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Program Information
At the University of Pittsburgh,
we expect to continue a summer research program for undergraduates who
have made a strong record in their first year of undergraduate work and
who have an interest in continuing into scientific research with a
connection to physics. The expected number of students is about 4.
We are an NSF REU
(Research Experiences for Undergraduates) site. This summer we expect
to have research opportunities in: condensed matter physics, mechanical
engineering and biomechancial engineering, physical chemistry, high energy
physics, medium energy physics, and astrophysics.
The idea of the program is that a student will
(ideally) be accepted after the freshman or sophomore year on the basis of grade point average (normally at least
3.2) and faculty recommendations. While renewal of the appointment for
the following summers must of course be conditional on the continuing
agreement of both the program directors and the student, the normal
duration of the program is expected to be 2-3 summers, with arrangements
for feedback and continued contact during the school year. We believe
that this arrangement has benefits both for our program as well as the
student's general undergraduate experience. More senior students are also encouraged to apply,
however preference will be given to promising returning students and
to new students who intend to continue with the REU program for more than one summer.
For each student, the first summer includes an
evaluation of the student's readiness for research and which areas should be developed in order for the
student to be effective within the research group. On average a student
will spend about 50 hours per week in program-realated activities.
For freshmen, a significant amount of the student's time the first summer
may be in supplementary academic work in statistics, electrical circuits, high energy
or nuclear physics, computer applications, or mathematical techniques (as
examples of skills or areas which may not be sufficiently covered in the
normal freshman curriculum to allow a student to step directly into
research work). As the student becomes more mature, the fraction of
supplementary work would be decreased, and more of the time would be on
the research work. By the last summer we would
expect the work to be almost entirely research, and for the student to become a solid contributor in
some area of the group's work. Besides the research and academic
components, we ask all students to help in tutoring and mentoring other,
more junior students.
The stipend is based on pay rates for University of Pittsburgh
undergraduates, and ranges from approximately $3200 for the ten week
period for students finishing their freshman year, to a maximum of about
$3900 for students finishing their junior year. The exact amount
depends on academic standing and prior experience and achievement as well
as year in school. In addition, some financial help with transportation
between Pittsburgh and the student's home or institution is available in
cases of need. Room and board in the University residence halls are
provided in exchange for the mentoring and tutoring activities.
The application should include:
A personal data form, a statement of
interests including specific areas of research
Transcript including grade point average
Letters of nomination from two faculty who know the student's work well
The student's application and (separately) the faculty letters
and transcript should be sent to:
Dr. Russell Clark
Director, REUPHYS
Department of Physics and Astronomy
100 Allen Hall
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pa, 15260
FAX (412) 624-9163
Our expected term for the research
experience at Pitt is May 26th through August 1st, 2008, for a
total of 10 weeks.
We hope to begin
selection of participants in February and continue until
all positions within the program are filled.
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