This REU Site award to The Ohio State University, located in Columbus, OH, will support the training of 12 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2020-2022. It is anticipated that a total of 36 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities or from an underrepresented group, will be trained in the program. Applications from students with disabilities, including Deaf/Hard of Hearing students, are strongly encouraged. Participation in research will be facilitated by an extensive system of scientific interpreters and resources currently in place at Ohio State. Students will learn how research is conducted, and many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences. Assessment of the program will be done thru the online SALG URSSA tool. Students will be tracked after the program in order to determine their career paths.
The REU Site at The Ohio State University brings together 36 faculty mentors from across the molecular life sciences who all share an interest in using model organisms and molecular tools to address critical biological questions across the evolutionary spectrum. The centerpiece of the program is the research experience, with students working on individual projects under the supervison of an individual faculty mentor. Mentors will be matched to best align with the student's self-identified research interests and experience, as stated on their application prior to joining the program. Program mentors are experts in diverse areas of biology, from Microbiology faculty studying lipid metabolic pathways in microbes, to Molecular Genetics faculty studying oscillatory regulation of gene expression in animal models, to Biochemistry faculty studying mechanisms of essential RNA processing enzymes. Program faculty have all been selected because of their demonstrated commitment to high-quality mentoring and undergraduate research. The research experience will be complemented with a set of supporting program activities to enhance students' skills in quantitative reasoning, scientific communication, and responsible conduct of research, all of which are designed to prepare the student for a successful future career in biological research.
More information about the program is available by visiting https://molgen.osu.edu/research-experience-undergraduates, or by contacting the PI (Dr. Jane Jackman at mgreu@osu.edu).
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
