IRIS Summer Opportunities for Undergrads

Overview
Program Element / Activity Title:
IRIS Summer Opportunities for Undergrads
E/PO Project Name:
IRIS
Contact Information Shown to the Public:
Program Element / Activity Website:
Short Description for Projects Page:

Stanford, Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory (LMSAL), and NASA/Ames jointly host students in summer research opportunities by leveraging on Stanford’s highly-successful Summer Research College (SRC), a ten-week program currently available to undergraduate Stanford physics majors. The IRIS team extends this program to incorporate promising non-Stanford undergraduates recruited from 2- and 4-year colleges, especially those at institutions where students would not otherwise have the opportunity to become involved in a research program. Students in the IRIS National Science and Engineering Student Competition are particularly encouraged to apply.

By leveraging on an existing successful program, and bridging the gap between opportunities such as the NASA Quest Challenges and the summer school opportunities available to space science graduate students, our SRC Extension offers a diverse collection of undergraduates an introduction to the topic of heliophysics and the opportunity to gain valuable research experience early in their careers.

Audience Metrics
Who is the primary audience of your program element / activity?:
Who is the secondary audience of your program element / activity?:
Evaluation
What are the goals and objectives of your program element / activity?:
Goal: Provide undergraduates with authentic mission-related research opportunities –a proven method of engaging and retaining them in science while enabling them with valuable skills and experiences. Objectives: 1) Have at least 50% of students coming from under-represented groups, 2) Participants are trained in appropriate EPO activities and techniques, with the objective of having at least 75% of students participate in science-related community service when they return home from their experience, 3) Assessment shows that continued follow-up with students is extremely valuable in maintaining their interest in a field. Objective is to have each SRC student be provided with an IRIS scientist-mentor who maintains communication with the student during the following academic year.
What are the main impacts of your effort to date and how do they correlate to the project’s goals and objectives:
This program is underway. Assessment is being done by a team from the Lawrence Hall of Science. Metrics will be forthcoming.