Grants and Writing Resources for Grand Canyon University

In February 2026 the College of Doctoral Studies named its 2025 Dissertation of the Year: a 421-page quantitative study of burnout among athletic trainers, written for a doctorate in performance psychology. A three-student team from GCU's chapter of Alpha Chi, a national college honor society, also took first place in the society's 2026 Collaborative Research Competition. Alpha Chi runs the contest for teams from its chapters, and it gave the GCU team the $5,000 first prize for a project titled "Reimagining the Impossible: Leadership Inside Out."

Labs and the April Conference

Undergraduates join faculty research through the Research & Design Program, which runs 11 labs. The Canyon Neuroscience Group, the Antimicrobial Discovery Lab and the STELLAR Lab for space technology are among them. A student reads the project descriptions, emails the mentor listed for one, and registers through a form the mentor sends after accepting the student.

The Canyon Undergraduate Research Conference is meant to show work from students in all ten of GCU's colleges. The April 13, 2026 edition in Antelope Gymnasium put more than 110 projects on posters and added the Canyon Undergraduate Research Symposium and a juried Honors Showcase. Nearly 350 students and faculty took part.

Publishing as an Undergraduate

The Canyon Journal of Undergraduate Research accepts manuscripts only from undergraduates enrolled at GCU. A submission can run to about 15 to 20 double-spaced pages, references included, and follows APA 7th edition. Each needs a faculty supervisor who reviews and approves the final draft, and every submission goes through masked peer review. Issues come out in June and November.

The Honors College launched the journal in 2023. Two years later it won first place in the National Collegiate Honors Council's Honors Publication Contest, in the division for student, faculty and administrator journals. An eight-week academic journal writing course helps students prepare manuscripts.

Honor Society Fellowships and Grants

The Honors College keeps a list of student accolades. Many come through Alpha Chi, a national college honor society with a chapter at GCU. GCU members have won the society's graduate fellowships, and in 2024 three received its "In Scholarship and in Service" grants, which covered costs such as application fees and conference registration.

Alpha Chi awards its fellowships to members for graduate or professional study. Sledge and Benedict Fellowships go to undergraduate members starting graduate or professional school. The $6,000 Pryor Fellowship goes to a member entering doctoral study after at least two years of graduate or professional study.

Writing Help and the Dissertation

Campus and online students reach the Writing Center through the Student Success Center, which holds LopesWrite, APA and citation guidance, writing templates and tutorials. Campus students can also get one-on-one or small-group peer tutoring at the Academic Centers for Excellence.

Doctoral learners begin the dissertation at the start of the program. Milestones sit inside research courses and two five-day residencies, and a Dissertation Intensive Writing Retreat gives focused time on a prospectus, a proposal (chapters 1 to 3) or a final dissertation. The college's Quantitative and Qualitative Knowledge Bases collect dissertation support materials. The DC Network, the online doctoral community GCU started building in 2010, reports more than 23,000 members.

Our editors work on GCU dissertations, journal manuscripts and course papers at the last stage, checking grammar, consistency and APA format. See our Grand Canyon University dissertation and thesis editing and Grand Canyon University essay editing pages, or write to editors@editorsforstudents.com.

From Our Writing Guides

• The Secret to Better Grades: Starting Your Writing Process Early
• Quantitative vs. Qualitative: Selecting the Right Intellectual Tools
• Escaping the Revision Pile: Strategies for First-Round Approval