The University of Alabama REU in Interdisciplinary Application of Advanced Polymers for Engineering Innovation is housed in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering. This program spans 10 weeks and offers opportunities for up to 9 students from UA and other institutions across the nation.
Available research projects implement both computational and experimental analysis tools. This exciting research opportunity begins in mid-May and is available for up to nine motivated U.S. engineering or science undergraduates with a minimum 3.0 GPA. The total stipend for the 8 week program is $5,000. On-campus housing is available.
Faculty in both Chemical & Biological Engineering and Chemistry & Biochemistry and the Alabama Institute for the Mentoring of Entrepreneurs (AIME) will act as research mentors for the program. Examples of research areas include.
Important Dates
- Application Opens: January 10, 2022
- Early Bird Deadline: February 28, 2022
- Final Application Deadline: April 8, 2022
- Tentative Program Dates: May 22 – July 15, 2022
Contact
For more information about this program, contact the following program managers:
- Dr. Jason E. Bara – Program Director
- Dr. Yonghyun “John” Kim
Application
Submit the following material to the Project Director (Dr. Jason Bara):
- Application form
- Copy of transcripts
- Unofficial transcripts are acceptable and can be uploaded with your application.
Early application is encouraged. Early acceptance will proceed for highly qualified applicants. Accepted applicants will be notified as soon as possible.
Eligibility Criteria
- U.S. citizen or permanent resident
- Enrolled in undergraduate university/college student pursuing a degree in science or engineering
- Minimum 3.0 overall GPA
Benefits
During the program, students will
- participate in hands-on, supervised research in the field of polymer science & engineering
- attend seminars on graduate school and career preparation
- attend workshops to improve technical writing and oral presentations
- tour regional research/industrial facilities and visit other regional attractions
- present research results at a summer-end symposium
- attend and/or present research results at the AIChE Conference in November
Financial Support
- The summer is stipend is $5,000.
- On-campus housing at no cost to the student is available for all accepted applicants that request on-campus housing.
- Travel expense reimbursement (up to $500) to/from the University of Alabama for the summer
Requirements
Participant must:
- Commit at least 40 hours per week to REU activities
- Attend lab meetings
- Attend professional development workshops or research seminars
- Attend field trips or social events
- Prepare and deliver an oral presentation or research poster/paper
Activities
The scheduled activities are designed to engage students in engineering research and further increase interest and understanding of the wide-ranging field of polymers. The program will foster technical development and research skills, afford sufficient time to complete research assignments, and provide social and educational weekend activities away from UA’s campus. Throughout each week, participants will spend most of their time in the research lab, under the supervision of their matched faculty supervisor and research team.
Friday Morning Meetings and Lunch Seminars: During morning meetings, the REU students will meet as a group to present their research in an informal setting. Lunch seminars will include talks from young professionals in polymers industries, career development, technology transfer/intellectual property and data management.
Local Excursions: Possible local excursions include NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, local camping and rafting destinations for weekend excursions, summer concerts and the 4th of July festival at the Tuscaloosa Amphitheatre.
Student Symposium: Students will each give presentations on their summer research the final Thursday of the program at an all-day symposium. REU staff will judge the presentations for quality of research, organization and speaking manner. Students will also be expected to turn in a short technical report covering their research. Feedback will be provided to the students on their performance.
AIChE Conference: All students who have shown a substantial effort on their project will be encouraged to submit an abstract and present a poster at the AIChE Annual Meeting Student Conference in Boston, MA (November 7-12, 2021). A travel stipend will be available to assist with travel costs.