Summer Research Internships
ABOUT THE SUMMER RESEARCH PROGRAM:
The 2008 Summer Research Internship (SRI) Program is an 8 week program from June 8 to August 1, 2008 where undergraduates participate in authentic laboratory research in the life sciences (with an emphasis in genomics/ bioinformatics and bioimaging). This program is open to UMass undergraduate students only. National Exchange students do not qualify. Preference will be given to sophomore and junior UMass students who are majoring in the life and physical sciences. Students will receive a summer stipend of $3,600 and the host lab will receive $400 for laboratory supplies. In addition to their research responsibilities, SRI participants will attend regular weekly meetings and will present their work to the UMass research community at a poster session at the end of the program.
APPLICATION FOR THE SRI PROGRAM IS NOW CLOSED. APPLICANTS WILL BE NOTIFIED OF THE COMMITTEE'S DECISION BY FRIDAY, MARCH 21 VIA EMAIL
To apply for the 2008 Summer Research Internship Program, students will need to submit the following:
1) The SRI Program Online Application
2) Official and unofficial copies of your undergraduate transcript(s).
Arrange to have the UMass registrar (and that of any prior undergraduate institute) forward the OFFICIAL transcript(s) directly to the UMass HHMI Undergraduate Science Program Office in 326 Morrill III South, Biology Dept., Attn: S.Z. Ramos
The unofficial transcript can be downloaded from the student's SPIRE account and then uploaded to the SRI Program Online Application form (see above).
3) An essay (1-2 pages, or 1500 words) describing:
- your interests in biology and your career aspirations.
- any prior research accomplishments.
- what you hope to gain from the program.
- what are your reasons for choosing/continuing in this particular research laboratory?
Essays can be uploaded unto the SRI Program Online Application form.
4) Two letters of recommendation:
-One letter must be from the student's faculty sponsor whose lab the student will be working in during the summer.
-The second letter can be from anyone who is familiar with the student's academic or other work related to biology or physical sciences.
These letters should be sent directly to the HHMI Undergraduate Science Program office by mail (see address below) or emailed to S.Z. Ramos, zramos@bio.umass.edu.
5) Faculty sponsors need to fill out The Faculty Sponsor Application Form in addition to sending their own letter of recommendation.
-The Faculty Sponsor Application form is available HERE.
6) The second person writing a letter of reference (who is not the faculty sponsor) will also need to fill out the online Recommendation Form in addition to mailing their own letter of recommendation.
-The online Recommendation Form is available HERE.
Please note: Only completed applications will be considered.
PROGRAM DETAILS:
Housing:
Finding summer housing is the responsibility of the student. A great resource for finding summer housing in the area is the UMass Off Campus Housing site.
Program Dates:
The program will begin on Monday, June 8 and end with a poster session on Friday, August 1, 2008.
Time commitment:
Students are expected to commit full time to their research during the program's duration.
Stipend:
A total stipend of $3,600 will be awarded and the host lab will be given $400 for supplies to support the SRI participant's research.
Application Deadline:
All application materials must be submitted by March 10. 2008. This includes letters of reference and official/unofficial transcripts.
PROGRAM GOALS:
The Summer Research Internship program will accomplish five goals:
1) students will become conversant with the techniques and vocabulary of their research area as well as its physical and quantitative aspects
2) they will work full-time on a specific research problem.
3) they will form close and lasting relationships with their mentors.
4) they will communicate their progress and ideas with peers and faculty in weekly meetings.
5) they will learn to present research results and put their projects in the broader perspective of biomedical research in a poster session at the end of the program.
For more information, please contact:
Sebastian Z. Ramos
SRI Program Coordinator
HHMI Undergraduate Science Program
326 Morrill Science Center
611 N. Pleasant St.
Biology Department
University of Massachusetts
Amherst, MA 01003
(413) 577-4147
zramos@bio.umass.edu
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PREVIOUS PROGRAMS:
SRI SUMMER 2007 RESEARCHERS:
PATRICK ADCOCK
Project: "Understanding Protein Folding and Aggregation in vivo and in vitro"
(Gierasch Lab, Biochemistry Dept.)
KATARINA ANDERSON
Project: "Investigation of the Role of the Refolding Loop During the Transition from Initiation to Elongation in T7 RNA Polymerase"
(Martin Lab, Chemistry Dept.)
CHRISTINE BOSS
Project: "HURP Protein and the Spindle Assembly Pathway "
(Wadsworth Lab, Biology Dept.)
GREG COLBY
Project: "Finding New Alleles for rsw6"
(Baskin Lab, Biology Dept.)
BALKRISHNA GANTYALA
Project: "Role of Drosophila lk6 and sir2 gene in Programmed Cell death"
(Nambu Lab, Biology Dept.)
MICHAEL LEESON
Project: "Dissecting the mechanism of RecA constitutive SOS expression by UvrD helicase "
(Sandler Lab, Microbiology Dept.)
LIZ OLER
Project: "The Role of GABAergic Neurotransmission in the Development of Locomotive Behavior "
(Downes Lab, Biology Dept.)
JESSICA REUSCH
Project: "Hunting for Female Y-chromosome Sequences"
(Porter Lab, Plant, Soil and Insect Sciences Dept.)
IGOR ROMASHKO
Project: "Software Development for Analysis of Affymetrix Microarray Data"
(Blanchard Lab, Microbiology Dept.)
EVELYN SANTOS
Project: "Regulation of the Membrane-bound Progesterone Receptor PAQR7 "
(Petersen Lab, Biology Dept.)
MIKE VALLIERE
Project: "The Genotypic Characterization and Evolution of AmpC Alleles from Non-Clinical (Wild) Samples "
(Riley Lab, Biology Dept.)