February 3, 2025

International Summer Research Experience on Ice Nucleation

The paid summer International Research Experiences for Students (IRES) program is for undergraduates (current or recent graduates) interested in conducting research on ice nucleation in Austria. There are several important commercial applications for ice nucleation research, including the production of artificial snow, the freezing and preservation of water-containing food products, the freeze protection of infrastructure, and the potential modulation of weather.

Students will conduct pre-departure educational activities and peer mentoring in the Schmale Lab at Virginia Tech for about 2 weeks. Then, they will conduct about 7-weeks of field and laboratory research in the Grothe Lab at the Technical University of Vienna, Austria. Upon completion of the research in Austria, the students will return to Virginia Tech for post-trip activities, including presentation of data at Virginia Tech's annual Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium.

Applications are due February 10, 2025. For more information on the program and how to apply, click the button below.

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Upcoming Deadlines & Events

February 5

Making the Most of Your Summer: Internships, Research, and Beyond Event

February 10

Ice Nucleation International Summer Experience Application Deadline

February 15

MAOP Undergraduate Research Internship Application Deadline

February 15

CardioSURF Application Deadline

February 15

Neutrino and Astrophysics Summer Research Experience for Undergraduates Application Deadline

February 28

Theatre STEM Application Deadline

March 3

Undergraduate Research Mentorship Award Nomination Deadline

March 15

Fralin Undergraduate Research Fellowship Application Deadline

Advanced Research Skills (ARS) Program Open Enrollment

The University Libraries offers the Advanced Research Skills Program (ARS), an online program designed to equip undergraduate students, especially first-year students who don't yet have research experience, with foundational research competencies. The program comprises six modules:

Using Data & Information Ethically
Managing & Organizing Data
Managing & Organizing Information
Writing Successful Proposals
Sharing Your Research
Becoming a Researcher.

Upon completion, students earn digital badges, providing verifiable recognition of their skills. Students may enroll up to mid-February. For more information on the program and to sign up, visit the ARS sign-up form.

Making the Most of Your Summer: Internships, Research, and Beyond

The Student Engineers' Council have invited representatives from a wide variety of on-campus organizations to speak about different opportunities, so that you can find the one that best fits your interests! The event features representatives from Career and Professional Development, the Office of Undergraduate Research, and the Center for Enhancing Engineering Diversity. At the end, there will be a Q&A session for you to have any of your questions answered.

The event takes place on February 5, 2025 from 6:30 P.M. to 8:00 P.M. To register for the event, visit the Student Engineers' Council webpage.

Theatre STEM Program - Updated Deadline

The Office of Undergraduate Research in collaboration with the Center for Communicating Science and VT s Theater Arts Program is excited to realize the vision of Dr. Dennis Dean to engage STEM undergraduate researchers in a variety of acting and presentation experiences. The goal of this new program is to help STEM students become effective and engaging communicators. In this pilot program, 10 students will be selected to participate during the 2024-25 academic year. Selected students will

Build professional network and develop relationships with instructors and other students in the cohort.
Opportunity to present research in two different formats- oral and poster- at the 2025 Dennis Dean Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship Conference.
Eligible for up to $500 support towards travel to present research at a conference outside VT.

The application deadline is February 28, 2025. For more information, including how to apply, visit the Theatre in STEM webpage.

Undergraduate Research Mentorship Award Nominations

The Office of Undergraduate Research acknowledges the hard work, time, dedication, and guidance research mentors provide to undergraduate students, which often goes unrecognized. Current undergraduate students are asked to nominate one Virginia Tech faculty or graduate student research mentor from any discipline for the award of Outstanding Undergraduate Research Faculty Mentor.

Nominations are due March 3, 2025. For more information on how to submit a nomination, visit the Undergraduate Research Mentorship Award webpage.

Fralin Undergraduate Research Program (FURF)

The Fralin Undergraduate Research Fellowship program is a competitive award program that is open to all Virginia Tech undergraduates with a goal of increasing diversity in research. Fifteen (15) fellowships of $1,350 will be awarded annually to individual students demonstrating academic capability and a strong interest in undergraduate research, to enable them to conduct research with a Virginia Tech faculty mentor over the course of one academic year.

Applications due March 17, 2025
Open to all majors

For more information on how to apply, visit the FURF webpage.

The Dennis Dean Undergraduate Research & Creative Scholarship Conference

The annual Dennis Dean Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship conference is a day-long event held at the end of each Spring semester that showcases the wide variety of research and creative scholarship taking place across Virginia Tech. At this event, students present their work as posters and may apply to be considered for several conference awards.

The conference will take place all-day on April 25, 2025 in Owens Ballroom. For students interested in presenting, the deadline for submitting an application is April 9, 2025.

For more information on how to apply to present your work, visit the Dennis Dean Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship webpage.

Hume Center Summer Internship Program

The Virginia Tech Hume Center is pleased to announce the Summer Internship Program for summer 2025! The internship program will allow students to work with our researchers in either Blacksburg or Arlington, VA. Interns will perform novel research as a team member on existing projects with real-world stakeholders and use cases. They will receive individual mentorship from experienced, technical researchers while sharing a summer research experience with a diverse cohort of students.

We will be offering positions to undergraduate and graduate students for a 10-week internship (May-July 2025). Interns will be paid hourly at a rate commensurate with location, experience, and academic level. Applications are now open for summer 2025 and will be reviewed on a rolling basis with students being placed by researchers "first come, first served".

Offers will be sent out on a rolling basis starting January 29, 2025. For more information and instructions on how to apply, visit the HUME Summer Internship Program form.

Washington University ENDURE Neuroscience Summer Program

The Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) ENDURE summer research program prepares undergraduates from diverse backgrounds for neuroscience PhD programs. Accepted students are funded for up to two years. The program combines independent research, a rigorous academic and professional development curriculum, and an empowering support system so participants thrive on their path to graduate school and beyond. Benefits include a $7000 stipend per summer, travel to and from the program, housing, eligibility for academic year research stipend ($2000 per semester for up to two academic years) and funds to attend up to two scientific conferences annually. Applications are due by February 3, 2025.

Information on eligibility and how to apply can be found on the ENDURE webpage.

Plant Genomics at MSU Research Program

The Plant Genomics @ MSU REU Program is a 10-week research experience that provides participants with insight into scientific research, graduate school & STEM careers. Participants work on a research project with a faculty mentor. The program provides opportunities for training in computational biology & science communication. We host seminars, networking & social activities. $6500 stipend + campus housing + meals + travel support.

Program dates are May 18 July 26, 2025. Apply by February 7, 2025.

For more information visit the Plant Genomics at MSU webpage.

The Multicultural Academic Opportunities Program (MAOP) Summer Research Internship

For students interested in summer research at Virginia Tech, the MAOP Summer Research Internship has a variety of projects in areas of STEM, Social Sciences, Architecture, and Veterinary Sciences. Students selected for the internship will receive:

$3,000 stipend
On-Campus housing
Meal Plan
Graduate/Professional School Preparation
Social Activities and Events

Applications are due February 15, 2025. For more details, and information on how to apply, visit the MAOP Undergraduate Summer Research Internship webpage.

Cardiovascular Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (CardioSURF)

The CardioSURF program is a 10-week summer program sponsored by the American Heart Association that gives students the opportunity to participate in hypothesis-driven independent research at Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC in Roanoke, Virginia.

Students will participate in a weekly workshop series to provide hands-on experience in the cutting-edge imaging technologies housed within the research institute to understand appropriate application of each technology in cardiovascular research.

This program encompasses a full-time, 40-hour week schedule and supports CardioSURF students with a $6,000 stipend. Housing will also be provided to those students that need it. The deadline to apply is February 15, 2025. For more details, and information on how to apply, visit the CardioSURF webpage.

Neutrino and Astrophysics Summer Research Experience for Undergraduates

In this rich intellectual environment, the students will have the opportunity to pursue independent and productive activities, guided by an established team of Virginia Tech faculty members together with assistant professors and postdocs.

In addition to experiencing the excitement of front-line research, the students will develop the essential skills of a successful scientist, such as critical self-evaluation and self-assessment. The Center for Neutrino Physics faculties will mentor the students carefully, with special emphasis on their communication and dissemination skills. Our program will provide them with the realistic aspects of research at graduate schools and beyond, such as the design and running of experiments, the acquisition and analysis of data, the development and testing of computer codes, the learning of appropriate mathematical/analytic techniques, the formulation of theoretical ideas, as well as the preparation of results for publications and presentations.

On-campus housing, a meal plan, and $6,000 stipend is provided for students participating in the program. The deadline to apply is February 15, 2025. For more details, and information on how to apply, visit the Neutrino and Astrophysics Summer Research Experience for Undergraduates webpage.

Food, Energy, and Water Security Research Experience for Undergraduates

The NSF-supported Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program at Mississippi State University, focused on Food, Energy, and Water Security is a ten-week summer program that offers students the chance to work with a faculty mentor on renewable energy research, covering biofuel production, biochar applications, and wastewater purification.

Participants will receive a $6,000 stipend, housing and meals, and travel support for this 10-week summer program beginning May 27, 2025. We welcome applications from undergraduates who have completed at least their freshman year and are U.S. citizens or permanent residents.

Applications are due February 15, 2025. For more details, and information on how to apply, visit the Food, Energy, and Water Security REU webpage.

Collaborative Undergraduate Biostatistics Experience (CUBE)

The Collaborative Undergraduate Biostatistics Experience (CUBE) is an 8-week training program designed to give motivated undergraduate students in STEM the opportunity to engage in a full-time collaborative data science experience, along with related professional development activities.

Applications are due February 28, 2025. For more details, and information on how to apply, visit the CUBE webpage.

UCLA BIG Summer Program

Bruins-In-Genomics (B.I.G.) Summer Research Program is an 8-week full-time immersion program for undergraduates interested in learning how to read and analyze genes and genomes. Through this program students will have the opportunity to experience graduate-level coursework, and learn the latest cutting-edge research, tools and methods used by leading scientists to solve real-world problems.

Applications are due March 3, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. For more information on the program and how to apply, visit the BIG Summer Program webpage.

The Undergraduate Research Showcase at the Capitol

The Network for Undergraduate Research in Virginia (NURVa) will be hosting Virginia's inaugural "Undergraduate Research Showcase at the Capitol" in Richmond Virginia, where undergraduate researchers will present their work to members of the General Assembly. More than 30 posters will be representing 16 schools across the Commonwealth.

The showcase will be on Thursday, February 6, 2025 from 3-5 p.m. at 1000 Bank Street, Richmond VA. Join us in supporting our students!

The Giovanni-Steger Poetry Prize

All undergraduate students at Virginia Tech are invited to submit an original poem to The Giovanni-Steger Poetry Prize contest, established by the late President Emeritus Charles W. Steger and University Distinguished Professor Nikki Giovanni, retired. The first-place prize is $1,500. The second-place prize is $800 and third-place is $500.

The top ten poets will read their poems publicly along with some Virginia Tech faculty at the Nikki Giovanni Celebration of Poetry on Wednesday, April 2 at 5:00 p.m.

The deadline for submission is February 7. For more information, and how to format your submission, email Aileen Murphy (aileen@vt.edu).

Call for In-Person Judges for Virginia Junior Academy of Sciences Research Symposium

The Virginia Junior Academy of Science will hold its 2025 VJAS Research Symposium hybrid event on Saturday, May 31, 2025, at Ferrum College (Ferrum, VA, 24088). This meeting aims to give approximately 500 students in grades seven through twelve from throughout the Commonwealth the opportunity to present papers that will report original research they have conducted.

If you're interested in being an in-person judge for this event, please register by February 15. For more information, including how to register, visit the VJAS Research Symposium webpage.

Virginia Tech Laptop Orchestra (L2Ork) 2025 Hackathon

We re excited to invite you to the 2025 L2Ork Tweeter Hackathon, a two-day hybrid event taking place March 22-23, 2025, at Virginia Tech and online! Hosted by the Virginia Tech Laptop Orchestra (L2Ork), participants will explore sound, music, and technology through L2Ork Tweeter, a free and open-source platform. Activities include hacking the software, co-creating music pieces, and collaborating in an interdisciplinary environment.

We are seeking a student with technical expertise and an interest in technology and music to assist with:

Technical support and event setup.
Mentorship of hackathon participants, offering guidance and assistance on technical challenges.
Engaging with students to teach introductory classes on Pd-L2Ork, our custom version of Pure Data software.

This role is ideal for a student with a passion for music and technology who wants to gain hands-on experience in an interdisciplinary and creative environment.

The deadline to register is February 15. For more information, including how to register, visit the L2Ork webpage.

Paid Post-baccalaureate Research Education Program

The Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) is currently recruiting for its NIH-funded Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP)!

PREP is a one-year intensive research and professional development program for individuals with a keen interest in pursuing a PhD or MD/PhD in the biomedical sciences.

Components of the program include:

Work on a one-year research project with experienced, dedicated mentors
Inclusion in a vibrant community of biomedical scientists at all levels of training
Financial Support: $34,000 annual salary

Students must have graduated with a bachelor s degree within three years of the time of application.
Additional benefits include paid travel to conferences and health insurance reimbursement. The application is open until April 30, 2025. For more information on how to apply, visit the PREP webpage.

Office of Undergraduate Research

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