The objective of this proposal is to continue operation of a successful REU Site in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of South Carolina. The project provides students with research experiences derived from on-going research within the department in the engineering of secure software. Projects focus on one or more of the security triad of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Participants engage in an eight-week summer research program with follow-on activities during the academic year after they return to their home institutions. These experiences: 1) encourage the computing majors to continue their studies and seek graduate degrees and research oriented careers in computer science and computer engineering; 2) encourage the pre-service teachers to continue their studies and enter the teaching profession prepared to engage their own students in research activities; 3) assist all the students in exploring employment and research opportunities available both as teachers and computing professionals; and 4) provide an enriching educational experience by exposing the students to non-classroom faculty-student interactions. The primary target participants are sophomore and junior level college students from primarily undergraduate institutions in the Southeast. Both students majoring in computing and related fields and pre-service teachers majoring in related education fields are eligible. The REU Site works closely with the South Carolina Alliance for Minority Participation (SCAMP) to provide joint support for some participants.
Intellectual Merit. The undergraduate research projects lead to the development of more effective tools and techniques for the engineering of secure, reliable and effective software. The research projects include such areas as the inclusion of security issues at early stages of software development, ensuring security on the semantic web, and maintaining availability of sensors and hand-held devices.
Broader Impact. The program provides an opportunity for ten undergraduates to participate in research projects each year. The experience will expose them to the possibility of graduate study and encourage them to choose this step in their career paths. The emphasis on secure computing is supportive of the social need for such software. The selection process for these students promotes the inclusion of underrepresented groups through targeted publicity and outreach efforts as well as cooperation with the SCAMP program.
