Every year the Association awards a prize to the top 2^nd year History student at the University of Otago. This enables the student work under supervision at the museum on a project of the museum’s choosing for a period of about 6 weeks.  The results of the project can turn up as  a publication in the OSA News, written reports, examinations of old diaries, or even an exhibition.  It is an important link between the museum and the university which the OSA has fostered over many years.