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Science Center Summer Research Awards for Wellesley Students

We are pleased to announce the 2008 Summer Research Program for Wellesley College students. The program starts on Monday, June 2, 2008 and ends on Friday, August 8, 2008.

Applications are due Wednesday, February 20, 2008. Awards will be announced before Spring Break. Stipends will be $4,600 for ten weeks' research. This includes a $1,300 housing/commuting supplement. If you choose to live in dormitory housing, you are responsible for making all arrangements.

The Application Process

An ON campus application must include the following:

  • Completed on-campus application form .
  • Personal statement
  • Two letters of recommendation (.doc).
  • preferably written by Wellesley College science faculty. Students may collect these letters, in signed sealed envelopes, and submit them with their application or have them sent directly to Mary Hogan (ext 3075) in the Science Center Office.Resume (one page)
  • Chemistry and Physics, Biological Sciences, Neuroscience, and Computer Science project descriptions are available. Students desiring to work on Astronomy, Geosciences, Mathematics or Psychology projects should contact faculty with whom they would like to work to discuss potential projects.
  • List three projects, in order of preference and describe how these projects fit in with your experience and goals. If you want additional information on any project, faculty members will be happy to discuss them with you. These discussions do not represent a commitment to accepting you into their laboratories for the summer. It is always to the applicant's advantage, however, to have spoken to the prospective supervisor before applying.


A complete OFF campus application must include the following:

  • Completed off-campus application form
  • Project description (written in the student's own words)
  • Three letters of recommendation. Two should be from Wellesley College science faculty (Faculty Recommendation.doc.) Students may collect these letters, in signed sealed envelopes, and submit them with their application or have them sent directly to Mary Hogan (ext 3075) in the Science Center Office. One should be from the supervisor of the proposed off-campus project (Supervisor Recommendation.doc.) Request that the supervisor's recommendation be sent directly to Mary C. Hogan, Science Center Office, Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA 02481-8203, or faxed to Mary Hogan at (781) 283-3642.
  • Resume (one page)

Students considering off-campus research should note that the Life Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Program (LSSURP) at the University of Minnesota will give special consideration to Wellesley students. Students interested in this opportunity should discuss projects with faculty at Minnesota and submit an off-campus application to the Science Center Office.

Students may also apply to work at Boston Biomedical Research Institute an independent institute carrying out work in cell biology, especially motility, communication, and growth.. If you are interested, check their web site and/or email Dr. Kathy Morgan at morgan@bbri.org. Once you locate a project and supervisor, fill out an off-campus application to Wellesley's summer program, indicating that you plan to work at BBRI.

Novartis Summer Research Internships - Open to Juniors majoring in BiologicalSciences, Biological Chemistry and Chemistry with an interest in biotechnology in the fields of oncology, signal transduction and infectious disease. Recipients will work at Novartis a biomedical research facilty in Cambridge, MA (opposite MIT). Applicants should contact Professor Webb (x3115) for further information.

Information about other summer research opportunities can be found in a binder in the Science Center Focus (at the foot of the spiral staircase ).

Awards: The types of awards available, with eligibility requirements, are listed below. Note that some may be used on-campus or off-campus, while others are restricted to on-campus research. A single application should be used for all on-campus programs, or for all off-campus programs. Be sure to carefully review the program eligibility requirements.

BellSouth - (Available only to rising sophomores in the MSP Program) -Funded by the BellSouth Corporation. These awards are given to students from underrepresented groups to do research under the supervision of a Wellesley College faculty member.

Hughes Summer Research Grants - Awards provided by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to students doing research in fields related to the life sciences. Such fields could include: Biological Sciences, Biological Chemistry, Chemistry, Neuroscience, Physics, and Mathematics. All classes are eligible, including graduating seniors. Recipients may work with a Science Center faculty member, or at an off-campus location.

Amabel Boyce James Fund for Summer Research in the Scienes - Named for Amabel Boyce James (Wellesley College Class of 1974). These awards are given to rising sophomores and juniors to encourage early interest in science. Students work under the supervision of a Wellesley College faculty member.

Sherman Fairchild Foundation Summer Research Awards
Provided by the Foundation to support Wellesley students conducting research with a Wellesley faculty member in Astronomy, Biological Science, Chemistry, Computer Science, Geology, Mathematics, Neuroscience, or Physics. Awards are ordinarily given to rising sophomores and juniors.

Sara Langer Awards for Research in Geosciences - Awards to support students doing summer research in geology on or off-campus. The work may be under the supervision of a Wellesley faculty member or a faculty member of another institution. It is expected that this summer work will culminate in a Geology 350 or 370 in the following academic year.

The Janina A. Longtine Fund for Summer Research in the Natural Sciences - Named for Janina A. Longtine (Wellesley College Class of 1976). These awards are given to students doing research in the natural sciences under the supervision of a Wellesley College faculty member.

Massachusetts Space Grant Research Awards - Awards for students to conduct space-science related research with a Wellesley faculty member.

Merck/AAAS Undergraduate Science Research Program: Four awards will be made for students working on ongoing collaborative research projects being undertaken by undergraduate student researchers working directly with faculty members within the biological sciences, chemistry, and geosciences departments. These collaborations include Tetel/Wolfson, Berger-Sweeney/Kolodny, Beltz, Kolodny, Allen/Wolfson, Allen/Kolodny and Allen/Flynn/Brabander.

Mulhern Summer Research Awards - Awards to do research in either zoology or plant science. These awards may be for work with a Wellesley faculty member, or at an off-campus site.

NSF-REU Chemistry- (National Science Foundation-Research Experiences for Undergraduates) Awards to work with faculty in the Departments of Chemistry and Physics. First-year students are eligible to apply; graduating seniors are not eligible. The applicant must be a US citizen or permanent resident. Those planning to teach science at the pre-college level are encouraged to apply. For more information, contact Christopher Arumainayagam (ext. 3326) or Beverly Kleinman (ext. 3149).

Staley Summer Awards for Cancer-Related Research - Awards to sophomores or juniors majoring in any discipline (including social sciences and humanities) to undertake cancer-related research. The awards may be used to conduct research with a Wellesley faculty member, or at an off-campus site.

'Wellesley Summer' Grants - Awards for Wellesley students, majoring in any department in the Science Center, to work with Wellesley faculty on campus. Awards are provided by the Office of the Dean.

If you have any questions please contact the following individuals:

Chemistry Projects: Christopher Arumainayagam SCI 175 ext. 3326
  Beverly Kleinman SCI Focus ext. 3149
       
Biological Sciences Projects: Mary M. Allen SCI E302 ext. 3068
  Karin Thomason SCI Focus ext. 3154
       

Other Projects

Mary Hogan

SCI Focus ext. 3075
 

Mary M. Allen

SCI E302 ext. 3068

APPLICATION DUE DATE IS WEDNESDAY, February 20, 2008


Other Summer Opportunities

For information on other opportunities, please use the Wellesley College Center for Work and Service site.

Novartis Summer Research Internships - Open to Juniors majoring in BiologicalSciences, Biological Chemistry and Chemistry with an interest in biotechnology in the fields of oncology, signal transduction and infectious disease. Recipients will work at Novartis, a biomedical research facilty in Cambridge, MA (opposite MIT). Applicants should contact Professor Webb (x3115) for further information.

NSF-REU Programs at other colleges/universities - Wellesley students are eligible to apply for similar NSF-REU programs at other institutions across the nation. A list of active NSF-REU sites with research areas (from Astronomy to Zoology) can be found by looking here. To receive a copy of the list, address a message to getpub@nsf.gov; leave the subject field blank, and in the message field write get reulist .

Information about other off-campus summer research opportunities can be found in a binder in the Science Center Focus (at the foot of the spiral staircase).

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Created By: Annie Choi '07 and Suh-Mii Yi '08
Maintained By: Pat Paul
Date Created: August 4, 2006
Last Modified: February 11, 2008
Expiration Date: August 12, 2007