Why apply to summer research programs?
How do I secure letters of reference?
Ask your science professors or faculty advisor. If you’re not
a science major, you should try to get one from a science professor you
had recently. You’ll be surprised how willing most professors are
to give good letters of support – it reflects well upon the institution
when their undergraduates are well represented at various summer research
programs. If you’ve already worked in a lab, then secure one from
your lab mentor. To make it easier for you, we’ve sent out a letter
to every science faculty member informing them of Project 100 by 2000
– a Biology/Premed Club initiative aimed at increasing the number of undergraduate
students securing placements in summer research programs across the country.
All you’ve got to do now is ASK.
What are the typical requirements
to be accepted?
As far as academic requirements, you will be competitive with a GPA
of about 3.0. After my freshman year, I applied to about 15 programs
and was accepted at about 5 of them. I ended up going to one out
of state. They also vary as to the kinds of students they prefer.
For instance, some want juniors and seniors, some want sophomores and freshman,
and some are aimed towards minorities. I spent a lot of time on the
personal statement which typically asks you to write about your past lab
experiences, how you will benefit from such a program, your career goals,
etc.
How much do they pay? Is
travel covered? Meals? Housing?
Typically, the stipends range from about $2000 to $4000 with the most
common amount being about $2500. Travel expenses as well as housing
are usually covered. Few programs cover meals.
What is the experience like?
How long does it last?
Usually, you work in a lab on your own project, depending on how experienced
you are. At my first summer program, I was fairly inexperienced –
I couldn’t pipette and speak at the same time; I’d lose track or stutter!
So, accordingly, my project was guided by a research technician employed
by the lab. Often, there are optional lectures and most programs
end with either a poster or an oral presentation of the work you did.
Most programs are 10 weeks but they range from 8 to 10 weeks and span from
early June to early or mid August.
Any pointers?
Prog name | Institution | Duration | Contact | Eligibility* | Stipend** | App. Deadline |
Summer undergraduate fellowships in genetics | Univ. of Georgia
Dept. of Genetics |
6/8 - 8/5 | pthompso@arches.uga.edu | minorities,
Jr. |
$2,000
TA + H + M |
3/15 |
Almaden Research Center/San Jose State Univ. | IBM Almaden Research | 10 weeks | marilyn@almaden.ibm.com | 2 yr. chemistry | $4,000 | 2/19 |
NSF-REU Program in Computational Chemistry and Molecular Modeling | University of Pittsburgh | 6/7-8/13 | ??? | So, Jr | $2700
+ TA + H |
2/22 |
Summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates in Environmental Sciences and Engineering | Clarkson University | 6/1-8/6 | sep@clarkson.edu | Jr, Sr | $2500 | 3/1 |
Summer Undergraduate Research Program | Medical University of South Carolina | 10 weeks | ??? | So, Jr | $2400 | 2/5 |
Undergraduate Summer Research Program Dept. of Microbiology and Immunology | Loyola University | 6/2-8/10 | ??? | So, Jr | ??? | 2/15 |
Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory Summer Opportunities in Field Biology | RMBL | 6/13-8/7 | rmbl@gunnison.com | So, Jr | $2500
TA + H |
2/1 |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Program for Undergraduate Education in the Life Sciences | Univ. of Illinois | 6/5-8/7 | ??? | Fr, So, Jr, Sr | $2400
+ TA + H + 5 credits |
1/25 |
Undergraduate Research Experience in the Biology and Chemistry of Nutritional Processes | Penn State | 5/31-8/7 | jxp54@psu.edu | minority,
Sr |
$2600 | 2/15 |
Summer Biology Program in the Netherlands at Leiden University | Kent State University | 7/19-8/21 | Dr. Hiran Dutta
330 672 3153 |
??? | ??? | 4/26 |
Science Training in Ecology Program | Univ. of West Florida | ??? | ??? | ??? | ??? | 3/15 |
Summer Research Program for Undergraduate Minority Students | NYU and Tufts Univ. | ??? | sschool@infonet.tufts.edu | minority | 3/1 | |
Summer Honors Undergraduate Research Program | Harvard Univ. | 10 weeks | ??? | minority w/research exp. | $2400
+ TA + H |
2/1 |
Mentoring Summer Research Internship Program | University of California Riverside | 6/28-8/20 | 909 787 3680 | So, Jr | $2000
+ TA + H |
2/15 |
Summer Research Early Identification Prog. | Various | Varies | ??? | minority | Varies | 2/1 |
Summer Research Fellowships for Underrepresented Minorities | University of Nebraska | 6/8-8/6 | 402 559-4092 | So, Jr | $2500 | 3/15 |
Minority Scientist Development Summer Research Program | UCLA | 6/28-8/20 | ??? | Jr, Sr | $2000 | 2/15 |
Summer Research Program for Undergraduates in Cell and Molecular Biology | Univ. of Wisconsin | 6/7-8/6 | cheetham@facstaff.wisc.edu | Jr, Sr | $2850
+ TA + H |
2/8 |
Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Prog | Rockefeller Univ. | ??? | surf@rockvax.rockefeller.edu | ??? | ??? | 2/1 |
Univ. of Michigan Biological Station Research Experiences for Undergraduates | Univ. of Michigan | 6/19-8/14 | umbs@umich.edu | Jr | $2250 | 2/12 |
Univ. of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry Summer Research Fellowship | Univ. of Rochester | ??? | annmarie_john@URMC
.rochester.edu |
minority | ??? | 1/31 |
Program in Cellular and Molecular Biodynamics | Rutgers Univ. | ??? | hodges-metz@axon.rutgers.edu | ??? | $2500 | ??? |
Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships | Univ. of Texas | 6/7-8/6 | 214 648 8710 | Jr | $3000 | 2/12 |
Summer Research in Marine Biology | Grice Marine Laboratory | 5/31-8/6 | ??? | Jr, Sr | $2000 | 3/1 |
Summer Undergraduate Research Program | Univ. of Texas, Galveston | 6/7-8/13 | gradsch@beach.utmb.edu | ??? | ??? | 2/19 |
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the NIH | Dept. of Health | 10 weeks | 301 496 3670 | MARC | $3000 | 1/31 |
American Society for Microbiology | ASM | 8-12 weeks | ??? | minority | $4500 | 2/1 |
Undergrad Minority Summer Internship Prog | Harvard Univ. | 6/14-8/20 | kenworthy@cvlab.harvard.edu | minority | $2500
+ TA + H |
2/15 |
Summer Prog in Biostatistics | Harvard Univ. | 6/7-7/2 | lryan@hsph.harvard.edu | minority | ??? | 2/19 |
Summer Research Internship Program | Univ. of Virginia | 10 weeks | ??? | Jr, Sr | ??? | 3/1 |
The Avon Foundation Summer Research Prog | Cornell Univ. | 6/14-8/6 | 212 745 6120 | minority | $3300 | 2/1 |
Summer Research Opportunity Program | Univ. of Michigan | 8 weeks | flwships@rackham.umich.edu | minority | $3000
+ TA |
1/31 |
Summer research Program | Univ. Texas - Houston | 10 weeks | dfarver@admin4.hsc.uth.tmc.edu | So, Jr | $2500 | |
MAYO Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships | MAYO Medical School | 10 Weeks | ??? | So, Jr | $4000 | 2/1 |
Summer Research Opportunities for Underserved Undergraduates | Univ. of California, Berkeley | 6/13-8/7 | gop@uclink4.berkeley.edu | So, Jr | $2000
+ TA + H |
2/12 |
Undergraduate Summer Research Fellowship | Mount Sinai | ??? | grads@smtplink.mssm.edu | So, Jr | $2500 | 2/1 |
Summer Internship Program | Abbott Laboratories | 12 weeks | ??? | ??? | ??? | 3/1 |
Undergraduate Research in Science and Engineering | Univ. of Minnesota | 6/14-8/20 | ??? | ??? | ??? | ??? |
Culturally Diverse Academic Institutions Undergraduate Student Fellowships | Environmental Protection Agency | ??? | ??? | ??? | 2 year fellowship for juniors | ??? |
Princeton Summer Research Experience | Princeton Univ. | 6/12-8/14 | ??? | minority,
So, Jr |
$3500 | 2/14 |
Medical School Familiarization Program | Univ. of Texas | 6/6-7/17 | 409 772 5397 | ??? | ??? | 3/1 |
Research Internship | Univ. of Puerto Rico | 6/1-8/6 | int99@degi.upr.clu.edu | ??? | $2500 | 3/31 |
Minority Medical Education Program | ??? | ??? | mmep@aamc.org | ??? | ??? | ??? |
Summer Research Training for Minority Students | Yale Univ. | 10 weeks | omca@yale.edu | minority | $2395 | 2/1 |
Summer Research Training Program | Univ. of California, San Francisco | 6/5-8/11 | ??? | So, Jr, Sr | ??? | 2/1 |
Minority Summer Undergraduate Collaborative Research Program | NYU | 10 weeks | Dr. Haynes 212 263 8949 | minority,
So, Jr |
$2500 | 2/1 |
Summer Undergraduate Research Prog in the Graduate Biomed Sciences | NYU | 6/7-8/6 | ??? | So, Jr | $2500 | 2/1 |
Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship | Yale | 6/8-7/31 | ??? | So, Jr | $2500
+ TA + H |
2/1 |
Summer Workshop in Microbial Structural Biol | Penn State | 10 weeks | ??? | Outstanding
So, Jr |
$3500 | 2/1 |
Purdue-MARC/AIM Program | Purdue University | 8 weeks | mrodwell@purdue.edu | minority,
So, Jr |
$3,300
+ TA |
3/15 |
Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships | Southwestern Medical Ctr. Graduate School, TX | 10 weeks | 214 648 2352 | ??? | $3,000 | 2/1 |
Summer Undergraduate Research Program | Einstein Medical School | 10 weeks | ??? | ??? | ??? | ??? |
Tri-Institutional MD-PhD Program | Rockefeller, Cornell, Sloan-Kettering | ??? | 212 746 8678 | minority,
So, Jr |
??? | 2/1 |
Summer Research Opportunities Program | University of Iowa | 8-10 weeks | aprice@uiuc.edu | minority | $2,500
+ TA + H |
??? |
Summer Internship Program | NIH | At least 8 weeks | ??? | ??? | Varies | 3/1 |
MIT Summer Research Program | MIT | 10 weeks | ??? | minority | 12/15 | |
Summer Honors Undergraduate Research Prog | Harvard | 6/11-8/20 | SHURP@hms.harvard.edu | minority,
prior summer research is required. |
$2,500 | 2/1 |
* For the Elegibility Column: Fr = Freshmen; So = Sophomores; Jr = Juniors; Sr = Seniors
**For the Stipend Column: TA = Travel Allowance; H = Housing; M = Meals.