REU Site: Integrated Research at the Frontiers of the Biological, Physical, and Engineering Sciences

Yale University, New Haven CT

Investigators

Abstract

A Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Sites award has been made to Yale University that will provide research training for 8 students for 10 weeks each summer, during the period 2012-2014. The program focuses on grand challenges in the life sciences using interdisciplinary physical and quantitative approaches. The program includes more than twelve faculty mentors from Yale's Raymond and Beverly Sackler Institute for Biological, Physical, and Engineering Sciences. The Institute spans six departments: Biomedical Engineering, Chemical & Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science, Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, and Physics. In consultation with the program leadership team, students choose a mentor and research project from three areas: (A) mechanics of cellular processes, (B) protein function and misfolding, and (C) technology and method development for integrated research. Students also participate in workshops and seminars on laboratory methods, scientific presentations, ethics, STEM careers, and graduate school admissions process. Students present their work at a research symposium coordinated with the NSF-funded CEMRI CRISP REU program at Yale. Students also can take advantage of program-wide social activities that provide a forum for networking. Students are selected based on their academic performance, research interests, and their future career plans. Students with limited opportunities for research and those from underrepresented groups are encouraged to apply. The program is particularly suited for students interested in conducting research in interdisciplinary areas. The evaluation and assessment of the program will consist of pre- and post-summer surveys, student interviews, and the REU common assessment tool. Students will be tracked to determine their career paths, using a web-based database. More information is available by visiting http://www.sackler.yale.edu/summer.htm, or by contacting the PI (Prof. Corey S. O'Hern at corey.ohern@yale.edu) or the co-PI (Prof. Lynne Regan at lynne.regan@yale.edu).