A Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Sites award has been made to San Francisco State University (SFSU) that will provide research training for 10 students, for 10 weeks during the summers of 2012- 2016. The program's focus is in the area of ecology, evolution, and developmental biology. REU fellows will work with an exceptionally diverse team of REU mentors with active extramurally funded research labs, many of which are located at SFSU's marine station, the Romberg Tiburon Center for Environmental Studies (RTC). The program will feature a one-week intensive lab/lecture/field methods course, a 9-week independent research project conducted on the main campus or at RTC, a 9-week professional development seminar, a bioethics workshop, a variety of networking activities, and a campus-wide research conference where students present their research projects to the broader community. The program's recruitment effort consists of "hard copy" and digitally based advertising, as well as through networking activities by REU alumni and faculty. The goals of this program are to provide research training for students at an early stage of their academic careers and to encourage them to not only complete their undergraduate degrees in the sciences but also to consider graduate-level training and careers in the sciences. Therefore, students are selected based on their academic record, letters of recommendation, specific interest in the area of ecology, evolution, and development, and future career goals. Students are tracked to determine completion of their degree program and the impact of the research experience on their career path. Pre and post surveys as well as an REU common assessment tool will be used to evaluate the program. More information is available by visiting http://biology.sfsu.edu/faculty-pages/reu, or by contacting the PI (Dr. Carmen Domingo at cdomingo@sfsu.edu) or the co-PI (Dr. Sarah Cohen at sarahcoh@sfsu.edu).
