Office of Student Scholarship Creative Activities and Research (OSCAR)

At the end of January, three George Mason University students presented their research at the Network for Undergraduate Research in Virginia (NURVa) Undergraduate Research Showcase at the Capitol in Richmond. Now in its second year, the event gives undergraduates from each of NURVa’s 13 member universities an opportunity to present their research to state legislators and fellow researchers alike. Students worked with faculty through George Mason’s Office of Student Creative Activities and Research (OSCAR) to refine their work and apply to the selective event.

In partnership with Children’s National Hospital, George Mason University scientists have discovered a new way to detect early signs of kidney damage in childhood patients with Sickle Cell Disease. Atwo-year $200,000 grant from the Commonwealth Health Research Board will support this work.

Foreign languages major Yamileth Hernandez-Becerra and community health major Melody Campos received a Best Poster award for their research, “Community Roots, Linguistic Equity: The Power of Outreach in Dual Language Immersion,” during the Summer 2025 OSCAR Celebration of Student Research and Impact in August.

In April, 39 Mason students attended the National Conference on Undergraduate Research at University of Wisconsin­–Eau Claire, where they made new friends, networked, and gained experiences that will help them in their studies and careers.

One of the highlights of biology major Gwendolyne Fields’ Mason career is her summer 2022 internship at the Cheetah Conservation Fund outside the town of Otjiwarongo in Namibia.

Honors College student Emily Synoski, who graduates this month from Mason with a biology degree, has also participated in Georgetown University’s competitive CORE pre-med program, where she and her team pitched an idea to deliver opioid overdose treatment to houseless populations via drones.

Molly Izer’s political curiosity knows no bounds. As a second-year student in the Honors College, Izer has already explored a range of political advocacy spheres. From her high school origins in grassroots organizing in Oregon to her freshman-year congressional internships in Washington, D.C., Izer is now taking the next step with policy research at George Mason University and beyond.  

Medhini Sosale knows that a combination of field and lab work is what she wants to do for her career, and her time at Mason has given her endless opportunities to explore it further.

Ben Rhoades was involved with sustainability and environmental justice at Mason and is putting these commitments into practice as a Watershed Specialist for the Reston Association.