Barry M. Popkin Senior Honors Thesis Research Grant
Overview
The Barry M. Popkin Senior Honors Thesis Research Grant enables Honors students completing senior Honors thesis research in the field of economics or another social science to conduct original research on some aspect of a lower-middle-income country outside of Europe, which requires the student to travel to the country for the project. The grant was endowed in 2015 by Professor Barry M. Popkin.
Barry M. Popkin Senior Honors Thesis Research Grant recipients receive up to $3,500.
On this page
Students conducting their research experience during the summer must apply for the L&S Honors Summer Senior Thesis Research Grant to be eligible for consideration for the Popkin Research Grant. Learn more about the Summer Senior Thesis Research Grant.
Application opens: December 15, 2025
Deadline: April 5, 2026
If a Popkin Research Grant recipient is not selected from the summer grant applicant pool, students conducting their research experience during the academic year may be considered through the Trewartha Senior Honors Thesis Research Grant application process. Learn more about the Trewartha Grant.
Application opens: Tuesday, September 1, 2026
Deadline: Sunday, October 18, 2026
Info sessions are typically offered in late fall and winter for students to learn more about the application process and to ask questions. See upcoming Honors information sessions.
Who Can Apply
- Must be a declared student in the L&S Honors Program pursuing Honors in the Liberal Arts, Honors in the Major, or the Comprehensive Honors track with an anticipated graduation date in May (or August) of the following academic year, or earlier.
- Must plan to be enrolled in a Senior Honors Thesis Directed Study (typically 681 or 682) in your major department.
- Applicants must have a feasible plan for obtaining IRB or other research approvals, as relevant.
- While not a requirement, prior undergraduate research experience and close mentorship are highly encouraged given the challenges associated with preparing for and conducting research abroad.
- Must have a minimum 3.3 cumulative GPA at the time of application.
- Students may only receive one L&S Honors grant to support their senior Honors thesis project. This includes the Summer Senior Thesis Grant, Trewartha Research Grant, Mensink Research Scholarship, or Popkin Research Grant.
Eligible research projects must include:
- Original academic research in the field(s) of economics or another social science involving statistical methods, surveys, participant observations, or other empirical approaches
- Inquiry focused on an aspect of a lower-middle-income country outside Europe
- Travel to the identified country
- A clear and explicit description in the proposal of the research that will be conducted in that country
Eligible project research must be related to a senior Honors thesis. A student may only receive one Honors grant or scholarship per funding term.
Students interested in the Popkin Research Grant must complete all parts of the L&S Honors Summer Senior Thesis Research Grant application for summer research and/or the Trewartha Senior Honors Thesis Research Grant for academic year research.
Applicants for the Summer Senior Thesis Research Grant will be prioritized, and Trewartha grant applicants will be considered only if no recipient is selected.
Each application is available in the Wisconsin Scholarship Hub (WiSH). You can access WiSH through your MyUW or by logging in at wisc.academicworks.com.
Applications for this grant are reviewed by the Faculty Honors Committee. Applications are evaluated using the following criteria:
- Strength of your proposal and of the Honors Senior Thesis research project to be funded. Reviewers may consider specific aspects of your project, including but not limited to:
- Alignment with grant eligibility requirements
- Project significance, originality, and initiative (extent to which the student played a role in developing the project)
- Project rigor (the extent to which it is deemed “demanding and extensive”)
- Feasibility/project design
- Funding impact
- Strength of academic record and preparation for the research project
- Progress towards completing your Honors track(s)
All recipients will need to:
- Travel to and complete the proposed research in the identified country
- Present their research at the Senior Honors Thesis Symposium in the spring of the next academic year (mid- to late-April)
- Submit a copy of their completed thesis to the L&S Honors Program. The L&S Honors Program will then, with the permission of the student, submit completed theses to MINDS@UW, the University of Wisconsin’s open access institutional repository. Click here to view recent senior Honors theses.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Barry M. Popkin Senior Honors Thesis Research Grant was endowed in 2015 by Professor Barry M. Popkin. Barry M. Popkin came to UW–Madison from Superior, Wis., and earned his B.S. in 1967 and his M.S. in 1969. He is currently the W.R. Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, where he teaches and conducts research, outreach, and public service at the interface of economics, public health, and nutrition.
As an Honors student at UW–Madison, Popkin completed his senior Honors thesis on the economics of nutrition. That thesis experience, combined with studying abroad in India in 1965-66, helped shape his career and life.
In recognition of his transformative experience, Popkin has established an endowment to provide annual funding for an undergraduate Honors student majoring in economics or another social science to conduct original research in a lower-middle-income country outside of Europe and to lay a foundation for a career in global work.
Yes! Please take some time to review this recent thesis proposal. The student author received the Barry M. Popkin Senior Honors Thesis Research Grant.
No. Students are not permitted to accept funds from another university (UW) source for the same research over the period of time covered by this grant, which is funded during the academic year.
A more demanding and extensive thesis typically requires deeper intellectual engagement and a broader scope. This could mean the following, although this list is not exhaustive:
- Stronger Argumentation: Your thesis should present a nuanced, well-supported argument that goes beyond surface-level claims.
- Expanded Research: Your topic needs to draw from a wider range of credible sources, including scholarly literature, primary data, or interdisciplinary perspectives.
- Greater Originality: Aim to contribute fresh insights or challenge existing viewpoints, rather than simply summarizing others’ work.
- Increased Depth: Expect to explore complex ideas, engage with theoretical frameworks, and critically analyze multiple dimensions of your topic.
- Longer and More Structured: The final product may be more substantial in length and require a more sophisticated organizational structure.
In short, it’s about pushing your thinking further and demonstrating a higher level of academic rigor. Your faculty mentor(s) and department advisor(s) will be able to provide a great deal of experience and expertise. Please connect with them as soon as you are able!
The L&S Honors Program has recently partnered with UW Libraries to collect digital copies of senior Honors theses in the institutional repository, MINDS@UW. Please take a moment to review the recent submissions to the L&S Honors collection.
If you are unable to locate any theses in your specific field, we encourage you to connect with your major advisor(s) to learn more.
The Popkin Research Grant is processed as a scholarship. These funds are applied to the recipient’s tuition bill in the Fall semester. Students receiving scholarships may have financial aid package adjustments. If you have questions about your financial aid and/or the potential impact of receiving this scholarship, please contact L&S Honors Program Administrator Kendra Ramthun (honorsprogram@honors.ls.wisc.edu).
Please reach out to Associate Director of Admissions and Engagement, Pete Keys, at pkeys@wisc.edu.
Additional Resources
Attend an upcoming information session to learn more about the Popkin Research Grant and other Honors funding opportunities.