Mount Saint Vincent University Library Award
application procedure | previous winners | PDF application form
About the Library Awards
The Mount Saint Vincent University Library Awards comprise two annual awards of up to $200 to undergraduate students who demonstrate outstanding research skills in using information and resources located in or accessible from the MSVU Library when completing a research assignment for course credit at the Mount during the 12 month period preceding the February 15 deadline.
Note: the quality of research must be
deemed sufficiently high by the panel of judges for applications to be
considered. Should submissions in a given year fall short of these standards,
or fail to meet the guidelines, no
awards will be given.
Category A Award - MSVU Introduction to Library Research Award
The Mount Saint Vincent University Introduction to Library Research Award is awarded annually to a novice researcher, i.e. an undergraduate student at MSVU who has completed no more than 7.5 units or less at Mount Saint Vincent University (or another post-secondary institution) and demonstrates outstanding research skills in using information / sources located in or accessible from the MSVU Library when completing a research paper for credit at the Mount. Annotated bibliographies are also eligible for this award.
Category B Award - Sister Francis de Sales Endowed Award
The Sister Francis de Sales Endowed Award is awarded annually by the Mount Saint Vincent Alumnae Association in memory of Sister Francis de Sales, who served as Librarian for 25 years and was instrumental in rebuilding the Mount Library after the fire of 1951 and in the establishment of the MacDonald Rare Book Room. The Sister Francis de Sales Endowed Award is awarded to a senior undergraduate student (has completed more than 7.5 units) who demonstrates outstanding research skills in using information / sources located or accessible from the MSVU Library when completing a research paper for course credit at the Mount.
Application procedure:
Please submit a clean copy (no comments or grade) of your research assignment with supporting documentation to:
The Mount Saint Vincent University Library Award Program
attn: Terry Paris, University Librarian
The Library
Mount Saint Vincent University
Halifax, Nova Scotia
B3M 2J6
Deadline : February 15
Supporting documentation includes:
1. Submission Form (also available at the Mount Library Circulation desk)
2. A completed Research Log
3. A copy of the course outline and/or assignment with an indication of the % of final mark assigned to the paper.
The Research Log provides guidance for your research. It also provides the judges with evidence of the range of sources used (breadth, depth and
appropriateness of print and/or electronic indexes, abstracts, bibliographies),
evidence of consultation with professional reference staff in the Library,
evidence of learning the research process, and efficiency of research. Note: you do not have to complete every section - only those which you used in writing your paper.
Please note: When the assignment submitted is a collaborative effort it must be submitted under the names of all participants once their permission has been obtained. Each participant must submit a research log detailing her/his contribution to the assignment. If the paper is selected by the panel, the Library Award will be divided equally among the participants.
The panel of judges representing the Library will select the winner by March 1st. The decision of the panel is final. The panel may decide not to offer the award in any given year. The award will be presented by the University Librarian or designate.
Background and Criteria
The panel of judges normally consists of the professional librarians and a library assistant.
The panel may seek advice from a member of the teaching faculty who has a subject background related to the paper under consideration.
The research assignments will be judged according to the following criteria:
- Research methodology / process outlined in the Research Log Template and Research Log.
- The quality of the paper, including correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation, and the clear, accurate and
consistent use of an appropriate citation style ( e.g. MLA, Chicago,
APA).
- Content: Synthesis of the topic, organization and flow, and the appropriate and thorough use of research material. Evidence that the paper has met the requirements set by the course instructor.
Past Recipients
2011 Category A: Kimberley Dunn, "Recommendations for an Interactive Approach to Plagiarism Prevention" 2011 Category B: Janelle Barr, "Kenya: Development Status and Prospects"
2010 Category A: Clara Clorey " A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance"
Category B: Amy Stewart "Prostate Cancer and Diabetes"
2009 Drea Arsenault "It's All in the Details: Eyewitness Memory for Emotional Scenes"
2008 No recipient
2007 Crystal Vaughan "Translation Note: 'The Wife's Lament'"
2006 Evelyn Schlosser "Actions Speak Louder Than Words: Defining Public Relations for Practitioners, Businesses and the Public"
2005 Adam Hutka "Commerce and Chaos : Jonson's Subversive Comedies"
2004 Adam Hutka "Depravity and Divinity: Chaucer's Pardoner and Parson"
2003 Sally Colwell "Challenges Facing Gifted Preschoolers and Their Families : How Child Care Workers Can Help."
2003 Sheila Wamboldt "Forestry Management in Nova Scotia."
2002 Nancy Ferguson "Clothing and Environment : How Do They Affect Interpersonal Communication ?"
2001 Erin Hawkes "Childhood-Onset Schizophrenia : From Premorbidity to Prognosis"
2000 Theresa Heffler "Mixed Messages : A Curriculum for Peace Within a Military Culture"
2000 Melissa Warner "Child and Adolescent Substance Abuse : Symptoms, Causes and Treatment"
1999 Janne Cleveland "Textual Spaces : Representing the Invisible Woman"
1998 Peggy MacKinnon "Wildsongs: Slavery and the Evolution of Jazz"
revised Nov. 25, 2009
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