Research Experiences for Undergraduates in Chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh

University Of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

This Chemistry Division award supports a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) site at the University of Pittsburgh (UP), where a previous REU site was funded for 1997-1999. Joseph Grabowski is the site's Program Director. At least sixteen faculty will be available to serve as REU student mentors. During the award period (2001-2003), ten students will participate in a ten-week program each summer. UP has chosen to replace the more traditional divisions of Chemistry (organic, physical, analytical, inorganic, biochemical) with a more integrated Chemistry world in which active researchers Make, Model, or Measure chemical properties or processes. Therefore the focus of their REU site will be on the area of "Measuring." Students will be recruited nationally and special linkages are being developed with several HBCUs. Each student participant will be paired with a graduate student or postdoctoral mentor within the chosen research group to ensure timely answers to questions and to benefit from their advice when necessary. This is in addition to a close interaction each student will have with his/her faculty mentor. Tutorials designed to demonstrate the range of measurements necessary for a technologically advancing society will be held throughout the summer program. Near the end of the program, students will participate in a regional poster presentation. The program will culminate in a public Chemistry Symposium in which each participant will give a 15-minute talk. Project evaluation will include an exit interview and a detailed end-of-the-program participant survey. Students will be tracked and surveyed for several years following the program.