looking at the nature of man and of society.” The award will consist of a monetary prize and inclusion by name on a plaque in Zener Auditorium (Room 130 in the Sociology Psychology Building). Application materials should be emailed by October 14th to Ms. Natalia Silva Harwood at natalia.silvaharwood@duke.edu, with the label “Bruner Award” in the subject line.

Jerome S. Bruner (1915‐ ). Dr. Bruner is a distinguished Duke alumni, who graduated as part of the class of 1937. Now an eminent psychologist, Dr. Bruner describes an undergraduate education marked by brilliant faculty, intellectual friends, reading Russian novels, and courses in anthropology, psychology, and sociology. He worked in a lab on East Campus and developed a love of research, which led him to earn a Ph.D. at Harvard in 1941. Dr. Bruner has held faculty positions at Harvard and Oxford; he is currently at New York University. His work was crucial to the establishment of cognitive psychology as a discipline, but is also remarkable for its breadth, with major contributions to learning theory, developmental psychology, and education. Being granted the Bruner award is an important honor for any student who is passionate about research and scholarship.