Applications are now closed for summer 2024.
Thank you for your interest in the program. We plan to post information about summer 2025 in November.
If you submitted an application for 2024, letters of recommendation are due February 19.
Program Details for Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) and Research Experience for Veterans (REV):
- Students receive a $6,000 stipend
- In addition to the stipend, the CSN provides:
- Housing and meals
- Travel expenses to and from the host institution
- Travel expenses to and from the University of Minnesota for an orientation meeting at the beginning of the summer.
Program Dates: 10 weeks beginning late May/early June, and may be adjusted depending on student needs & schedules for each institution.
Program Highlights:
- Faculty-led seminars on various topics in sustainability and nanotechnology
- Tutorials on applying to, surviving, and excelling in graduate school
- Presentation of your research results and conclusions to other students and faculty
- Social activities with other summer researchers in the program
- Training in cross-disciplinary research linking chemistry with biological science and materials science
- Direct interaction with faculty mentors
Two research tracks:
Eligibility: Undergraduate students currently enrolled at 2- or 4-year institutions in the United States are eligible to apply.
- Applications for summer 2024 are now closed.
- The deadline to submit applications was February 5, 2024 at 11:59pm Central time.
- Letters of recommendation are due February 19.
Research project examples include:
- Synthesis and functionalization of novel types of nanomaterials
- Molecular-level interaction of nanomaterials with lipid bilayers
- Influence of surface ligands and nanoparticle bulk composition on uptake of nanoparticles by organisms
- Molecular-level changes induced in organisms by exposure to nanoparticles
- Development and application of methods for in situ characterization of nanomaterials in biological/environmental matrices
- Computational characterization and prediction of SNPs across many scales (from angstroms to meters)
Note regarding COVID-19: We are planning an in-person program if possible, but will adapt to a modified virtual program if needed. The details below are based on a fully in-person program; you can read one student’s account of our virtual summer 2020 experience in this blog post, and we did host a successful hybrid program in 2021 and in-person programs in 2022 and 2023.
Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE)
The Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology, through support from the National Science Foundation, hosts a Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) program focused on Sustainable Nanotechnology. Selected participants will spend 10 weeks conducting research in collaboration with one more principal investigators of the Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology. Each student will be located at one of the participating institutions but will interact with faculty and students at all institutions via in-person and online interactions. (CSN institutions include the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Augsburg University, Boston University, the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, Johns Hopkins University, University of California-Riverside, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Iowa, University of Maryland-Baltimore County, University of Minnesota, and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Research Experience for Veterans Program
The Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology, through support from the National Science Foundation, hosts a Research Experience for Veterans (REV) program focused on Sustainable Nanotechnology. The CSN and NSF recognize that Veterans are underrepresented in America’s science and technology sectors. We are eager for student Veterans to participate in research for class credit during the school year. Additionally, selected participants will have the opportunity to be paid for 10 weeks of summer research in collaboration with one or more principal investigators of the Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology. Each student will be located at one of the participating institutions but will interact with faculty and students at all institutions via in-person and online interactions.
Interested in non-CSN undergraduate research opportunities? You can find useful lists at pathwaystoscience.org, this webpage, and this spreadsheet.
Contact:
Dr. Miriam Krause
CSN Director of Education, Outreach, & Diversity
Email: mkrause@umn.edu
Phone: 612-625-1036
Professor Robert J. Hamers
Director, NSF Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology
Email: rjhamers@wisc.edu